Grahame Walker

Background on Esther. Esther was a Jewish woman living in Persia. She was a descendant of Jews who had been carried away into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. The issue in Esther is how Jews can survive as a community under a foreign King and empire. Esther is one of the great ‘diaspora’ stories of the Bible. That is, it’s about the life of the Jewish people scattered among non -Jewish nations. Esther was a descendant of Jews. Both of Esther's parents died when she was only a child. She was then raised by her cousin, Mordecai, a very good and godly man. He loved and cared for Esther and raised her as he would his own daughter. She grew to be a beautiful woman, both inside and out.