Each year at Purim, Queen Vashti gets her brief moment in the limelight before being replaced by Esther as Queen of the Persian Empire.
Vashti, the allegedly beautiful first wife of the King Ahashverosh, quickly found herself removed from the Persian throne for refusing her husband’s orders to champion her beauty in front of guests and other dignarities at a drunken party. In pursuit of a new wife, the King decided to host a beauty pageant, which is how Esther enters the scene, swiftly replacing Vashti on the throne.
Yet at this time in the story, Esther had yet to disclose her Jewish heritage to her new husband. This is the foundation of the dilemma she finds herself in when Haman’s plan is brought to light: approach the king without being summoned, for which the penalty may be death, or let her people surely perish.
Written by Erin Parfet
