Esther’s heart posture is reflective of one who loves the Lord and would risk everything, including her life, for obedience to Him. Paul expressed a similar sentiment in his letter to the Philippians when he said, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Love for God and His people more than oneself is indicative of a genuine believer. Esther was never motivated by selfish gain. She never saw herself as empowered because of her position as Queen. She simply was a humble servant of Christ.
Often, when pondering the story of Queen Esther, it is common for immature Christians to idolize her as a symbol of feminism. Some in the egalitarian sect point to her as proof that women should preach. After all, God saw so much value in Esther that surely He would bless a woman behind a pulpit. This is a frequent twisting of Scripture to justify women who rebel against God’s Word, and so much is missed from the story of Esther when viewed through the lens of women’s empowerment.
Consider this quote from a well-known female Bible teacher who often preaches from the pulpit:
“There is a destiny hidden in you, and it is not your external value. It is the hidden person of your heart. That is where the Esther is in you, and that is where the Esther is in me.”
Only a person who believes that the story of Esther was about Esther herself would believe that the reader should find the “Esther” within themselves. To the contrary, the story of Esther isn’t about us — and it wasn’t about Esther either. Even Esther, in all of her influence, knew that her reign was not about her. Rather, it was about God and His sovereign plan to protect and preserve His people.
Esther’s story is an illustration of God’s providence.
All of the events in the book of Esther lead to the end goal of rescuing the Jewish people from evil rulers, and the orchestration of these events by the hand of God is evident.
Of all the women in the kingdom the king could have chosen to replace Queen Vashti, God led him to find favor with Esther, an orphaned Jew who was living in the capital of Persia under the care of her uncle, Mordecai. Of all the high officials in the court of the king, God gave Queen Esther the courage to intervene on behalf of the Jews.
Instead of a peaceful rest, God caused the king to suffer from insomnia. Instead of attempting to sleep, the king was led by God to review royal records which exposed Mordecai’s role in thwarting an assassination plot against the king and resulted in the king finding favor with Mordecai. Instead of allowing Haman to continue with his plot to kill and plunder Mordecai and the Jewish people, God extended His wrath on him by the king’s hand.