Esther Chapter 1 Summary
Ahasuerus' great feast and the story of Yashti.
Discussion Questions for Esther, Chapter 1
- In verse 1, we see that the setting of this book is very different from that of most of the rest of the Old Testament. What does this teach us about God's concern for other nations and His control?
- What do we see of human pride in verse 4? Do rulers today act in similar ways? Give some examples.
- What kind of view of women do the people have in verse 11? Do you think the biblical author agrees with this perspective? Explain why or why not. What perspective should Christians have today?
- What deeper character trait is revealed by the anger in verse 12? What kind of things make you angry, and what does this show about your heart?
- What does verse 17 show us about the insecurity of the rulers? Why are they afraid of losing power? What do you think the author wants us to learn by portraying the foreign rulers in this way?
- What are some unhealthy patterns of marriage we can see in our culture? How are they similar to or different from what we see in this chapter?
- What are some unhealthy patterns of marriage we can see in the church? How are they similar to or different from what we see in this chapter?
- The king in this chapter rules over 127 provinces, and yet he doesn't get what he wants. How do we see the king humbled here, and what is the lesson for us?
- How do we see the rulers in this chapter making arbitrary laws? What might be a more just practice of making laws, and what is the lesson for us today?
- How do Christians normally view beauty? How does verse 11 relate to this? What are some other passages we could use to see a Biblical view of beauty?
Key Words/Phrase
Feast, v. 9.
Characters
Ahasuerus, Yashti, Memucan, Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena.
