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REL 101 - Old Testament Survey
Esther 1:1 - "Ahasuerus" is the Persian form of
the name for the king known as Xerxes to the Greeks. This
particular king was Xerxes I, who tried to conquer the Greeks.
However, in 480 BC he lost a decisive battle on land at Thermopylae (in Greece)
and also saw all his fleet of ships trapped in the bay of Salamis
and destroyed by the Greeks. Xerxes (Ahasuerus) was so sure he was going to win, that he
was sitting on a golden throne to watch the battle. He saw his ships
get tricked into entering the bay of Salamis near Athens, where they
were too big to maneuver properly, and the smaller Greek
ships trapped them and sank them. Xerxes had to flee,
leaving his tent and all his golden plates and jugs behind,
and the Athenians came and got them. These opening verses
of Esther give the Persian view of the situation - the defeat was
not mentioned at all, and Ahasuerus tried to impress everyone with how great he was.
Esther 1:2 - Shushan, now called Susa, had been the
capital of Elam, and became the winter palace for the Persian kings.
It is now an archaeological site in which the city and the palace have been excavated.
Esther 1:11 - it is not clear whether or not Vashti was
supposed to be wearing only the crown and no clothes, or whether
she was to appear in her royal robes but with her face uncovered.
Her refusal might have been out of modesty, not wanting to go
uncovered to a place where the men were carousing and the king
was drunk. Ahasuerus was already sore from his defeats by the much
smaller country of Greece, so Vashti's refusal pushed his wounded pride too much.
Esther 2:1 - When he sobered up, King Ahasuerus had second
thoughts about what he had done, but it was too late : the Persians
had very set ideas about royal decrees being irrevocable.
Esther 2:6 - Jeconiah was another form of the name of
Jehoiachin, the king who reigned in Jerusalem for three months
before being taken prisoner and deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar
in 597 BC (II Kings 24:8-16). Ezekiel was also one of the group of hostages taken to
Babylon at this time (Ezekiel 1:2). After being kept in prison for
37 years Jehoiachin was released from prison, but was kept in
Babylon and was not allowed to return to Jerusalem (II Kings 25:27-30).
Esther 2:7 - Haddassah is the Hebrew name, and Esther the
Greek name, both meaning "Star".
Esther 2:10 - Esther did not tell the officials that she was jewish.
Esther 2:12-14 - after a year of beauty treatments each girl got to spend one night with
the king, and then was taken to the harem, where she would be kept until the king sent for her again.
Esther 2:21 - Bigthan and Teresh plotted to assassinate the king.
Esther 3:1 -"Haman the Agagite" - his description
implies that he was a descendent of Agag, king of the Amalekites,
whom God had told Saul to kill (I Samuel 15:7-9, 32-33).
Esther 3:2 - to bow and do reverence implied worship, which a good Jew reserved for God alone.
Esther 3:7 - the verse describes the process of casting lots
to determine which would be a lucky day for Haman's purposes.
("Pur" is Hebrew for "lot", the plural is "Purim".
Esther 3:8 - the Jews kept their own religious and dietary
laws, and so were different from their neighbors who had been
assimilated into the Persian empire. Haman used this as an
excuse for anti-Semitism and accusations of disloyalty.
Esther 3:11 - Ahasuerus took Haman's word for the situation and didn't bother to check the facts
Esther 4:11 - No-one, not even the queen, was allowed to enter
the royal throne room unless the king called for him. Anyone who
did so would be put to death unless the king signalled his pardon
by pointing to the person with his sceptre. Esther was going to risk
her death by going to Ahasuerus without being called.
Esther 7:8 - At such banquets, people often reclined on couches
rather than sat on chairs for the meal.
Esther 9:1-16 - according to the law of the Medes and Persians
Haman's original message to kill the Jews was still legal because it
had been signed by the king. So Mordecai and Esther had asked
king Ahasuerus to sign the second message, in which the Jews were
given permission to defend themsleves against anyone who attacked them.
Esther 9:26-28 - Purim is still kept as a joyous feast by
modern Jews. During the festivities the story of Esther is read,
and whenever the name of Haman is mentioned everyone shouts and
makes loud noises to drown out his name. A special type of cookie
is made, of pastry folded over into a triangle (usually with an
apricot filling) which is supposed to look like the hat that
Haman wore, called Hamantaschen "Haman's pockets".
Copyright © 1999 Shirley J. Rollinson, all Rights Reserved
Department of Religion
ENMU
Portales, NM 88130
Last Updated: January 1, 2007
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