Bible Stories | The Story of Queen Esther & Ruth and Naomi | Jesus Christ Stories in English

Today we will learn all about Queen Esther, one of the most important figures in the Bible. She was an incredibly kind and strong woman who went on to become a great queen in ancient Persia and ultimately saved her people from great suffering. In ancient times, Persia was a vast and powerful empire. They enjoyed great riches and prosperity. Leading the empire was a powerful king named Xerxes. Xerxes lived a lifestyle befitting the king of a mighty empire. He would throw great banquets where he and his guests would eat the finest food and drink the finest wine. One night at one of these banquets, Xerxes and his guests became rather drunk. As the festivities continued, King Xerxes decided he wanted to show off the beauty of his wife, Queen Vashti, to his guests. Servants, fetch me my wife Vashti. I want everyone to see how beautiful she is. But Vashti refused to join the party. She hated these banquets, filled with shouting, loud music, and drunken guests. She said she would not come with the servants. This enraged King Xerxes. The next day, to punish Vashti for her disobedience, the king banished his queen out of the kingdom of Persia and sent her away, never to return. Over time, King Xerxes' anger at his wife began to fade and he started to feel lonely. His advisors were worried about him, so they came up with a plan. They suggested to the king that he invite all the beautiful young women of the kingdom to the palace, so they could undergo beauty treatments, and from them, the king could pick a new queen. King Xerxes liked this idea and agreed at once. Soon the search began. And the king's men went all around Persia, gathering the most beautiful young women they could find. And it was through this search that a young woman named Esther began her journey to becoming queen of Persia. Esther was an orphan. Both her mother and her father died when she was young, and so she was raised by a man named Mordecai. Her family were Jews from the Holy Land, who had fled to Persia many years earlier when their homeland was captured. The people around Esther did not know she and her cousin Mordecai were Jewish, but they did know that she was very, very beautiful. Not only in her appearance, but also in her soul. Esther possessed a kind and open soul that only made her outward beauty even greater. The king's men came to Esther and Mordecai's home and instructed the young woman to go to the palace. Esther agreed to go with him, but before she left, Mordecai made her swear to keep her Jewish identity a secret. My precious Esther, I have raised you and I love you as if you were my own daughter. My only wish is for you to be safe. Most people here in Persia are not Jewish, and there are those who hate us and wish to get rid of us. You must promise me that when you go to the palace, you will never reveal that you are a Jew, as it may put you in great danger. Esther listened carefully to Mordecai's warning and agreed to keep the secret. As you wish. If you believe that being Jewish may put us in danger, I will indeed keep it a secret. I must go now. The king awaits. When all the beautiful women of the land were brought together and made to look their best, Esther's beauty still set her apart. Of all the beautiful women that were presented to King Xerxes, he selected Esther, and so she became his wife. When they were wed, Esther kept her promise to Mordecai, and not a soul knew that she was in fact a Jew. Not long after the wedding, Esther and Mordecai won even more favor when they uncovered a plot to kill the king. In recognition for saving his life, King Xerxes added Mordecai's name to the royal record book. Even though Queen Esther and Mordecai were greatly respected, they kept the fact that they were Jews a secret and didn't tell a soul about their true identity. Five years after Queen Esther and Mordecai saved the king's life, the king appointed a new advisor named Haman. Haman was an evil man, and his heart was filled with hatred. When he was first appointed, he insisted that everyone bow to him. And when Mordecai refused, saying he would only bow to God, Haman developed a hatred for Mordecai that he would never forget. He swore to get revenge on Mordecai. How dare he? I will teach him a lesson someday. Haman came up with a vicious plan to kill Mordecai and all the other Jews in Persia. My king, the Jews are plotting to kill you very soon. Their snipers have already reached our city. We must act soon. He convinced the king to agree to a new law, which would sentence the Jews in Persia to death. This whole time, the king had no idea that his beloved Esther was in fact a Jew, and it would be his wife's people who would suffer at the hands of this new law. When Mordecai heard of this terrible plot, he immediately ran to Esther and begged her to speak to King Xerxes and save her people. But Esther was wary. She knew that if she revealed her identity to the king, it might result in her too being executed. In Persia at this time, it was illegal for anybody to approach the king without an invitation. So even if Esther tried to speak to him, this alone might be enough to get her arrested. But Mordecai assured her that this was the right thing to do. Esther, you have been placed by the king's side for a reason. God has given you the opportunity to save your people from suffering and death. You must use this gift that God has given you and do what you can to save your people. Queen Esther had a big heart, and she knew that Mordecai was right. You're right. It is my duty from God. I will save my people. I just need to come up with a plan. And so Esther thought long and hard and eventually came up with a plan she hoped would work. Esther invited both King Xerxes and the evil Haman to a banquet. They both agreed, but Haman was still focused on getting rid of Mordecai. He planned to ask the king at the banquet if they could execute Mordecai immediately. Finally, the day of the banquet arrived, and everybody gathered together. The king came, and so did Haman, who was entirely focused on his evil plot to kill Mordecai and the rest of the Jews. The guests ate the finest food and drank delicious wine made from the most ripe grapes in all of Persia. They talked and sang and danced, and the king was pleased that his wife could throw such a merry party. He was also pleased that all of the guests could see and admire what a beautiful wife he had. In fact, King Xerxes was so pleased that he decided to show Esther his gratitude. He promised he would grant her anything she desired. Esther, my dear wife, for this splendid banquet you have thrown for us, I want to reward you by granting you absolutely anything your heart desires. You hear that? Whatever you want, it shall be yours. Esther knew this was her chance. If she was ever going to save her people, it had to be now. Well, my love, there is something I would like to say. And so Esther explained everything to the king. She told him of her true identity and of Haman's evil plot to have her, Mordecai, and all of their fellow Jews killed. She is lying! You must not believe her! When the king realized Haman's true intentions, he was furious. He ordered for his guards to seize Haman and have him executed. And so that was the end of Haman. The king passed a new law that prevented the Jews from being killed, and so their fate was spared. Now that Haman was gone, King Xerxes promoted Mordecai to be his new chief advisor. Together with Queen Esther, they continued to rule over Persia for many years to come. The tale of Queen Esther teaches us to be strong even in the face of danger. Esther accepted God's plan for her and was willing to put herself at risk to save her people. To this day, she is a figure that inspires us to be dedicated, brave, and trust that God does everything for a reason. The End Many, many years ago in a land called Moab, there was a woman named Niobe. She was married to a man named Elimelech. They were Judeans who had settled in the land of Moab to escape a famine that was bringing starvation and misery to the people of Judah. In Moab, they had two sons whom they raised to be strong men. When the time came, both of their sons married. One son married a woman named Ruth, and the other married a woman named Orpah. Unfortunately, after some years, each of the woman's husbands died. Then it was only the woman left together to fend for each other and keep each other company. The three women lived together under Niobe's roof in her home in the land of Moab. One day, several years after all their husbands had passed away, Niobe gathered her two sons' wives, Ruth and Orpah, and told them she had something important that she wished to discuss with them. My dear daughters, there is something important I must say to you both. Since you married my sons, you have been excellent daughters to me. You were wonderful wives to my sons and have stuck by me in the years since I lost both them and my husband. But you are still both so young. You must move on and marry again. I am making plans to return to Bethlehem, where I was born, but you two should stay here and build new families of your own. The two ladies were shocked that their beloved mother-in-law seemed to be asking them to leave and move on. Ruth was especially shocked that Niobe would say such a thing. Mother, what are you saying? Are you really going to leave us, Mother? I am serious, my girls. I must leave to return to Bethlehem. But you cannot join me. This cannot be so. We love you, Mother. We do not want to leave you when you go to Bethlehem. Ruth, you must listen to me. Arba, promise me that at least you will listen to what I ask of you. It will make me very sad to leave you, Mother. But if it is what you want of me, I will of course obey your wishes. I want to come to Bethlehem with you, Mother. You cannot, Ruth. But why not? Because, my dear Ruth, you are from Moab. Bethlehem is in Judah. If you come with me to Bethlehem, you will live your whole life as a foreigner, instead of being here in Moab with all your fellow Moabites. I do not wish for you to be separated from your beloved people. You should do as Arba does, and stay here and raise a family. Mother, please, do not make such a request of me. I wish to go with you wherever you go. Wherever you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God shall be my God. Naomi was so moved by this that she agreed and granted Ruth permission to join her as she began her new life in Bethlehem. The two women began to prepare their things for their long journey through the desert from Moab to Bethlehem. Goodbye, my daughter. You have been so good to me over these years. A perfect daughter, and a wonderful wife to my son. Goodbye, sister. I will think of you every day, and I am sure you have a beautiful life ahead of you, full of much happiness and joy. Goodbye, Mother Naomi. Goodbye, Sister Ruth. I wish you success on your journey to Bethlehem, and a blessed life there. On their journey, Naomi prepared Ruth for their new life by telling her the history of Israel and Judah, and the Hebrew people. She told her of the prophet Abraham, to whom God first promised the Holy Land. Naomi told Ruth about how the Hebrew people had been enslaved in Egypt, and how God contacted the prophet Moses and told him to lead his people back to the Promised Land. Ruth listened as Naomi told her all about how the Ten Plagues fell on Egypt, leading Moses to free his people by parting the Red Sea. Naomi then learned about Moses climbing up to the top of Mount Sinai, where he was given the Ten Commandments by God. These were the ten most sacred rules for the people of Israel to live by. Ruth found all these tales fascinating, and became more and more excited to make Bethlehem her new home. Oh, Mother, I am so excited to reach Bethlehem and see the land from all of these wonderful stories of history you have told me. And so they continued onward. They made their way through the desert, passing Mount Nebo, where many years before the prophet Moses had died when he led the people of Israel to their homeland after freeing them from slavery in Egypt. That is Mount Nebo. From there Moses could see the Promised Land. That means we're almost there. Sure enough, Naomi and Ruth soon reached the kingdom of Judah, and eventually the town of Bethlehem. Naomi was so glad to be home at last. Although it had been many years since she left Bethlehem, people still recognized her as she and Ruth made their way through the streets of the city. Naomi, is that you? Where are your husband and sons? Have they come back with you to Bethlehem? Hello. It is true I have returned. After ten long years in the land of Moab, I am finally back home in Bethlehem. Unfortunately, I am not with my husband or my boys. They have all passed away. I'm sorry to hear that. But then who is this? This is Ruth. She was married to one of my sons before he died. I told her I was going to leave Moab and come back to Bethlehem, but she refused to let me go alone. Naomi! Don't use that name, please. Naomi was the name given to me here. When I left Bethlehem, with the name Naomi, I was happy and had everything. Now I have returned empty-handed. I cannot be Naomi anymore. You must call me Mara, the sorrowful one. It's okay, Naomi. You will not feel this way forever. It will pass. You are at home now amongst your people. You are right. God has not abandoned me. He has allowed me to return, and he has given me the gift of her, my devoted daughter Ruth. I will never abandon you, mother. Naomi and Ruth fixed up a house for themselves to live in and began to settle into their new lives in Bethlehem. Their neighbors welcomed them and helped them by giving them food to eat and help with setting up their new home. One day, Ruth came to Naomi with a suggestion. Mother, I have an idea. It is the harvest season soon. Perhaps I can get a job working the harvest, and that will allow us to provide for ourselves. Our neighbors are very good people, and they have helped us a lot, but we should not burden them with needing to provide us with food forever. Oh, Ruth, that is very kind of you, but I could not allow you to work yourself like that. I could not bear to see my precious daughter working herself so hard on somebody else's land just to make sure that I am fed. I am young and healthy, and the harvest season is approaching. I can work the fields and collect the crops that are growing. It will be a perfect solution to our problem. Plus, like you have told me, our God values hard work and protects the poor. Okay then, you are right. You may work the fields and honor God through your hard work. One day, as she worked in the fields to support herself and Naomi, Ruth encountered the owner of the field, a man named Boaz. Boaz received her kindly, and the two instantly liked one another. Oh my, it is so hot today. Hello, what is your name? I am Ruth. It is a pleasure to meet you. I enjoy watching you work the fields. You are a very hard worker. Thank you, sir. That night, when Ruth told Naomi about Boaz, Naomi became very excited. She encouraged Ruth that she and Boaz would make a good family. You two should be married. And sure enough, Naomi was right. Soon enough, Boaz and Ruth were happily married, and he promised to look after Ruth for the rest of his life. This brought great joy to Naomi, and all of them happily lived out the rest of their days in Bethlehem. What we can learn from Ruth is the power of dedication and loyalty. No matter what, Ruth stayed by Naomi's side. She was completely selfless and devoted herself to her mother, and then her new home of Bethlehem. Ruth is a symbol of selflessness and love, and one of the characters from the Bible who we should all try to learn from. The End