"Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird."—Prov. 1:17.
THERE was a gentle Jewish girl, named Esther, who had been left an orphan very young, and was brought up by her kind relation, Mordecai, who was one of the Jews who had not gone back to Jerusalem, but still lived in Persia.
One day there came a messenger from the king, to carry away poor Esther from home. The king wanted all the maidens in his land to be brought together, that he might choose the most beautiful of them all for his queen, and the others would be kept for slaves.
All the other maidens dressed themselves up, and painted themselves to try to look beautiful; but Esther did not ask for any ornaments, she only put on what she was ordered to wear. Yet she looked so much the most lovely of all, in her modest quietness, that the king chose her and married her, and set the crown on her head, and made her his queen.
But she had a sad life, though she was queen. She was always shut up, and could not see her kind friend Mordecai, and she could not even go to her husband without his leave, or she would have been put to death.
Queen Esther
