The Book of Esther, Esther was a drop dead stone fox.

Esther was a young girl living in Persia with her Uncle Mordecai. How young, oh, maybe 12 or 13, something like that. They were minding their own business having a pretty good life when the trouble started. The problem was that they were Jews and so while life was good for them they were still on the bottom of the social rung. But Jews were used to that kind of life and still to this day are somewhat marginalized in cultures around the world. Yet, Jews live well and prosper.

King Xerxes came to power and ruled Persia from 485–465 B.C.E. It was the custom in those days for a new king to party for 6 months to show people who's boss. People would come from all over the empire to get down with the new king. The shindig lasted 6 months because it took leaders from all over the empire that long to travel to the capital.

One day when the king and his cronies were higher than kites from too much fine wine he decided to show off his queen, Queen Vashti. Now he did not just want to show her off because she was beautiful, he wanted to show his friends that she had the best body in the land so he sent word that she was to appear before him in just her crown. She was like a trophy wife. He wanted people to see what he as king was capable of having not only in all the wealth and power of being king, but in womanhood too.

Queen Vashti would have been young too but she was not dumb. You don't get to be queen just by tossing your beauty pageant Tera in the ring. Vashti knew the jig was up. Because of her drunken king husband her days were numbered. If she appeared nude she would be disgraced and probably killed when the king sobered up. If she refused she could be killed from disobeying the king. She took the high road and refused. After sobering up the king met with his court and decided to banish Vashti to his harem where there could be a couple hundred other women guarded by eunuchs. There she would live out her life not being able to fall in love or be loved. I suppose it was better than being executed.

Now there is no queen. So the cronies came to the king with a plan. We will have year long beauty contest and find the hottest chick in all the land to be your queen. And guess who won the contest? Esther the Jew. And yet, she could not let on that she was Jewish. Uncle Mordecai told her to keep her pretty mouth shut about it.

So Esther becomes Queen. Now the plot thickens. A dude named Haman is the highest Nobel in the king's court. He has it made. All kinds of power, nice house, latest chariot, best slaves, his own modest harem and an insane hatred of Jews.

Why are people prejudiced? Maybe it is a chicken mentality. I am told that if a chicken gets some blood on it all the other chickens in the coop will peck it to death. We all know that in grade school through high school, kids that are a little different are picked on. Our own history in the United States reflects how we whites have oppressed minorities. There were times that white people could hang a black man or shoot him and there were no ramifications. There was a movie staring Woody Harrison called "Natural Born Killers." It was about two psychopaths crossing the country killing people. At one point Woody's character tells a TV crew that "We are natural born killers." The viewer realizes at the end of the movie that the message is that humans are natural born killers. Chickens aside, no other animal kills just for the enjoyment of killing as do humans.

Be that as it may, Haman became enraged when Uncle Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. Mordecai was a faithful Jew and would only honor God. Haman naturally decided to do away with Mordecai and all the other Jews in the country.

There is a lot of intrigue and double dealing and underhanded and highhanded interaction among all the participants for several chapters. It is well worth reading. The end result is that Haman built a high tower to hang Mordecai on. Haman threw lots (purim) to determine the day upon which all the Jews would be wiped right out. Queen Esther and Mordecai are faithful to God and Esther risks it all by going to the king and telling him of the plot by Haman to wipe out the Jews and hang Mordecai. You could be executed for appearing before the king without permission. I guess it startled him if someone just showed up. Those were the days when a king could have anyone beheaded for any or no reason.

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE.

This is one of the many stories in the Bible where there is a reversal of fortune. When the king is made aware of the plot to kill the Jews he has Haman hung on the very gallows that Haman prepared for Mordecai. Bummer for Haman huh? But he had it coming.

Today the Jews celebrate the Feast of Lots (purim means, lots or throwing or casting lots)to celebrate the victory of the Jews over Haman who was casting lots (purim) to decide what day the Jews would be wiped out.

Jews do not take this book as actual history but inspired by God to show the importance of being faithful to God. There are some problems with the book. If he Jews were taken into captivity in 586 and Xerexes came to power in 485 Esther would be 100 years old if she was an infant when carried off to Babylon. The Jews were freed from Babylon in 533 and many Jews stayed behind in Babylon or moved north to Persia and continued to live normal lives. Jews also recognize the unlikilyhood that a Jew could be come queen. There are other improbabilities at the end of the book as well.