Esther - Introduction to Study...Continued from page 1

Outlining Esther
The book is very easy to outline, both from a practical and literary perspective:

Practical Outline[16]  
     Part One:  The Threat to the Jews’ Survival (Esther 1:1-4:17) 
          1.  Esther Is Selected as Queen, 1:1-2:20 
          2.  Haman Formulates his Plot, 2:21-4:17

 Part Two  The Triumph and Survival of the Jews  (Esther 5:1-10:3) 
          1.  Mordecai’s Triumph over Haman, 5:1-8:3 
          2.  Israel’s Triumph over their Enemies, 8:4-10:3

Literary Outline[17]  

   Premise:      The Jews’ Mortal Danger (Esther 1-5) 
   Crisis:  A Sleepless Night (Esther 6:1) 
   Resolution:   Salvation of the Jews (Esther 6-10)

Completing These Studies
Each lesson is broken down into six days’ study.  Days One through Five are designed to help us focus in on the text at hand, as well as providing additional information and references from time to time, so we can more fully understand it.  Day Six will be devoted to an expanded application of the passage, called “Living in Such a Time as This.” This will help us tie the week’s thoughts together and begin living them out.  Other notes and information will be provided occasionally to help you to gain a better understanding of the passage and subjects as well.  Each week, we’ll also have a memory verse from or about the passage we examine.   Make every effort to memorize these verses.  As you do, you’ll find that all the more God is strengthening and helping you grasp the truths you are examining. 

Now for some Bible Fellowship ground rules.  First, make every effort to get all the way through the study each week.  If you are struggling with any part of a lesson, remember your group leader is there to help you.  The more effort you put into getting through the study, the more you and your group will benefit as you share what God is teaching you.  It is very helpful to read the whole passage for the week first, then go back and examine the individual sections each day.

Second, use a major translation of the Bible when you study.  Harvest Christian Fellowship, the publisher of these lessons, uses the New King James Version (nkjv) so these studies and memory verses are based on this.  However, feel free to use a different translation if it is more helpful for you.  Many prefer the good old King James Version (kjv) which is a great translation, but the New International Version (niv) and the New American Standard Bible (nasb) are good too.  For newer believers, you might want to use The New Living Translation (nlt) as it is very straightforward.  This writer refers to all of the above while preparing these lessons.  Paraphrases such as The Living Bible or The Message are good for comparing and may help you, but please base your answers on a translation.  Talk to your leader or one of the senior leaders if you need more information on Bible usage. 

Third, try to put your answers in your own words as much as possible.  Copying down word for word what the Bible says doesn’t help you learn as much, nor should you depend on other study books or commentaries for your answers.  We want you to learn how to dig into and interpret God’s Word as fully as you can.  We encourage you to do as much additional study as you have time for, but remember that although study books and helps can be wonderful, they are sometimes just someone’s opinion, learned as they may be.  In the long run, depending on them is less helpful than what God is saying directly to you through His Word.

May God bless you richly as you study these Life Lessons from the Book of Esther, and may it truly transform your life.  May you become someone who truly makes a difference in your time, and be God’s tool in your particular world for such a time as this.  Here is an outline of these studies for your reference:

LESSON    PASSAGE   THEME
One       Esther 1  A Providential Divorce
Two       Esther 2  True Beauty
Three     Esther 3  No Compromise
Four      Esther 4  For Such a Time as This
Five      Esther 5  An Unexpected Banquet
Six       Esther 6  Ironic Honor
Seven     Esther 7  Reaping What is Sown
Eight     Esther 8  A Plan Petitioned
Nine      Esther 9  The Feast of Purim
Ten       Esther 10 The Impact of One Life

[1] See The Reader’s Digest Association, Who’s Who in the Bible (Pleasantville, NY:  Reader’s Digest Association, 1994), pp. 105-107.
[2] John MacArthur (Ed.), The Macarthur Study Bible (Nashville, TN:  Word Bibles, 1997), p. 681.
[3] From websites from the Jewish Outreach Institute, www.joi.org, and the World Zionist Organization, www.wzo.org. 
[4] Bruce Wilkerson and Kenneth Boa, Talk Thru the Bible (Nashville, TN:  Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1983), p. 132.
[5] The Reader’s Digest Association, Who’s Who in the Bible, p. 107.
[6] Bruce Wilkerson and Kenneth Boa, Talk Thru the Bible, p. 131.
[7] Herbert L. Lockyer, All the Kings and Queens of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Press, 1961), p. 76.
[8] Ronald F. Youngblood (Ed.), Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN:  Thomas Nelson, Publishers, 1986, 1995), p. 420.
[9] Bruce Wilkerson and Kenneth Boa, Talk Thru the Bible, p. 132.
[10] Herbert L. Lockyer, All the Women of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI:  Zondervan Publishing House, 1958), pp. 52-53.
[11] See Purim, www.Chabad.org. 
[12] Herbert L. Lockyer, All the Women of the Bible, pp. 165, 166.
[13] Herbert L. Lockyer, All the Kings and Queens of the Bible, pp. 76, 77.
[14] Herbert L. Lockyer, All the Men of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI:  Zondervan Publishing House, 1958), p. 135.
[15] Ibid., p. 246.
[16] Based on Bruce Wilkerson and Kenneth Boa, Talk Thru the Bible, pp. 134, 135
[17] Based on Joyce G. Baldwin, Esther (Downer’s Grove, IL:  InterVarsity Press, 1984), p. 30.