Esther 2:15 When the turn came for Esther the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her as his own daughter, to go in to the king, she asked for nothing except what Hegai the king’s eunuch, who had charge of the women, advised. Now Esther was winning favor in the eyes of all who saw her. 16 And when Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus, into his royal palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign, 17 the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
以斯帖 2:15 末底改的叔叔亞比孩的女兒，就是末底改收為自己女兒的以斯帖，按次序要進去朝見王的時候，除了掌管女子的太監希該所分派給她的，她別無所求。凡看見以斯帖的都喜歡她。16. 亞哈隨魯王第七年十月，就是提別月，以斯帖被引入宮中朝見王。 17 王愛以斯帖過於眾女子，她在王面前蒙寵愛勝過眾少女。王把王后的冠冕戴在她頭上，立她為王后，代替瓦實提。
Esther was a young Jewish girl who lived in a foreign land as a member of a conquered people. She was an orphan; the only relative she had was her cousin Mordecai who was taking care of her as his own daughter. She was “alone yet not alone”, for God’s favor was upon her! She first won favor in the eyes of all who saw her (v. 15) and then continued on to win the grace and favor of the king and to be chosen as his queen. This is a true “Cinderella” story.
We might be alone in a foreign land or in a very difficult situation, and we think that no one cares and no one remembers about us. But we are “alone yet not alone” because God promises to never leave us nor forsake us. Moreover, God’s favor will set us apart from others even when we have no help from people (2:15). The book of Esther does not mention the name of God directly, but God’s hands are behind all of the events. Just as in our lives, we may not see God’s hands with our physical eyes, but by faith we will see that not only do God’s hands never leave us, but we have become pearls in His palm. So remember that we are “alone yet not alone”.
以斯帖是一個年輕的猶太女孩，作為被征服者的ㄧ員住在異國他鄉。 她也是一個孤兒。 她唯一的親戚是她的堂兄末底改Mordecai，收她為自己的女兒。 她是“孤單但並不孤獨”，因為上帝的恩寵在她身上！ 她首先在太監希該眼中得寵愛 (第8節) 接著所有看到她的人的眼中贏得了寵愛（第15節），然後繼續贏得國王的恩寵，並被選為王后。 這是一個真實的“灰姑娘”故事。
我們可能獨自一人在異國他鄉或處於非常困難的境地，我們以為沒人在乎，沒人記得我們。 但是我們雖然“孤單但並不孤獨”，因為上帝應許永遠不會離開我們或拋棄我們。 此外，即使我們沒有人的幫助，上帝的恩寵也會使我們與眾不同（第15節）。 以斯帖記中沒有直接提到上帝的名字，但上帝的雙手卻是所有事件的背後。 就像在我們的生活中一樣，我們可能無法用肉眼看到上帝的手，但是憑著信心我們將會看到上帝的手不但沒有離棄我們更使我們成為祂的掌上明珠。 因此請記住，我們雖然“孤單但並不孤獨”。
Song “Alone Yet Not Alone” (Video)
