The Jews were threatened with genocide. A decree ordered the extermination of young and old, women and children. The place: Persia. The time: fifth century B.C. The Book of Esther describes how this crisis was averted through the bravery of Esther, the wisdom of her stepfather and the unity of the Jewish people. It also reveals the God who quietly -- and sometimes unexpectedly -- works behind the scenes to order the events of our lives. The author draws out the beauty and power of this book by discussing its background, structure and theology, and by providing a passage-by-passage analysis of its contents.
Everyone loves a transformation story. Rags to riches. Plain to beautiful. Weak to strong. Esther's story is that, but it is much more. It is a thought-provoking study of God's invisible hand writing silently and unseen across the pages of human history. Perhaps most of all, Esther's story is the account of godly attributes like courage, dignity, wisdom, and strength?attributes that blocked an evil plot, overthrew an arrogant killer, and replaced terror with joy in thousands of Jewish homes. Author Chuck Swindoll interweaves the ancient, real-life story with insight not only into the virtues of Queen Esther, but also into how the qualities that formed and empowered her can be ours. Esther is the second volume of Charles Swindoll's best-selling series, which examines great lives from God's Word and reveals the strengths and weaknesses that make God's men and women both great . . . and human. Many of the most beloved biblical heroes were ordinary folks. Shepherds. Fishermen. Servants. Widows. Even harlots and petty thieves. One by one, they changed the course of history. Swindoll explains that these men and women did not become great in their own strength but were empowered by God when they surrendered their lives to Him. To live such a life that God considers great is within the reach of everyone who submits to Him.
The Book of Esther is one of the five Megillot. It tells the story of a Jewish girl in Persia, who becomes queen and saves her people from a genocide. The story of Esther forms the core of the Jewish festival of Purim. The commentary presents a literary analysis of the text, taking into account the inclusion and arrangement of different pericopes, and an analysis of the narration. Likewise, it will discuss the style, the syntax, and the vocabulary. The examination of the intellectual context of the book, biblical and extrabiblical textual traditions on which the book is based and with which it is in intertextual dialogue, leads to a discussion of the redactional process and the historical and social contexts in which the authors and redactors worked.
Based on a true event which the author had reported on, this lighthearted story follows one reluctant nativity star, Esther the cow, on a special Christmas journey. Besides discovering her importance in the Christmas story, Esther teaches us how God has made us each special in His world. Mildred "Mitzi" Probert Mitzi grew up on a farm near the small town of Yorkville, OH. Her love of animals led her to Ohio Wesleyan University where in 1985 she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in zoology and journalism. After 10 years as a reporter/editor, Mitzi served as director of a World Vision-sponsored program in Jefferson County, OH and continued freelance writing. She and her husband, Eric, reside in Steubenville, OH with their two sons, Kyle and Carson, dog Bubba and hamster, Spot Jr. They attend Wintersville United Methodist Church. Esther is based on one of her last feature stories while working with The Wheeling (WVa) Intelligencer/News-Register. Richard "Ty" Schafrath Ty earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with an emphasis in drawing from Ohio State University in 1988, but a visit to MGM Studios and the Feature Animation Tour a year later in Orlando would change the course of his life. After numerous setbacks, Ty eventually landed a job with Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Hollywood in 1995 as a Storyboard Artist through 2002, when the industry slowed from its frantic pace. "Esther" is Ty's second book in 2010. In addition to illustration, he is a freelance storyboarder, painter, and a caricature artist. Ty, his wife, Jeni, and his step-daughters Aliyah, Alycia, and Sophia, and their dog Kirby, reside in Orlando. Ty is a follower of Jesus Christ and is a member of Harvest Bible Chapel in nearby Windermere.
When her grandfather is injured, 10-year-old Ellen Toliver replaces him on a top-secret patriotic mission. Disguised as a boy, she manages to smuggle a message to General George Washington.
What if the way the book of Esther has been taught to us in church and retold to us in films, cartoons, and romance novels has missed the original point of the story? Far from being models of piety and devotion, Esther and Mordecai seem indifferent to the faith of their ancestors. How then did this story become part of the Bible and gain the broad acceptance that it has? If the church should not neglect the story, how should it be read? Esther and Her Elusive God calls Christians to avoid the common attempts to make Esther more palatable and theological, and to reclaim this secular story as Scripture. Readers will be encouraged to see in Esther a profound message of God's grace and faithfulness to his wayward people.
Young Esther Costello is deaf, dumb and blind. Discovered by a well-meaning American, she is whisked away for treatment, but without success. Her patron devotes her life to Esther's care, but public donations are diverted to a personal account. Then, Esther's faculties are restored, with shocking consequences.
While humanity has been telling fantastic stories for millennia, fantasy fiction has only come into its own as a genre in the latter half of the twentieth century, as the works of such writers as J.R.R. Tolkien and Robert E. Howard have found a wide audience. This wonderful collection celebrates fantasy's heyday with 33 masterpieces of short fiction, ranging from 1940s stories by L. Sprague de Camp, H.L.Gold, Fritz Leiber, and Manly Wade Wellman to more recent tales by such towering modern talents as Peter S. Beagle, Terry Bisson, James P. Blaylock Suzy McKee Charnas, John Crowley, Tanith Lee, Michael Swanwick, Judith Tarr, Howard Waldrop, Jane Yolen, and Roger Zelazny. Just as Gardner Dozois's Modern Classics of Science Fiction has helped longtime fans and new readers alike discover the genre's finest short stories, so too shall this anthology allow readers to find in one volume more than two dozen masterworks of fantasy.
This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. We have represented this book in the same form as it was first published. Hence any marks seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.
