The Beauty Pageant that Saved a Nation by Teresa Semore
Were you ever fortunate enough to be in a beauty pageant? You probably paraded across a stage with other contestants who were being judged on their poise, beauty, talent, and personal interview skills.
In the book of Esther we learn of a beauty contest of sorts. When Queen Vashti was banished for not flaunting her beauty before King Ahasuerus and his drunken friends, a contest was suggested by the king’s young men to choose another to take her place. Esther 2:2-4
Meanwhile Mordecai had taken charge of his uncle’s daughter Hadassah after her parents’ death and treated her as his own daughter. Hadassah, otherwise known as Esther, was very beautiful and was also taken to the king’s palace and placed under the charge of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who had charge of all the chosen young women. Esther became the favorite of Hegai and was placed ahead of the others in the harem.
When it was Esther’s turn to go before the king and spend time with him she only took with her what Hegai suggested. Ahasuerus was so delighted with Esther that he made her queen.
The king’s second in command was Haman. Haman was very arrogant and wanted all to bow down and pay homage to him. Mordecai refused to bow to him which caused Haman to have a great hatred toward Mordecai and the entire Jewish race. Queen Esther had not spoken to anyone of her heritage as a Jew because Mordecai had instructed her not to reveal her heritage.
Haman was so filled with rage that he proposed a decree to annihilate the entire Jewish race to which the king agreed. The decree was placed throughout the kingdom and would take place at an appointed day.
When Mordecai and the Jewish nation learned of the decree they were distraught and put on sackcloth and sat in ashes. The news came to Queen Esther and she became distressed at the news. Mordecai tasked her with sending a message to the king in order to save her people. There were only certain times that anyone could request an audience with the king and she had not been called in 30 days. The penalty for breaking this law was death. Esther 4:13-14
[13] Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. [14] For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
The queen’s answer:
[16] “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” Esther 4:16
As Queen Esther approached the king, she found favor in his eyes and he held out the golden scepter to her indicating she could approach. She told him of Haman’s plan to kill her people.
Subsequently the king dispatched Haman at the queen’s request and in poetic justice he was hanged on the gallows made for Mordecai.
From beauty pageant to saving her people Esther shows us that beauty only gets you so far, but with courage and perseverance we can truly make a difference.