Esther 1:10-12, "On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king, To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on. But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him."

When king Ahasuerus became enraged because of the queen's refusal to obey him, he decreed that Vashti would not longer serve as his queen and had young women brought into Shushan the palace for him to choose another.

The book of Esther chronicles the story of Hadassah, a beautiful young woman, who was among the Jewish captives in Babylon. Because of her age and her beauty, Esther was one of the young maidens brought into the king's house and placed in the custody of Hegai who guarded and observed the women for twelve months.

After the year was completed Hadassah, called Esther, was taken to go into the king. "And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all them that looked upon her. So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti," (Esther 2:16-17.)

 The book itself  is more purely historical than any other book of Scripture; and it has this remarkable peculiarity that the name of God does not occur in it from first to last in any form. It has, however, been well observed that "though the name of God be not in it, his finger is." The book wonderfully exhibits the providential government of God.

Esther 4:13-14, "Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"

The book itself is an account of the days of Purim which has been observed as a Jewish holiday, or feast, since the time of Esther. The feast commemorates the deliverance of the Jews from the plot of Haman.

Esther was a woman who, through beauty and grace, gained favor with the king and was elevated to a position of power and by wisdom she was able to save her nation from genocide.

Through the book of Esther we truly see the salvation of the Lord and, with the words of  Mordecai, we can ask the question about our own life, "Who knows if we have not come into the kingdom for such a time as this?"