Welcome to 10 minute Bible Talks.

Where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work.

I'm Tanya Wilmoth.

When you're their religious minority and the people around you have different views on almost everything, how do you respond? Do you withdraw? Do you assimilate? Do you push back? Do you critique? What are we supposed to do? In the book of Esther, the Jews are constantly living on the edge of danger.

As exiles, they have no land, no military power, and no king.

They live in a Persian society among people who have different views on everything related to morals and

religion and politics. Now before God has been with his people when they're in

exile, when they're in danger. Sometimes God was doing miraculous things like parting a sea or sending food

out of the clouds. But now, in this time and place, God seems silent. Is this an oversight?

In fact, does this book really belong in the Bible at all? I mean there's no mention of God

anywhere in the book. In fact it's a book about a powerless woman who became Queen

by winning a beauty and sex contest that

please the king. Are these things strange or do they actually make a point?

This is what we're going to talk about today, how the hiddenness of God isn't a strange coincidence,

but it's actually a statement about how an unseen God works through human history with ordinary people and events.

Now Esther's chapter 1 and 2 open with a contrast.

It's like a tale of two people.

On one hand you have a rich, indulgent Persian king. He has lots of money, clothes, ornaments, women, food and wine, but he has little to no discernment. He is throwing a party to show off his wealth and indulge himself and all of his favorite people.

Now on the other hand, while all this is happening, the author takes a detour in chapter 2 to introduce a woman named Esther.

She is the king's complete opposite.

Esther is living in this kingdom but she's an orphan.

She's being raised by her uncle Mordecai.

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