____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ May 23, 2004 ____________________________________________________ Notes on the Book of Esther by Tom Edwards Its Time-Period The account of the book of Esther spans about 10 years, from 483 to 473 B.C. Its time-frame falls between the sixth and seventh chapters of the book of Ezra, in which a period of about 58 years lay in the silence between those two chapters. This is inferred from the following: Zerubbabel had already led back that first group of exiles (in 536 B.C.) to rebuild the temple. According to Ezra 6:15, the temple was completed "on the third of the month Adar" in "the sixth year of the reign of King Darius," which was in 516 B.C. Then chapter 7 begins with the group led by Ezra who returned to Jerusalem in 458 B.C. -- so 58 years from the time of the temple's completion. On a further note, the "King Darius" who is mentioned in Ezra 6:1 is Darius I, also known as "Darius Hystaspis," the father of King Ahasuerus (in the book of Esther). Darius I reigned from 521 to 486 B.C. (Ahasuerus' reign was from 485 to 465 B.C.) Artaxerxes, referred to in Ezra 7:1, was the son of Ahasuerus and reigned over Persia from 465 to 425 B.C. Another way in which we can view the 10-year time-frame that the book of Esther covers is that it was from the 53rd to 63rd year of the Medes and Persians' reign as the world-ruling empire -- a control they maintained for a little more than 200 years, up to 330 B.C. when Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire and achieved for Greece global domination. Therefore, we can also think of the book of Esther's time-span as occurring from 53 to 63 years after the fall of Babylon. The Diaspora So this also gives us an example of those Jews who -- even more than a half a century later -- chose not to move to Jerusalem, after Cyrus King of Persia had issued the decree that would allow for that in 536 B.C. (2 Chron. 36:22,23). Those Jews who remained scattered abroad are referred to as "The Dispersion" or "The Diaspora." When Written Though there seems to be an uncertainty about when this book was written, from the way Ahasuerus is introduced in the beginning of the book, it indicates that it must have been produced after his death, which was in 465 B.C. Some have suggested 20 years or 30 years later, but this is all conjecture. Ahasuerus Let us look a little more into this Ahasuerus of the book of Esther. He is also known by the name Xerxes I, which is the Greek form of Ahasuerus. As shown above, he was the son of Darius I (or Darius Hystaspis) and reigned over Persia for 20 years, from 485 to 465 B.C., being the same Xerxes who is noted in secular history for his war with Greece that led to "the defeat of the Persian forces at Salamis and Plataea" (ISBE). "We can therefore confidently regard the Ahasuerus of Esther as the well-known invader of Greece and scourger of the Hellespont, who has come down to us in profane history as 'Xerxes'" (Pulpit Commentary). Herodotus, who is known as "the father of history" and thought to have lived from about 484 to 430-420 BC, wrote about this Greco-Persian War that involved Xerxes. Consider the following: "In the third year of Xerxes' reign was held an assembly at Susa to arrange the Grecian war" (Herod., vii. 7). Note how this corresponds with the Bible in Esther 1:3-5. (Though Eastern rulers have been noted for their long banquets, it could very well be that this 180-day period involved much of Xerxes' war-plans to attack Greece, for the army officers of Persia and Media were there with him at that time, as the Bible states. Perhaps, too, the exhibiting of his wealth was a way of showing that he could back his armies for this endeavor.) Herodotus furthermore mentions that Xerxes returned defeated from the Greeks in the seventh year of his reign and comforted himself with his harem (Herod., ix 108). Again, see how this also ties in with the Scriptures in Esther 2:2-4, 12-18. Susa Susa, also rendered as "Shushan" in various other translations, was a royal city for the Persian kings and where both Nehemiah and Daniel had been (Neh. 1:1; Dan. 8:2). It was located east of the Tigris River, about 150 miles north of the Persian Gulf, at the site where modern-day Sus or Shush is found. And, according to a map, appears to be about 240 miles due east of Babylon, being on about the same latitude. According to Smith's Bible Dictionary: "Here, have been found the remains of the great palace built by Darius, the father of Xerxes, in which, and the surrounding buildings, took place the scenes recorded in the life of Esther. The great central hall was 343 feet long by 244 feet wide. The king's gate, says Schaff, where Mordecai sat, 'was probably a hall 100 feet square, 150 feet from the northern portico. Between these two was probably the inner court, where Esther appeared before the king.'" Referring to Susa, the ISBE states: "Winged bulls and genii adorned Susa's temples, and figures of wild bulls protected the entrances to their shrines. Other noteworthy things were the sacred groves into which no stranger was allowed to enter, and the burial-places of the Elamite kings. After recovering from the blow inflicted by the Assyrians, Shushan ultimately regained its old importance, and, as the summer residence of the Persian kings, became the home of Ahasuerus and Queen Esther." No Specific Mention of God One unique thing about the book of Esther is that it contains not even one mention of God, but we are made aware of His providential care in it -- and not with only Esther being in the right place at the right time, but also with the king's reading of a particular account about Mordecai, who had saved the king's life. This reading took place on the night before Haman approached the king, regarding the putting to death of Mordecai. And what about the fact that Mordecai was at the right place at the right time to have overheard the plans to assassinate the king? Furthermore, we can safely assume that the "fast" Esther requested, prior to her risking her life by going before the king without being summoned by him, would be one accompanied with prayer on her behalf -- for why else would they be fasting for this matter, if not to beseech God? (There is also a different version of the book of Esther, however, in the Apocrypha, which does include specific mention of God and prayers.) Esther According to Esther 2:7, her name was also "Hadassah," which means "myrtle." The Hebrew word translated as "Hadassah" is found just this one time in the Bible, but it is the feminine version of another Hebrew word that is used 9 times in the Old Testament -- "hadas." This word is translated 6 times as "myrtle" and 3 times as "trees"; but where it is translated as "trees" the same Hebrew word precedes it and is rendered "myrtle," so it specifies "myrtle trees." We know this woman, however, by that more familiar Persian name of "Esther," a name that the Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible suggests could have been given to her "by her Per[sian] playmates, who did not understand Heb[rew], but who, in the manner of children down the ages, approximate a strange name to one with which they are familiar" (J. S. Wright, Vol. 2, p. 374). Several things are learned about Esther in Esther 2:5-7: She was from the tribe of Benjamin, from which Israel received its first king -- Saul. For Esther's father ("Abihail," Est. 2:15) was Mordecai's uncle, who is mentioned as being from that lineage. This also means that Esther and Mordecai were first cousins. Her parents had died. And, apparently, this must have occurred when she was very young; for the Scripture states that when this happened, Mordecai, "took her as his own daughter" (v. 7); and from what we see in Esther 2:20, she was also very obedient to him: "...for Esther did what Mordecai told her as she had done when under his care." We are also told that Esther was a very beautiful woman "of form and face" (Est. 2:7); and from the king's standpoint, she appears to have been the most appealing woman to him in all his kingdom. Esther 2:17 states: "The king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found favor and kindness with him more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti." Haman The book of Esther also has its "villain," who is first mentioned in Esther 3:1. His name is "Haman." In this verse, he initially appears to have been an outstanding man, for the king "...promoted Haman...and established his authority over all the princes who were with him." In addition, verse 2 shows that "...all the king's servants who were at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman...." But one man did not bow down to him. It was Mordecai, Esther's cousin (v. 2). It would seem that Mordecai's refusal to do this was because it would have required going beyond merely civil respect for a higher authority. Rather, it would involve an idolatrous veneration. As Adam Clarke writes: "Haman expected, what the Persian kings frequently received, a species of Divine adoration; and this is implied in the word...shachah, which signifies that kind of prostration which implies the highest degree of reverence that can be paid to God or man, lying down flat on the earth, with the hands and feet extended, and the mouth in the dust. The Targum, says that Haman set up a statue for himself, to which every one was obliged to bow, and to adore Haman himself. The Jews all think that Mordecai refused this prostration because it implied idolatrous adoration." What is Haman's reaction toward this? See Esther 3:5,6. Haman is "filled with rage" and not merely going to destroy Mordecai, but also his entire race of people as well. What does that tell us about Haman? The arrogance and wickedness in him is soon brought to light. Mordecai Mordecai, of course, is another important character in the book of Esther. As pointed out, he was of the tribe of Benjamin; and a first cousin to Esther, whom he had raised as his own daughter when her parents had died. As to the time that Mordecai came to that part of the world, Ezra 2:6 might seem a little misleading: "who had been taken into exile from Jerusalem with the captives who had been exiled with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had exiled." Though it would seem this would be talking about Mordecai, if that be so, then Mordecai (if taken into the captivity even as a few-month old baby) would be about 114 to 124 years old, during the 10-year span of the book. For Jeconiah, who is also known as Coniah and Jehoiachin, was taken into that captivity in 597 B.C., after having reigned for only "three months and ten days in Jerusalem" (2 Chron. 36:9). (And keep in mind that the time period for the events in the book of Esther is from 483 to 473 B.C.) It, therefore, would seem that Ezra 2:6 is referring back to Kish in Ezra 2:5. Consider these verses together: "Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite, who had been taken into exile from Jerusalem with the captives who had been exiled with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had exiled." Kish was the great-grandfather of Mordecai; and not to be confused with the Kish who was the father of Saul, Israel's first king. Here's another thought on this. Keil & Delitzsch: "For the relative clause: who had been carried away, need not be so strictly understood as to assert that Mordochai himself was carried away; but the object being to give merely his origin and lineage, and not his history, it involves only the notion that he belonged to those Jews who were carried to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar with Jeconiah, so that he, though born in captivity, was carried to Babylon in the persons of his forefathers." This reminds us of Hebrews 7:9,10, which states: "And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him." Though not even born yet, Levi was paying tithes to Melchizedek through Abraham -- in a manner of speaking -- which is stated to figuratively express the superiority of the priesthood of Melchizedek over that of the Levitical priesthood (which was yet to be). The first mention of Mordecai, in the book of Esther (Est. 2:5), indicates that he had been employed in the royal palace in Susa (also called "Shushan"). The Feast of Purim In this book, we learn of a new Jewish festival -- the "feast of Purim" -- that was to be observed annually, and the reason for it. In celebration of the Jews' victory, Mordecai sent letters to all the provinces, obliging them to celebrate the fourteenth and fifteenth of the month Adar (Esther 9:20-22). Plus, another message was sent. "Then Queen Esther...along with Mordecai...wrote with full authority to confirm this second letter about Purim. And he sent letters to all the Jews, to the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus...to establish these days of Purim at their appointed times, just as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had established for them...And the command of Esther established these customs for Purim, and it was written in the book" (Est. 9:29-32). This annual celebration derives its name from the "pur" (also referred to as a "lot") that Haman had used to determine the month and day that would be most favorable for killing all the Jews. Though it appears in Esther 3:7 that the lot (or "pur") was cast each month to determine the month, and then each day to determine the day, Keil and Delitzsch refer to this as "in the first month lots were at once cast, one after the other, for all the days and months of the year, that a favorable day might be obtained." Apparently, the casting of the pur showed that the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, would be the day that the Jews were to be annihilated (Est. 3:13). But the "feast of Purim" was celebrated on Adar 14, 15 -- the days that had followed the Jews' fighting on the 13th throughout the provinces (Est. 9:1,2), and those Jews who then fought the next day in Susa on the 14th (Est. 9:13-15). These following days, therefore, for the observance of the feast of Purim, were truly days in which these Jews could have rest from their battles and rejoice in their victory over their enemies. So the "pur" ("purim" in the plural) that had previously been used in connection with determining the time for the total destruction of the Jews, they turned it around as a reminder of their triumph over their foes, which they would celebrate from year to year. And though not specified in the book, surely it was by God's help in which His people gained this victory and saved their lives from total annihilation throughout the entire Persian empire. ____________________________________________________ MYRTLE STREET CHURCH OF CHRIST 1022 Myrtle Street Denham Springs, LA 70726 (225) 664-8208 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM Wednesday: 7:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 e-mail: tedwards@onemain.com web site: http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go ____________________________________________________