A New Queen

A New Queen

Q: How did the king pick a new queen?

• a. by beauty
• b. by royal birth
• c. by godly characteristics

As we read about in yesterday’s devotion, King Xerxes banished Queen Vashti from the palace forever for refusing to appear before his friends to show off her beauty. The king later regretted it, so his personal attendants decided to find a new queen for him.

How would you choose a new queen? Perhaps you’d look for someone who was kind and friendly. Or maybe you’d look for someone who was brave and strong. You might choose someone with royalty in her background. Here’s how the king’s personal attendants suggested the king choose his new queen: “Let us search the empire to find beautiful young virgins for the king. Hegai, the king’s eunuch in charge of the harem, will see that they are all given beauty treatments. After that, the young woman who most pleases the king will be made queen instead of Vashti.”

The king’s men gathered the most beautiful, young, unmarried women in the land. These women received beauty treatments, and then went to show off their beauty before the king—the same king who ordered Vashti to show off her beauty for his partying friends.

Despite the king’s decision to choose a queen based on beauty and appeal, God already had a plan in place to have Esther chosen as queen and for her to be in the right place at the right time to help the Jews, which you can read about in the June 17 devotion.

For You

Rather than choose a queen by her character traits or abilities, the king chose her for her beauty. The same thing happens today. You rarely see an ugly boy or girl on the cover of a magazine. But God judges the heart and motives. Be careful to respond to people based on those things, too, not only on outward appearance.

Answer: a

His personal attendants suggested, “Let us search the empire to find beautiful young virgins for the king.”   Esther 2:2

(The Whole Story: Esther 2:1-20)