"Queen Esther and the Ring of Power"--Original Painting for a Book Cover

Courage is a rare commodity.

And true courage will never go out of style.

Here is a painting I did of Queen Esther, the Persian queen of Jewish ancestry who saved her people through courage. She approached the king uninvited so that she could set up a private dinner and plead for her fellow Jews, who were slated for annihilation.

"Accepted by the King," 16" x 20," Acrylic on Canvas, by Matt Philleo

I did this painting with the acrylic glazing technique, to give it a luminosity and a depth. It was my goal to capture the dignified beauty of Queen Esther, who approached the king with her finest apparel. According to Persian law, if a person approached the king uninvited, he could, at his whim, put them to death.

Even the queen was not immune to that possibility.

But in the scripture we read,

On the third day of the fast, Esther put on her royal robes and entered the inner court of the palace, just across from the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne, facing the entrance. When he saw Queen Esther standing there in the inner court, he welcomed her and held out the gold scepter to her. So Esther approached and touched the end of the scepter.

Then the king asked her, “What do you want, Queen Esther? What is your request? I will give it to you, even if it is half the kingdom!” --Esther 5:1-3

The Queen then set up a dinner meeting with her and the king's most trusted advisor, Haman. This was the man that was trying to kill all the Jews through a deceptive edict he compelled the king to sign.

Finally, after hesitating, and calling for a second dinner meeting, Esther dropped the bomb on Haman. The king liked her--a lot--and she knew he would be furious if someone would ever attempt to harm her or her people. So, when the time was right she revealed all...

Queen Esther replied, “If I have found favor with the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my request, I ask that my life and the lives of my people will be spared. For my people and I have been sold to those who would kill, slaughter, and annihilate us. If we had merely been sold as slaves, I could remain quiet, for that would be too trivial a matter to warrant disturbing the king.”

“Who would do such a thing?” King Xerxes demanded. “Who would be so presumptuous as to touch you?”

Esther replied, “This wicked Haman is our adversary and our enemy.” Haman grew pale with fright before the king and queen. Then the king jumped to his feet in a rage and went out into the palace garden.

Haman, however, stayed behind to plead for his life with Queen Esther, for he knew that the king intended to kill him. In despair he fell on the couch where Queen Esther was reclining, just as the king was returning from the palace garden.

The king exclaimed, “Will he even assault the queen right here in the palace, before my very eyes?” And as soon as the king spoke, his attendants covered Haman’s face, signaling his doom. --Esther 7: 3-8

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I think this scene is symbolic of us, as we stand before the judgment seat of God. On that day, and it is coming for each one of us, everyone will give an account of their lives. “It is appointed for man once to die, and after this the judgment.”

God can give the decree as to whether will live or die. If we enter dirty, disheveled, and shamefully with our sins, He will not be pleased. But if we enter His court clean, dressed in the spotless, righteousness of His Son Jesus Christ, He will be pleased and hold the scepter towards us in mercy. “He saved us, not because of righteous things that we have done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

This painting was created to be the cover for a book by Russell M. Stendal, titled "Queen Esther and the Ring of Power."

Russell is a missionary who was kidnapped by Columbian guerilla fighters, and then later befriended them. He's the author of over 20 books, including a translation of the Bible, The Jubilee Bible

You can view this book and several others here at the publisher's website. I've done cover illustrations for some of his other books as well.

Hope you enjoyed this painting and the story behind it.

Have a blessed day and I'll be in touch,

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See more of my artwork at: MattPhilleo.com