The Book of Esther in the Old Testament tells the story of a beauty contest, where the queen Vashti was deposed and a Jew named Esther was chosen as the new queen. Mordecai, Esther's uncle, was a Jew who was in good standing with the king. However, a plot to destroy all the Jews, including Mordecai and Esther, was devised by a man named Heyman. Esther eventually reveals to the king that she is a Jew and through a series of events, the king reverses the decree to destroy the Jews. The book never mentions the name of God and the story is not referred to in the New Testament.

The word "Jew" was a post-Babylonian term, taken from the Tribe of Judah, and there were eight ways a person could become a Jew, including being a full-blooded Jew, a forced conversion, living in the land of Judea, and more. Judaism was formed after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. and the Great Synagogue ruled for 150 years. The Hebrew Old Testament was translated into Greek in approximately 294 to 289 B.C.

The Book of Esther raises questions about the nature of the people called Jews at that time and whether Esther and Mordechai were true, pure-blooded Jews. However, regardless of the background of the people in the story, the author emphasizes the importance of learning and understanding the history in the book, and giving glory and praise to the Lord Jesus Christ.