Esther

The book of Esther has caused a problem for some biblical scholars and critics. They see a story about God’s people, but they don’t see God. Esther has heroes and villains, conspiracies and suspense, but they ask what a story like this is doing as part of the Bible, the book that tells who God is. He is not on stage and has no lines. He doesn’t appear miraculously in clouds or fire, and he doesn’t even send brightly-clothed angelic messengers to speak to his people.

Esther is a different reading experience than many other books of the Bible. Instead of supernatural miracles or dramatic prophecies, this is a story of imperfect people reacting to important, life-changing events and making choices, navigating their days much like we do in our own lives. Also like our own lives, God is not absent. He may not speak or decree, but he is ever-present, working through the choices people make to move history along to fulfill his ultimate plan.

Download the Historical Fact Sheet (432 KB).