Insight for Living

Chuck Swindoll: I'm of the opinion that Esther went into the king without fear. Her life did not revolve around her physical appearance or simply making a king happy. She knew where she was coming from. She knew who she was. There is a modesty and an authenticity about this woman that makes us suck in our breath.

Bill Meyer: It takes backbone to stand straight in the presence of power. When in the company of those who hold positions of authority, we tend to feel nervous and insecure. Today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll introduces us to a young woman who walked into the king's palace with quiet confidence and without a trace of selfish ambition, a woman whose character spoke louder than her beauty. In the event that you missed yesterday's program, we'll begin with a helpful summary. Chuck titled this message from his study on Esther, "Strength and Dignity on Parade."

Chuck Swindoll: We're looking into the life of an Old Testament woman named Esther as we study this wonderful biography. I'd like to have you turn back to the second chapter. The land is Persia. The place is Susa, or as it's otherwise called, Shushan, the capital of Persia. The king is Ahasuerus, otherwise known as Xerxes. His wife, Vashti, has been demoted from the throne. She is a forgotten soul, never to be mentioned again.

He comes back from war and he's lonely and in need of the affection and care and enjoyment and pleasure of a wife. His counselors say, here is a unique way to do it. Let's find every possible available beautiful young woman in the kingdom, in all the provinces, and let's bring her here and let you take your choice, and she will become the queen.

Notice in reading chapter two of Esther, verse three, the development of the story. "Let the king appoint overseers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather every beautiful young virgin to Susa, the capital, to the harem, into the custody of Hegai, the king's eunuch, who was in charge of the women, and let their cosmetics be given to them." It's plain and simple, a beauty contest, and the women come from all the provinces.

Look at verse five. "There was a Jew in Susa, the capital, whose name was Mordecai." Verse seven, "And he was bringing up Hadassah." That's a Jewish word that means myrtle, as in the plant. "That is Esther." That's a Persian name meaning star, as in the star of the heavens. She was given that name later in her adult life. He was bringing up Esther, his uncle's daughter, for she had neither father nor mother. Now, the young lady was beautiful of form and face, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.

What you don't read but you have to see between the lines is that she is in the minority. She is living as a captive in a foreign land. Her home is Jerusalem, that is her people's home, the land of Palestine. Because of the turning and twisting of historical events, her people have been brought in exile to Persia. So she's living a life rather obscurely in the home of Mordecai. I'm sure it was a sheltered home, a monotheistic home, a home of great care and concern for character and for deep beauty.

On top of all this, she had a physical beauty that attracted people to her. Verse eight, "It came about when the command and decree of the king were heard, and many young ladies were gathered to Susa, the capital, into the custody of Hegai." Now read carefully. "That Esther was taken to the king's palace into the custody of Hegai, who was in charge of the women." Now what we are about to read in the verses that follow, nine through 17, are what I want to suggest are six queen-like character traits, not limited to Esther but available even in our generation.

Number one: a grace-filled charm and elegance. Verse nine. The first of the queen-like qualities I want to emphasize is what I find in Esther: a grace-filled charm and elegance. Will you observe again, verse nine, "The young lady pleased him and found favor with him." The original says, get this, "she lifted up grace before his face." Beautiful expression. So gracious was she that he, notice again verse nine, "quickly provided her with all that she needed and then some." Talk about being pampered and indulged.

Second, will you note an unusual restraint and control. Another queen-like quality of this woman: an unusual restraint and control. Verse 10, "Esther did not make known her people or her kindred." In other words, she told no one she was Jewish. Why? Because Mordecai had instructed her that she should not make them known.

Number three: a continual teachable spirit. Verse 10 and verse 20. Listen to the words at the end of verse 10, "Mordecai had instructed her that she should not make them known." Verse 20, "Esther had not yet made known her kindred or her people. She's now the queen by the time we get to verse 20, even as Mordecai had commanded her." She is still teachable. Even becoming a finalist didn't cause her to flaunt her independence, or becoming the queen. How beautiful it is to find a teachable spirit in a significant woman.

Number four: an unselfish modesty and authenticity. Verses 12 to 15. I love this section. 12 to 15, an unselfish modesty and an authenticity. "Now when the turn of each young lady came to go in to King Ahasuerus after the end of her 12 months," think of it. No job, no responsibility, no cooking, no cleanup, no washing, no ironing, no errands. In pampered and indulged, delightful, selfish harem of Persia.

All of the emphasis rests upon your becoming a woman of greater physical beauty. "For the days of their beautification were completed as follows: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with spices and the cosmetics for women." The young lady would then go into the king in this way: anything she desired was given her to take with her from the harem to the king's palace. Jewelry, clothing, perfumes, cosmetics, whatever she wishes.

"In the evening she would go in, and in the morning she would return to the second harem to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's eunuch, who was in charge of the concubines. She would not again go into the king unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by name." She was in this contest, and the one who pleased the king the most would gain his favor.

Verse 15. "Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail, the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her as his daughter, came to go into the king," look closely at her modesty. "She did not request anything except what Hegai, the king's eunuch, who was in charge of the women, had advised." This woman cannot be more than 20, 25 years old. This is a chance of a lifetime for her to have whatever she wishes. And she just simply stands on her own character and the advice of the man who knew what seemed to be best.

There's a real unselfish modesty, a withdrawal from extravagance and authenticity. I'm impressed that they took with them cosmetics. I smiled the other day when I came across a Carolina publication that was the result of a survey that was taken. In the survey, it was found that 15% of the ladies tinted their hair, 22% wore false eyelashes, 38% periodically wore wigs, 80% wore rouge or some kind of facial cosmetic, 93% used nail polish, 98% wore some kind of eye makeup. And 100% of the ladies voted in favor of a resolution condemning any kind of false packaging. I thought that was interesting in this particular article.

I think without making that illustration walk on all fours, I think that the woman who uses the cosmetics is not interested in appearing false. Cosmetics done well will help enhance the beauty that is there. It is not an attempt, when the woman's motive is right, to hide something that is not there.

Frankly, I'm of the opinion that Esther went into the king without fear. She had no driving interest in the entire process. Her life did not revolve around her physical appearance or simply making a king happy. She had, in the terms we used to use in the group I used to run with, she had her stuff together. She knew where she was coming from. She knew who she was. And she knew that God's hand was on her life. It was his pleasure that this be his plan, then she would willingly accept it. If it would not be, she would willingly relinquish it. There is a modesty and an authenticity about this woman that makes us suck in our breath. True beauty.

Number five: a kind winsomeness regardless of her surroundings. A kind winsomeness regardless of her surroundings. Verse 15 concludes, "Esther found favor in the eyes of all who saw her. She lifted up grace to all who saw her." I think that is rather remarkable, even to those competing and I might add greedy women who were a part of the harem. She must have found some sense of favor in their eyes. She was taken to King Ahasuerus in his royal palace.

Verse 17 says, "The king loved Esther more than all the women. She found favor and kindness with him more than all the other virgins, so that he set," this is a great moment, "he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti, the former queen." Wow.

Webster says winsomeness is being pleasant, delightful, attractive in a sweet, engaging way. A person who is winsome draws you to him or to her. You can never get quite enough. You are intrigued by that person's spirit.

Number six, and lastly: a humble respect for authority. Verses 18 to 20. A humble respect for authority. This is almost too good to be true when you read of Esther in the last part of this. "The king gave a great banquet," believe me, he knows how to give banquets. "And he gave it a name, Esther's banquet, for all his princes and his servants. He made a holiday, Esther Day, holiday for the provinces, and gave gifts according to the king's bounty."

And yet, verse 20, "Esther had not yet made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had instructed or even commanded her, for she did what Mordecai told her as she had done when under his care." It's a strange bit of information that is passed around that when you marry, you no longer need to remember parental advice. Or when you get out on your own, you're really on your own. Think for yourself, believe in yourself, go for it, whatever. Isn't it interesting that even as the queen of the land, she remembered the wise counsel and was willing to submit to the authority of it?

I have found in my years on earth, the older I get, the smarter my parents were. Have you discovered that? I thought how stupid those folks were when I was in my teen years, but they got smarter the older I have gotten. How beautiful it is to live with a wife who still remembers her folks' counsel and wisdom and advice.

Now, what does all this say to the woman today? You want to be a modern-day Esther? Most of you do. I would venture to say all of you in your own way want to be this. Who wouldn't, you say, it sounds so unbelievably off the graph. How can any woman attain? It can happen. God does not mock us with his word. He isn't in the business of making his people squirm because they can't attain the challenge of a unique life. You can't get it by taking your cues from the world, however. You'll never win there.

Let me give you a couple of thoughts that come to my mind and I share them with you very graciously because I'm not a woman. I cannot imagine the pressure you live in or the difficulty that you must handle. So I say these are suggestions that I believe will work.

First is this: ask God to cultivate character within you. Ask God to cultivate character within you. I would add underneath that piece of advice or that suggestion that you ask him to give you a discontent the older you grow for the superficial and a deeper desire for the spiritual. Ask God for that. Make yourself available to his strength, his reproofs.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh, in a work entitled *Gift from the Sea*, writes this: "I want first of all, in fact, as an end to these other desires, I want first of all to be at peace with myself. I want a singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out these obligations and activities as well as I can. I want, in fact, to borrow from the language of the saints, to live in grace as much of the time as possible. By grace, I mean an inner harmony essentially spiritual which can be translated into outward harmony. I am seeking perhaps what Socrates asked for in the prayer from the Phaedrus when he said, 'May the outward and inward man be at one.'"

Ask God to give you that kind of authenticity, to place more emphasis on what's happening down inside your heart and less emphasis on the externals, the trappings. Here's the second: trust God. Trust God to control the circumstances around you. Those circumstances that you're using as an excuse for not being the woman you would want to be. You trust God to control the circumstances around you. Don't wait for them to be perfect. Remember Esther. All the things we have read of her happened in a harem of all places. At the height of competition, surrounded by sensual, greedy, superficial women, Esther stood alone.

I'd like us to bow together for a few moments. Ask God. Trust God. That implies that you know God, which you may not. This is the time to take care of that. The God who led Esther is still very much alive, very much as available. But between her life and yours and mine, his Son has come, S-O-N, Jesus Christ. He has made God accessible in the sense that he has opened the way to heaven by his death on the cross.

Perhaps, a dear woman friend of mine, it's possible you want these things more than life itself but you have yet to know the Lord who alone can give them. I invite you, as well as the men who are listening, who are hearing these words, who have seen them in the scriptures, to bow your heart and your life to Jesus Christ.

God loves an authentic confession of sin. Hide nothing. A simple prayer that goes something like this, you can come to know him. Dear God, I haven't anything in myself that would win favor to you. I am completely dependent upon you for eternal life, for forgiveness, for character, for security. I believe Jesus Christ died that I might live, and because he lives, I give my life to him. I claim his blood as the detergent to wash away my sins, and I come today. I believe in him.

Our Father, give us a continued disgust for things that merely satisfy the flesh. Show us the importance of character. Not just the women today, show all of us the importance of character. The incredible change that can come by standing alone on the things of God. Give us a grace and a winsomeness in doing so. Keep us from becoming cranky Christians. Make us people of great grace and use us even in the harems of life to make a difference and to model a charm and a beauty, a dignity and an elegance that cannot help but cause people's attention to be drawn to you and to your power. We ask these things and we trust you to do them in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Bill Meyer: Six qualities, one unforgettable woman. Chuck Swindoll has walked us through the life of Esther today and shown us that true strength and dignity aren't performed, they're grown quietly from the inside out. There's much more to discover in the pages ahead. Esther's story is just beginning. As a complement to what you're hearing on this program, Insight for Living offers a variety of resources for engaging in Esther's inspirational story.

First, our *Searching the Scriptures* Bible study workbook lets you move from hearing the story to living it. You can work through the text at your own pace with probing questions and guided reflection. And the spiral-bound design opens completely flat with room for your personal notes and observations, because your response to God's word is part of the story too. To purchase the *Searching the Scriptures* Bible study workbook for Esther, call us at 800-772-8888 or go to insight.org/offer.

We also have a special treat for you today. We're going to play a portion of a special three-part audio series for children. From the beloved *Paws & Tales* collection, this is the story of Esther. This dynamic audio presentation is produced exclusively by Insight for Living and brings the book of Esther to life with the kind of creative, character-rich storytelling that makes the truth stick, not for a day but for a lifetime. Whether it's a gift for your children, your grandchildren, or maybe a niece or nephew, this collection goes far deeper than just entertainment. It's God's word wrapped in a story they'll love. Here's just a sample of what's coming your way.

Guest (Male): So, there she is. Esther, you have some gifts.

Guest (Female): Oh, I don't want any gifts.

Guest (Male): Oh, she doesn't want any gifts! Take them away.

Guest (Female): Stop! I want the gifts.

Guest (Male): Ah, she wants the gifts! Now, this one is from—

Guest (Female): Stop! You can't go in there.

Guest (Male): What is it? What is it? Where is Esther, daughter of Abihail?

Guest (Male): You have no right to come in here.

Guest (Male): Are you Esther?

Guest (Female): I am.

Guest (Male): She is beautiful.

Guest (Male): She is indeed.

Guest (Male): What is your business here?

Guest (Male): You may take a few things with you.

Guest (Female): I am going nowhere!

Guest (Male): You will tell me what you're doing here.

Guest (Male): We are gathering young women who will compete to be the next queen of Persia.

Guest (Female): Oh, you can rest assured that I do not wish to compete!

Guest (Male): You may leave now.

Guest (Male): Esther, what's going on?

Guest (Male): Take her!

Guest (Female): Mordecai!

Guest (Male): Leave her alone!

Guest (Female): Mordecai!

Guest (Male): Stand back! This is not an invitation. I don't like this any more than you do, but I have my orders. You can come with us easily or you can come with us as you struggle, but you will come with us. Esther, come, get some of your things.

Guest (Female): Mordecai!

Guest (Male): It is time to obey me. We will be right there.

Guest (Female): Be all right?

Guest (Male): I'm sure he will be fine. Listen to me. Go with them. I will go to the palace and get this cleared up. Look at me, girl. Do not tell anyone there that you are a Jew.

Guest (Female): Why would I—?

Guest (Male): Did you hear me? Tell no one.

Guest (Female): I promise.

Guest (Male): I love you, Esther.

Guest (Female): I love you too. What will become of me?

Guest (Male): I will have you back home in no time at all.

Guest (Female): Mordecai, I'm scared!

Guest (Male): Everything will be fine. Trust me. You'll be home for dinner. Stand back. We will go now.

Guest (Female): I'm coming. Mordecai! Mordecai!

Guest (Male): Captain?

Guest (Male): What is it?

Guest (Male): Please. Watch over her. I have friends in the palace. I will come to bring her home. Just please watch over my Esther.

Guest (Male): It doesn't matter who you know in the palace. Your Esther is now a part of the harem of King Ahasuerus. She will never come home.

Bill Meyer: Chuck Swindoll has spent a lifetime teaching the Bible with clarity and warmth, and *Paws & Tales* carries that same heart straight to your children. From Insight for Living's renowned *Paws & Tales* series, you've been listening to a scene from the story of Esther. To purchase this two-CD collection, call us at 800-772-8888 or go to insight.org/offer. I'm Bill Meyer. Join us when Chuck Swindoll continues to tell the fascinating story of Esther, Friday on Insight for Living.

Chuck Swindoll: The preceding message, "Strength and Dignity on Parade," was copyrighted in 1989, 1990, 1997, 2005, 2008, 2018, and 2026, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2026 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.