Let’s start out with a trivia question: What is Esther’s Hebrew name?

Esther’s birth name was the Hebrew name “Hadassah” meaning a myrtle tree. (Esther 2:7)

The myrtle tree was used in Scripture to represent God’s saving and restoring power…

I think the Bible is trying to tell us something…

Esther’s birth name was Hadassah, or, the myrtle tree, which means she represented God and His saving power.

And indeed, God does use Esther to save the Jews…

And while there is no mention of “God” in Esther (the only other book that doesn’t mention God is Song of Solomon)

Everything in the book of Esther point to God — including Esther’s birth name!

But it’s get better…

But when in Persia, Hadassah was renamed — and her name was changed from Hadassah to Esther…

In Persian, Esther means “star” she stood out above the rest.

The Persians, who represent the world, saw a beautiful woman - and the named her a star.

The Persians certainly didn’t view here as someone who represented God —

But what the Persians didn’t know is that in Hebrew, the word Esther doesn’t mean star — it really means the opposite, “hidden”

So while the Persians tried to change the identity of Hadassah into Esther, this sought after star — they actually changed it to a name that also represented God, Esther - which represents the hidden hand of God working behind the scenes…

As you read this book, the Persians think they are the one planning, making decisions, but in actuality, there perfectly enacting the will of God.

They couldn’t even change Hadassah’s name without perfectly playing into the will of God…

The most powerful empire in the world of that time; played a like a toy puppet in the hand of God.

And God puts Esther in the palace for a reason at just the right time…

Mordecai told Esther “and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)

So my challenge is this: look for God in the book of Esther.

He’s not named, He’s not even prayed to, but He’s there.

And H

His saving power and sovereignty is all over the book of Esther…

And I want you to look for God in the book of Esther as we study it.