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Old Testament · character

Esther

"If I perish, I perish" — the queen who saved her people.

Esther was a Jewish woman who became queen of Persia. Facing a plot to annihilate her people, she risked her life to step forward and save her own.

For Such a Time as This

When Haman's plot doomed all the Jews to death, her cousin Mordecai stirred Esther to act: "Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?" (Esther 4).

"If I Perish, I Perish"

Facing a law under which approaching the king unbidden could mean death, Esther fasted three days and then went forward, saying, "If I perish, I perish." That resolve saved her people and became the origin of the festival of Purim.

Related verses

  • Esther 4:14"Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?"