Among the heroines of Hebrew history, one who endeared herself to her compatriots because of her quiet courage and steadfastness was Hadassah, who is more widely known under her Persian name of Esther.
After the passing of her parents, Esther was adopted by her first cousin, Mordecai, and lived in his house in the vicinity of the royal palace of Shushan. The maid is described as being "fair and beautiful" (Esther 2:7), and when Queen Vashti was dismissed because of her failure to accede to a demand that Ahasuerus, king of Persia, had made, this ruler sent for Esther to be his consort, not realizing that she was a member of another nation, for Mordecai, with what proved to be commendable foresight, had warned her not to reveal her background to her royal suitor.
Not long afterwards, Ahasuerus, still ignorant that he had married a Jewess, promoted to power a certain Haman. Being an Agagite—that is an Amalekite—by birth, Haman was one whose ancestors had been open or secret enemies of the Jews ever since the days of Moses and Saul, whose victories over them they never forgave (see Exodus 17 and I Samuel 15:7,8).
