Esther-The Beautiful Girl who Became a Queen

Esther-The Beautiful Girl who Became a Queen Esther 1,2

Esther comes before the king. ESTHER, THE JEWESS, was only a little girl when both her parents died and she went to live in the home of her cousin, Mordecai. Her new home was in the great city of Shushan, where the King of Persia lived. Her cousin, Mordecai, had an office in the household of the king. He was very kind to Esther, and loved her as his own child. After Esther grew up to young womanhood the King of Persia made a great feast in his palace. He invited all the nobles and rulers of his kingdom. Then, at the last of the feast he invited all the men of Shushan, both great and small, to come to the palace and share in his entertainment. Perhaps mordecai was there, too. Women in that country always wore veils over their faces when in the presence of men other than their own husbands, and they could not attend the same feasts with them. So the Queen, Vashti, gave a feast to the women at the same time as the King's feast to the men. On the last day of the feast, which continued for a whole week, the King grew very reckless because he had drunk much wine. And he wished to see his beautiful wife, the Queen. He wished that all the people attending his feast might see how beautiful she was. So he sent some of his servants to bring her into his part of the royal palace, where all the guest could behold her beauty. But Vashti, the Queen, refused to appear in the presence of all the men of Shushan. And she told the King's servants that she would not come. She believed that the King's request was unwise because it was contrary to the customs of her people. King Ahasuerus was very angry when the servants returned alone and told him that Vashti would not come with them. He called his wise men and asked what should be done with Vashti, the Queen, who had dared to disobey him. And one of the wise men said, "The queen has done wrong, not only to you, O King, but also to the princes and to all the people who dwell in your kingdom. For when this deed becomes known, the women everywhere will no longer respect their husbands as they should. Therefore let her be queen no longer, but choose another who is better than she to take her place." This advice pleased Ahasuerus, and he refused to let Vashti come into his presence again. He refused to let her be queen any longer, and decided to choose another beautiful young woman to become queen in her stead. So he sent commands through all his kingdom that the most beautiful young women should be brought to his palace, where he might choose among them the one who would please him best. This one he would make queen instead of Vashti. Mordecai knew that Esther was a beautiful young woman, and he believed she would make a beautiful queen. So he sent her to the palace with the other young women who came from different parts of the kingdom. And there she was taught the manners of the courtlife, so she would know how to please the King. But Mordecai told her not to let the fact become known that her people were the Jews. After living in the palace for some time, Esther was brought before the King; and she pleased him so much that he chose her at once to become the queen instead of Vashti. He placed the royal crown of Persia upon her head, and gave her rooms in his palace and many servants to attend her. Then he made a great feast for his princes and nobles, called Esther's feast, and he published the fact that Esther had been chosen as the new queen. Mordecai could no longer see the young woman whom he had cared for as tenderly as his own daughter. But every day he passed by the palace where she lived, and she could see him from her window. She would send messages to him by her faithful servants, and they would bring back the messages Mordecai wished her to receive. Then Mordecai would return to the king's gate and sit there as a watchman. While sitting in the gate, Mordecai saw two servants of the king who whispered together about some secret matter. He watched closely and learned that they were angry with the King and were planning to kill him. So he sent word to the King by Queen Esther, and she gave the warning in Mordecai's name. The King investigated the matter, and found that the men were guilty, so he put them to death. Then the warning of Mordecai, and how he had saved the King's life, were written in a book. But the King forgot about Mordecai's kindness to him, and did not promote him in the kingdom. He did not know that Mordecai, the Jew, was a relative of the beautiful young woman who wore the royal crown. Tomorrow: Haman's Plans to Destroy All the Jews

How the New Temple was Built in Jerusalem

How the New Temple was Built in Jerusalem Ezra 3:7 to 6:22; Haggai 1,2

The prophet Haggai urges for work to begin on the new temple. WHEN ZERUBBABEL AND his company came to Jerusalem they did not begin at once to rebuild the temple of the Lord. Winter was coming on, and first they built houses for themselves. But at the return of springtime they set to work at the great task that had brought them back to Judah. Zerubbabel and Jeshua, the high priest, hired carpenters and masons for the new building, and put to work every man among their number who was twenty years old or more. Again they sent to the Lebanon Mountains for wood to use in the building, for Cyrus the king had given them permission to do this. When everything was ready, the workers laid the foundation of the new temple. And the priests and Levites and singers stood ready with their trumpets and musical instruments to worship the Lord. They sang together, giving praise to God. And all the people stood near by, rejoicing because the great work was so well begun. They shouted with a loud noise. But some among them had seen the temple which Solomon had built, and when they saw the foundation of this new building they remembered how beautiful the first temple had been. Instead of shouting with joy they wept for sorrow. There were strangers living in the country places near Jerusalem who were not Jews. When they saw the work that the Jews had commenced at Jerusalem, they asked permission to help in the building of the temple; they said, "We seek your God, as you do." But Zerubbabel and Jeshua, the high priest, knew these men did not worship God in the right way, and they would not accept help form them. These strangers were Samaritans, the people who came to live in Israel after the northern tribes were carried away into captivity. These were the people who had mixed religion--a mixture of the true religion and idol-worship. When Zerubbabel and Jeshua refused to let them help build the temple they grew angry and tried to hinder the work. They sent letters back to the king of Persia, accusing the Jews of falsehoods, and they continued to do this for a long time. Finally they caused the building of the temple to come to a standstill. Several years passed by, and the Jews were not allowed to finish the temple. So they build comfortable homes for themselves and began to work in the fields near Jerusalem. Finally God caused the new king of Persia, another king named Darius, to be friendly toward the Jews. But the Jews did not ask him to help them. They did not try to finish the work which they had begun on the temple. So God sent a prophet, named Haggai, to urge them to get at work again on the temple. This prophet said that Zerubbabel had begun the new temple, and he should finish the building of it. So Zerubbabel and Jeshua took courage and began once more on the temple-building. When they commenced work the Samaritans came down to see what they were doing. They asked, "Who had given you orders to do this?" And they answered, "Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us to build this house of God." The Samaritans did not believe their words, and they wrote a letter to King Darius, telling what the Jews had said. But when Darius looked in the records that had been kept during the rule of Cyrus he found that Cyrus had indeed commanded the Jews to rebuild the temple. So he sent word back to the Samaritans, telling them not to hinder the Jews, but rather to give them money to help hurry on the great work which Cyrus had commanded them to do. And he said that if they refused to obey his words their own houses should be torn down and they should be killed. This message caused the Samaritans to become afraid, and they ceased to hinder the Jews. When the temple was finally completed, the Jews had a great feast, and they offered many sacrifices to the Lord. They rejoiced very much because God had given them a friend in the new king of Persia, and had helped them to overcome the wicked plans of their neighbors, the Samaritans. Tomorrow: Esther-The Beautiful Girl who Became a Queen