Esther was an orphan adopted by Mordecai in Persia. Her faith was so great that she got married to the King and became the salvation of the Israelites. The women in the Old Testament (OT) are a representation of the societal position that they hold. The patriarchal nature of the society in the Old Testament forced women to live in the shadows of the men in their lives including husbands, fathers, and brothers. Even after the death of a woman’s husband, she was later left under the authority of her husband’s brother. In the OT, a woman’s functionality is linked to her male companion (Gen 2:23, 24). Notably, the fact that a woman was created last was an act of honor. However, the woman’s position was interrupted when she was deceived by the devil and led her and man away from God’s grace. Important to note is that the Arabic women had a higher status in the society as compared to other women. Also, the Arabic community strived to increase the ideal state of the woman (Nkhonjera, 2015). Despite being a Jewish, Esther's inner and outer beauty, her submissive, and her strict religious beliefs define the ideal traditional woman in the OT who uses her limited resources to achieve greatness.
One of the central roles of the woman was to get married. Without the love of her husband, a woman is considered incomplete. One aspect that demonstrates that women were not part of the covenant community is that unlike their male counterparts, they were not involved in rituals such as circumcision. During the initial stages of creation in the book of Genesis, the male and female sexuality alludes that both men and women are equal, until the moment when the woman disobeys God’s commandment against eating the forbidden fruit. In this essence, the procreative role is almost similar to the role of the creator himself (Gen 2:21-25). After the fall of the woman, she becomes inferior to man, and even her marriage arrangements were made by the father or brothers regardless of her wishes. In the OT, fathers commanded total authority over their children, and matters such as marriage arrangements solely rested on the father’s and groom’s father decisions, without consulting the girl.
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Notably, the aspect of arranged marriages did not deny these couples from enjoying loving unions as one would expect. There are bad and good marriages in every society, but in the good marriages, women remained an independent entity with a considerable amount of influence on their husbands. Male dominance was evident in most of these marriages with the man priding himself for initiating the marriage arrangements. Additionally, the woman remained a possession of the husband, and the woman was to refer to her as either master or lord. Also, the feelings of the women did not matter much in the society as evidenced by the Polygamous nature of men that is prevalent in the book of Esther (Esther 2:12-14). In the Persian community, women were often regarded as the property of the King who also has access to many concubines. Women were often expendable as hosts would give their virgin daughters to guests and also present the guests with their concubines as a welcome gesture. When these women failed to comply with the wishes of the guests, they were killed and abused, and no alarm was raised following such incidences.
Another function served by women in the OT is the aesthetics function. Beautiful women are full of praises in the Bible, and Esther herself is fit of this definition. In the Persian community, women were regarded as sex objects whose role was to please the king. It is Esther’s beauty and delight that gained her favor and grace with the King at her party (Esther 2:14). However, it is not Esther’s outer beauty that stands out. As an orphan, Mordecai takes her in for her modesty which she retains even after meeting with the King. For a long time, she refrains from asking the King for anything, and as a result, she earns the right to ask the King for anything she wished. Also, women in the OT were caregivers whose primary role was to remain protective. Although Esther obeys her King and conceals her descent as a Jew, she does not forget that she has a prominent obligation to her people. Despite the provisions and luxuries she receives as the King’s wife, Esther does not forget the suffering of her people, and although she could have asked for anything, she puts the needs of a whole tribe above her own. Esther plays a religious role like other women when she invites the King and faithfully prays and believes that he would attend.
Conclusively, Esther perfectly fits the role of the ideal, traditional, beautiful, and submissive woman, but above all, she transcends these constraints to save her Jewish community. Notably, it is not her refusal to comply with the expectations of a conventional wife, but rather the subordination itself that earns her favor with the King, and the salvation of her kin. Esther easily fits the role of the traditional woman who must remain submissive and behind the shadows of her companion. Nonetheless, her faith and ideal qualities persist even after she earns the status of a queen. Though it is undeniable that her outer beauty played a role in attracting the King, it is her inner beauty that got the King to want to grant Esther any wish. Esther paints a unique picture of an ideal traditional and religious woman who gracefully uses her limited resources to win favor with great men and become leaders in history.
References
Coogan, M. D., Brettler, M. Z., Newsom, C. A., & Perkins, P. (Eds.). (2010). The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version: with the Apocrypha: an Ecumenical Study Bible . Oxford University Press, USA.
Nkhonjera, L. L. S. (2015). Esther as the new Moses: deliverance motifs in the Book of Esther (Doctoral dissertation, Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University).
