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Esther Chapter
One
New King James Version
(NKJV)
Esther 1:1. Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus[a] (this was
the Ahasuerus who reigned over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, from
India to Ethiopia),
YLT 1And it cometh to pass, in
the days of Ahasuerus -- he [is] Ahasuerus who is reigning from Hodu even unto
Cush, seven and twenty and a hundred provinces –
Now it came to pass
in the days of Ahasuerus,....
Who he was is not easy to
say; almost all the kings of Persia are so named by one or another writer. He
cannot be the Ahasuerus in Daniel 9:1, he was
Astyages, the father of Cyaxares or Darius the Mede; but this must be one who
had his royal palace in Shushan, which was never the royal city of the Medes,
but of the Persians only; nor does he seem to be the Ahasuerus in Ezra 4:6, who is
thought to be Cambyses, the son and successor of Cyrus; since, according to the
canon of Ptolemy, he reigned but eight years, whereas this Ahasuerus at least reigned
twelve, Esther 3:7, though
indeed some account for it by his reigning in his father's lifetime; besides,
Cambyses was always an enemy to the Jews, as this was not; and yet this way go
many of the Jewish writersF14Targum & Jarchi in loc. Seder Olam
Rabba, c. 29. Zuta, p. 108. and so a very learned man, Nicolaus AbramF15Pharus
Vet. Test. l. 11. c. 12. p. 305. ; according to Bishop UsherF16Annal.
Vet. Test. p. 160. so Broughton, Works, p. 38, 259, 581. , this was Darius
Hystaspis, who certainly was a friend to the Jewish nation; but he is rather
the Artaxerxes of Ezra and Nehemiah; and so says the MidrashF17Midrash
Esther, fol. 86. 2. . Dr. PrideauxF18Connection, &c. par. 1. B.
4. p. 252, &c. thinks Ahasuerus was Artaxerxes Longimanus, which is the
sense of JosephusF19Antiqu. l. 11. c. 6. sect. 1. and so Suidas in
voce εσθηρ. , and who is
thought by many to be the Artaxerxes in the foresaid books. CapellusF20Chronolog.
Sacr. p. 294. is of opinion, that Darius Ochus is meant, to which Bishop
Patrick inclines; but I rather think, with VitringaF21Hypotypos.
Hist. Sacr. p. 110. and othersF23Schichart. de Festo Purim. Rainold.
Praelect. 144. p. 231. Alsted. Chronolog. p. 126, 181. , that Xerxes is the
Ahasuerus that was the husband of Esther here spoken of; so the Arabic writersF24In
Abulpharag. Hist. Dynast. p. 87. ; and as he was the son and successor of
Darius Hystaspis, if he is meant by Artaxerxes in the preceding books, the
history of which is carried to the thirty second year of his reign, Nehemiah 13:6 and
who reigned but four years more; this book of Esther stands in right order of
time to carry on the history of the Jewish affairs in the Persian monarchy; and
Mr. BroughtonF25Ut supra. (Broughton, Works, p. 38, 259, 581.) owns,
that the name of Xerxes, in Greek, agrees with Achasuerus in Hebrew; and in Esther 10:1 his
name is Achashresh, which, with the Greeks, is Axeres or XerxesF26Vid.
Hiller. Arcan. Keri & Ketib, p. 87. & Onomastic. Sacr. p. 639. :
this is
Ahasuerus, which reigned from India even unto Ethiopia;
properly so called; the
Ethiopians had been subdued by Cambyses the son and successor of CyrusF1Herodot.
Thalia, sive, l. 3. c. 97. , and the Indians by Darius Hystaspis the father of
XerxesF2lb. Melpomene, sive, l. 4. c. 44. ; and both, with other
great nations, were retained in subjection to himF3lb. Polymnia,
sive, l. 7. c. 9. ; and many of both, as well as of other nations, were with
him in his expedition into GreeceF4lb. c. 65, 69, 70. :
over an hundred
and twenty and seven provinces;
there were now seven
provinces more under his jurisdiction than were in the times of Darius the
Mede, Daniel 6:1.
Esther 1:2. 2 in
those days when King Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was
in Shushan[b] the
citadel,
YLT 2in those days, at the
sitting of the king Ahasuerus on the throne of his kingdom, that [is] in
Shushan the palace,
That in those
days, when the King Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom,....
Not only was placed upon
it, but settled in it; after Xerxes had subdued Egypt, in the second year of
his reignF5Herodot. ib. (Thalia, sive, l. 3.) c. 7. , and enjoyed
great peace and tranquillity:
which was in
Shushan the palace;
that is, the throne of his
kingdom was in Shushan, the royal city of the kings of Persia; of which see
Gill on Nehemiah 1:1, Daniel 8:2.
Esther 1:3. 3 that in the third year of his
reign he made a feast for all his officials and servants—the powers of Persia
and Media, the nobles, and the princes of the provinces being before
him—
YLT 3in the third year of his
reign, he hath made a banquet to all his heads and his servants; of the force
of Persia and Media, the chiefs and heads of the provinces [are] before him,
In the third
year of his reign he made a feast unto all his princes, and his servants,....
The nobles and officers in
his court; on what account this was cannot be said with certainty, whether the
first day of it was his birthday, or the day of his coming to the throne, on
which day Xerxes used to make a feast annually, as Herodotus relatesF6lb.
(Herodot.) Calliope, sive, l. 9. c. 109. :
the power of
Persia and Media;
the mighty men therein,
the potentates thereof; or the "army", the principal officers of it:
the nobles and
princes of the provinces being with him.
The first word Aben Ezra
declares his ignorance of, whether it is Hebrew or Persian; Jarchi interprets
it governors; and the persons intended by both seem to be the deputy governors
of the one hundred and twenty seven provinces who were present at this feast.
Xerxes, having reduced Egypt, meditated a war with Greece, to which he was
pressed by Mardonius, a relation of his; upon which he summoned the chief men
of his kingdom, to have their advice about itF7Ib. l. 7. c. 8. ,
which perhaps was taken at this time; for it was in the third year of his reign
he resolved upon the war, and began to make preparations for it; and it was
usual, at banquets and feasts, that the Persians debated their most important
affairsF8lb. Clio, sive, l. 1. c. 133. .
Esther 1:4. 4 when
he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the splendor of his excellent
majesty for many days, one hundred and eighty days in all.
YLT 4in his shewing the wealth
of the honour of his kingdom, and the glory of the beauty of his greatness,
many days -- eighty and a hundred days.
When he showed
the riches of his glorious kingdom,....
Xerxes was the fourth king
of the Persian monarchy, and was "far richer than all" that went
before him, all their riches coming into his hands, Daniel 11:2, and
now that prophecy began to be fulfilled, "that by his strength, through
his riches, he should stir up all against the realm of Grecia"; which he began
to do in the third year of his reign, and for which these his nobles might be
called together, as to have their advice, so to animate them to come in the
more readily into the expedition, by showing them the riches he was possessed
of; for to none of the kings of Persia does this largeness of riches better
belong than to Xerxes:
and the honour
of his excellent majesty;
the grandeur he lived in,
the pomp and splendour of his court; he was the most grand and magnificent of
all the kings of the Medes and PersiansF9Pausan. Laconica, sive, l.
3. p. 165. :
and this he did
many days, even an hundred and fourscore days;
to which seven more being
added, as in the following verse, it made one hundred and eighty seven, the
space of full six months; though some think the feast did not last so long,
only seven days, and that the one hundred and eighty days were spent in
preparing for it; but the Persian feasts were very long, large, and sumptuous.
Dr. FryeF11Travels, p. 348. apud Patrick in loc. says, this custom
of keeping an annual feast one hundred and eighty days still continues in
Persia. CheusF12In Martin. Sinic. Hist. l. 3. p. 78. , a Chinese
emperor, used frequently to make a feast which lasted one hundred and twenty
days; though it cannot be well thought that the same individual persons here
were feasted so long, but, when one company was sufficiently treated, they
removed and made way for another; and so it continued successively such a
number of days as here related, which was six months, or half a year; a year
then in use consisting of three hundred and sixty days, as was common with the
Jews, and other nations, and so the PersiansF13Prideaux's Connect.
par. 1. p. 197. .
Esther 1:5. 5 And
when these days were completed, the king made a feast lasting seven days for
all the people who were present in Shushan the citadel, from great to small, in
the court of the garden of the king’s palace.
YLT 5And at the fulness of these
days hath the king made to all the people who are found in Shushan the palace,
from great even unto small, a banquet, seven days, in the court of the garden
of the house of the king –
And when these
days were ended,....
The one hundred and eighty,
in which the nobles, princes, and great men of the kingdom were feasted:
the king made a
feast unto all the people that were present in Shushan the palace, both unto
great and small;
of every age, rank, state
and condition of life; these were the common people, whether inhabitants of the
city or country people there on business, whether natives or foreigners;
according to the Targum, there were Israelites there, but not Mordecai and his
family; yea, it is said in the MidrashF14Midrash Esther, fol. 94. 1.
, that they were all Jews, and that their number was 18,500; but this is not
probable; it is very likely there were some Jews among them, as there were many
in the army of Xerxes, when he made his expedition into Greece, according to
the poet ChoerilusF15Apud Joseph. contr. Apion. l. 1. c. 22. ; which
is not to be wondered at, since there were so many of them in his dominions,
and they men of valour and fidelity, and to whose nation he was so kind and
favourable: and this feast was kept
seven days in the
court of the garden of the king's palace;
which no doubt was very
large, and sufficient to hold such a number as was assembled together on this
occasion, when there was not room enough for them in the palace. There is in
history an account of a Persian king that supped with 15,000 men, and in the
supper spent forty talentsF16Ctesias & Dinon in Athenaei
Deipnosoph. l. 4. .
Esther 1:6. 6 There were white and blue linen curtains
fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on silver rods and marble pillars;
and the couches were of gold and silver on a mosaic
pavement of alabaster, turquoise, and white and black marble.
YLT 6white linen, white cotton,
and blue, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on rings of silver, and
pillars of marble, couches of gold, and of silver, on a pavement of smaragdus,
and white marble, and mother-of-pearl, and black marble –
Where were
white, green, and blue hangings,....
Or curtains of fine linen,
as the Targum, which were of these several colours; the first letter of the
word for "white" is larger than usual, to denote the exceeding
whiteness of them. The next word is "carpas", which Ben Melech observes
is a dyed colour, said to be green. PausaniasF17Attica, sive, l. 1.
p. 48. makes mention of Carpasian linen, and which may be here meant; the last
word used signifies blue, sky coloured, or hyacinth:
fastened with
cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings, and pillars of marble;
these pillars are said, in
the Targum, to be of divers colours, red, green, and shining yellow and white,
on which the silver rings were fixed, and into them were put linen strings of
purple colour, which fastened the hangings to them, and so made an enclosure,
within which the guests sat at the feast:
the beds were
of gold and silver;
the couches on which they
sat, or rather reclined at eating, as was the manner of the eastern nations;
these, according to the Targum, were of lambs' wool, the finest, and the
softest, and the posts of them were of gold, and their feet of silver. Such
luxury obtained among the Romans in later timesF18Plin. Nat. Hist.
l. 33. c. 11. Sueton. Vit. Caesar. c. 49. :
these were
placed in a pavement of red, and blue, and white, and black, marble;
which, according to some,
are the porphyrite, Parian, alabaster, and marble of various colours; the
marble of the Persians is of four colours, white, black, red and black, and
white and blackF19Universal History, vol. 5. p. 87. ; but others
take them to be precious stones, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra; the first is by the
Targum interpreted crystal, by others the emerald, one of which TheophrastusF20Apud
Plin. l. 37. c. 5. speaks of as four cubits long, and three broad, which might be
laid in a pavement; the third is, by BochartF21Hierozoic. par. 2. l.
5. c. 8. , supposed to be the pearl; and in the TalmudF23T. Bab.
Megillah, fol. 12. 1. it is said to be of such a nature, that if placed in the
middle of a dining room, will give light in it as at noonday, which seems to be
what is called lychnites; to which LucianF24De Dea Syria. ascribes a
like property: nor need all this seem strange, since great was the luxury of
the eastern nations. PhilostratusF25Vit. Apollon. l. 2. c. 11.
speaks of a temple in India paved with pearls, and which he says all the
Barbarians use in their temples; particularly it is saidF26Aristot.
de Mundo, c. 6. Apuleius de Mundo. , that the roofs of the palaces of Shushan
and Ecbatana, the palaces of the kings of Persia, shone with gold and silver,
ivory, and amber; no wonder then that their pavements were of very valuable and
precious stones: and from hence it appears, that the "lithostrata",
the word here used by the Septuagint, or tesserated pavements, were in use four
hundred years before the times of Sylla, where the beginning of them is placed
by PlinyF1Nat. Hist. l. 36. c. 25. ; there was a
"lithostraton" in the second temple at Jerusalem, by us rendered the
pavement, John 19:13, perhaps
the same with the room Gazith, so called from its being laid with hewn stone.
AristeasF2De 70 Interpret. p. 32. , who lived in the times of
Ptolemy Philadelphus, testifies that the whole floor of the temple was a
"lithostraton", or was paved with stone: it is most likely therefore
that these had their original in the eastern country, and not in Greece, as
PlinyF3Ut supra. (Nat. Hist. l. 36. c. 25.) supposed.
Esther 1:7. 7 And
they served drinks in golden vessels, each vessel being different from the
other, with royal wine in abundance, according to the generosity of the king.
YLT 7and the giving of drink in
vessels of gold, and the vessels [are] divers vessels, and the royal wine [is]
abundant, as a memorial of the king.
They gave them
drink in vessels of gold, the vessels being divers one from another,....
In the pattern and
workmanship of them, though of the same metal, which diversity made the
festival the more grand; earthen cups, with the Persians, were reckoned very
mean; when a king would disgrace a man, he obliged him to use earthen cupsF4Ctesias
in Athenaei Deipnosoph. l. 11. . The Targum represents these vessels to be the
golden vessels of the temple at Jerusalem Nebuchadnezzar carried away; which
could not be, since they had been delivered by Cyrus to Zerubbabel, Ezra 1:7,
and royal wine
in abundance, according to the state of the king;
such as the king was able
to give, the best he had, and that in great plenty; the wine the kings of
Persia used to drink, as StraboF5Geograph. l. 15. p. 505. relates,
was Chalybonian wine, or wine of Helbon, as it is called, Ezekiel 27:18; see
Gill on Ezekiel 27:18, but
by the wine of the kingdom, as it may be rendered, is meant wine of the
country; the wine of Schiras is reckoned the best in PersiaF6Universal
History, vol. 5. p. 85. .
Esther 1:8. 8 In
accordance with the law, the drinking was not compulsory; for so the king had
ordered all the officers of his household, that they should do according to
each man’s pleasure.
YLT 8And the drinking [is]
according to law, none is pressing, for so hath the king appointed for every
chief one of his house, to do according to the pleasure of man and man.
And the
drinking was according to the law, none did compel,....
According to the law Ahasuerus gave to
his officers next mentioned, which was not to oblige any man to drink more than
he chose; the Targum is,`according to the custom of his body;'that is, as a man
is able to bear it, so they drank: someF6Vid. Drusium in loc. read
it, "the drinking according to the law, let none exact"; or require
it to be, according to the custom then in use in Persia; for they were
degenerated from their former manners, and indulged to intemperance, as
XenophonF7Cyropaedia, l. 8. c. 51. suggests: the law formerly was,
not to carry large vessels into feasts; but now, says he, they drink so much,
that they themselves must be carried out, because they cannot go upright: and
so it became a law with the Greeks, at their festivals, that either a man must
drink or go outF8Cicero. Tusculan. Quaest. l. 5. ; so the master of
a feast, at which Empedocles was, ordered either that he should drink, or the
wine be poured on his headF9Laert. in Vit. ejus, l. 8. p. 608. ; but
such force or compulsion Ahasuerus forbad: and thus with the Chinese now, they
force none to drink, but modestly invite themF11Semedo's History of
China, par. 1. c. 13. :
for so the king
had appointed to all the officers of his house, that they should do according
to every man's pleasure;
to let them have what wine
they would, but not force them to drink more than was agreeable to them.
Esther 1:9. 9 Queen
Vashti also made a feast for the women in the royal palace which belonged
to King Ahasuerus.
YLT 9Also Vashti the queen hath
made a banquet for women, in the royal house that the king Ahasuerus hath.
Also Vashti the
queen made a feast for the women....
For it was not customary
with the Persians, nor other eastern nations, to admit of women to their
festivalsF13Justin c Trogo, l. 41. c. 3. , but they feasted by
themselves. Who Vashti was is not known with any certainty. Bishop Usher, who
takes Ahasuerus to be Darius Hystaspis, thinks Vashti was Atossa, the daughter
of Cyrus, whom he married. The Targumist says, she was the daughter of
Evilmerodach, the son of Nebuchadnezzar. Her name seems to be the same with
Vesta, a deity worshipped by the Persians, as XenophonF14Cyropaedia,
l. 1. c. 23. , and signifies vehement fire, which was in great veneration with
them; and therefore this queen is most likely to be of Persian original: she
kept her feast
in the royal
house which belonged to Ahasuerus;
her guests not being so
many, there was room enough in the king's palace for them, and where it was
more decent for them to be than in the open air in the garden, and exposed to
the sight of men.
Esther 1:10. 10 On
the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded
Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, seven eunuchs
who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus,
YLT 10On the seventh day, as the
heart of the king is glad with wine, he hath said to Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona,
Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs who are ministering
in the presence of the king Ahasuerus,
On the seventh
day,....
Of the feast, the last day
of it, which the Rabbins, as Jarchi observes, say was the sabbath day, and so
the Targum:
when the heart
of the king was merry with wine;
when he was intoxicated
with it, and knew not well what he said or did; and the discourse at table ran
upon the beauty of women, as the latter Targum; when the king asserted there
were no women so beautiful as those of Babylon, and, as a proof of it, ordered
his queen to be brought in:
he commanded
Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven
chamberlains, that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king;
or "eunuchs", as
the word is sometimes rendered; and such persons were made use of in the
eastern countries to, wait upon women, and so were proper to be sent on the
king's errand to the queen.
Esther 1:11. 11 to
bring Queen Vashti before the king, wearing her royal crown, in order to
show her beauty to the people and the officials, for she was beautiful
to behold.
YLT 11to bring in Vashti the
queen before the king, with a royal crown, to shew the peoples and the heads
her beauty, for she [is] of good appearance,
To bring Vashti
the queen before the king,....
Not against her will, or
by force; but they were sent to let her know it was the king's pleasure that
she should come to him immediately:
with the crown
royal;
that is, upon her head, to
make her look the more grand and majestic:
to show the
people and the princes her beauty;
for she was fair to look
upon; which was not wisely done, neither was it comely nor safe.
Esther 1:12. 12 But
Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command brought by his
eunuchs; therefore the king was furious, and his anger burned within him.
YLT 12and the queen Vashti
refuseth to come in at the word of the king that [is] by the hand of the
eunuchs, and the king is very wroth, and his fury hath burned in him.
But the queen
refused to came at the king's commandment by his chamberlains,....
Even though he sent by
them again, as the Targum; and so says JosephusF15Antiqu. l. 11. c.
6. sect. 1. ; which might not purely arise from pride in her, and contempt of
him, but because she might conclude he was drunk, and knew not well what he
did; and therefore had she come at his command, when he was himself and sober,
he might blame her for coming, nay, use her ill for it, and especially if she
was to come naked, as say the JewsF16Targum in loc. Midrash Esther,
fol. 90. 1. ; and besides, it was contrary to the law of the Persians, as not
only JosephusF17Antiqu. l. 11. c. 6. sect. 1. , but PlutarchF18In
Themistoele. observes, which suffered not women to be seen in public; and
particularly did not allow their wives to be with them at feasts, only their
concubines and harlots, with whom they could behave with more indecency; as for
their wives, they were kept out of sight, at homeF19Macrob.
Saturnal. l. 7. c. 1. ; and therefore Vashti might think it an indignity to be
treated as an harlot or concubine:
therefore was
the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him;
which was the more fierce,
as he was inflamed with wine.
Esther 1:13. 13 Then
the king said to the wise men who understood the times (for this was the
king’s manner toward all who knew law and justice,
YLT 13And the king saith to wise
men, knowing the times -- for so [is] the word of the king before all knowing law
and judgment,
Then the king
said to the wise men that knew the times,....
Astrologers, as Aben Ezra,
that knew the fit time for doing anything; or that had knowledge of ancient
times, historians, well read in history, and knew things that had happened similar
to this:
for so was the
king's manner towards all that knew law and judgment;
it was customary with him
in any case of difficulty to have the opinion and advice of those that were
expert in the law, and well understood right and wrong. These are called by
HerodotusF20Thalia, sive, l. 3. c. 14,31. so in Aelian. Var. Hist.
l. 1. c. 34. the king's judges.
Esther 1:14. 14 those
closest to him being Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres,
Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, who had access to
the king’s presence, and who ranked highest in the kingdom):
YLT 14and he who is near unto him
[is] Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, Memucan, seven heads
of Persia and Media seeing the face of the king, who are sitting first in the
kingdom –
And the next
unto him,....
That sat next to the king,
and was the chief in dignity and authority under him:
was Carshena;
and so everyone in their
rank and order, as next mentioned:
Shethar,
Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan;
who, according to the
latter Targum, were of different countries; the first of Africa, the second of
India, the third of Idumea, the fourth of Egypt, the fifth of Resen, Genesis 10:12 which
is framed out of Marsena, who is dropped, and the last of Jerusalem, said to be
Daniel; though the former Targum makes him to be Haman:
the seven
powers of Persia and Media;
which custom of having
seven counsellors with the kings of Persia arose from the seven princes that
slew Smerdis the pretender, and made Darius Hystaspis king, the father of
Xerxes:
which saw the
king's face;
were intimate and familiar
with him, often in his presence; yea, might go into it when they pleased,
without the ceremony of being introduced; which privilege the above persons
reserved to themselves, when they placed Darius on the throne, as Herodotus
relatesF21lb. (Thalia, sive, l. 3.) c. 84, 118. :
and which sat
the first in the kingdom;
next to the king, and were
assisting to him in the administration of government, see Ezra 7:14.
Esther 1:15. 15 “What
shall we do to Queen Vashti, according to law, because she did not obey
the command of King Ahasuerus brought to her by the eunuchs?”
YLT 15`According to law, what --
to do with queen Vashti, because that she hath not done the saying of the king
Ahasuerus by the hand of the eunuchs?'
What shall we
do unto the Queen Vashti, according to law,....
The king desired to know
what law was provided in such a case as her's, and what to be done according to
it:
because she
hath not performed the commandment of the king by the chamberlains?
as this was the crime,
disobedience to his commands, he would have those who had knowledge of the law
consider what punishment was to be inflicted on her for it, according to former
laws, usages, and customs, or as reason and justice required; and it being a
festival, and they heated with wine, was no objection to a consultation on this
head; for it was the manner of the Persians at festivals, and when inflamed
with wine, to consult and determine about matters of the greatest momentF23Clio,
sive, l. 1. c. 133. ; yea, reckoned their counsels and decrees firmer than when
made when they were soberF24Strabo. Geograph. l. 15. p. 505. Alex.
ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 4. c. 11. & l. 5. c. 21. ; so the ancient GermansF25Tacitus
de Mor. German. c. 22. .
Esther 1:16. 16 And
Memucan answered before the king and the princes: “Queen Vashti has not only
wronged the king, but also all the princes, and all the people who are
in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus.
YLT 16And Memucan saith before
the king and the heads, `Not against the king by himself hath Vashti the queen
done perversely, but against all the heads, and against all the peoples that
[are] in all provinces of the king Ahasuerus;
And Memucan
answered before the king and the princes,....
Who was the last, and
perhaps the least and the youngest of the counsellors; it being appointed by
the king, according to the latter Targum that when his counsellors sat, the
least should give their counsel first; just as puisne judges, and the youngest peers
with us, give their opinion in a case first:
Vashti the
queen hath not done wrong to the king only, but also to all the princes, and to
all the people that are in all the provinces of the King Ahasuerus;
he means, by setting a bad
example to their wives, as after explained; it is an exaggeration of her crime,
and made with a design to incense the king the more against her.
Esther 1:17. 17 For
the queen’s behavior will become known to all women, so that they will despise
their husbands in their eyes, when they report, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen
Vashti to be brought in before him, but she did not come.’
YLT 17for go forth doth the word
of the queen unto all the women, to render their husbands contemptible in their
eyes, in their saying, The king Ahasuerus said to bring in Vashti the queen
before him, and she did not come;
For this deed
of the queen shall come abroad unto all women,....
It will soon be spread all
over the king's dominions, and reach the ears of the wives of all his subjects,
and become their general talk everywhere:
so that they
shall despise their husbands in their eyes:
make light of their
authority, refuse subjection to them, slight their commands, and neglect to
yield obedience to them, and so not give them the honour that is due unto them:
when it shall
be reported, the King Ahasuerus commanded Vashti the queen to be brought in
before him, and she came not;
was disobedient to his
commands, refused to go along with the chamberlains sent by the king to fetch
her.
Esther 1:18. 18 This
very day the noble ladies of Persia and Media will say to all the king’s
officials that they have heard of the behavior of the queen. Thus there will
be excessive contempt and wrath.
YLT 18yea, this day do princesses
of Persia and Media, who have heard the word of the queen, say [so] to all
heads of the king, even according to the sufficiency of contempt and wrath.
Likewise shall
the ladies of Persia and Media say this day unto the king's princes, which have
heard of the deed of the queen,....
From henceforward they
will give a like answer to their husbands, when they lay their commands upon
them, as Vashti has to the king; they will tell them to their faces they will
not obey their orders:
thus shall
there arise too much contempt and wrath;
there will be in wives a
general contempt of their husbands, which will cause discord and strife,
quarrels, wrath and anger; contempt on one part, wrath on the other, and
contention between both.
Esther 1:19. 19 If
it pleases the king, let a royal decree go out from him, and let it be recorded
in the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it will not be altered, that
Vashti shall come no more before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her
royal position to another who is better than she.
YLT 19`If to the king [it be]
good, there goeth forth a royal word from before him, and it is written with
the laws of Persia and Media, and doth not pass away, that Vashti doth not come
in before the king Ahasuerus, and her royalty doth the king give to her
companion who [is] better than she;
If it please
the king, let there go a royal commandment from him,....
Not only a proclamation
made, but a law enacted and published by royal authority:
and let it be
written among the laws of the Persians and Medes that it be not altered;
for so it was, that when a
law was made, and signed, and sealed, and registered among the laws of the
kingdom, it remained unalterable, Daniel 6:8, this
precaution Memucan took for his own safety; for had the king acted upon his
advice, without passing it into a law in such form, he might change his mind,
and recall Vashti, who would not fail of venting her wrath upon the counsellor,
and so he be in danger of losing his life for it:
that Vashti
come no more before King Ahasuerus;
but be entirely divorced,
never to be received any more:
and let the
king give her royal estate unto another that is better than she;
or "to her
companions"F26לרעותה "sodali
ejus", Montanus; "sociae ejus", Tigurine version, Drusius,
Rambachius. ; that was with her in the house of the women in the seraglio; one
that was fairer, as the Targum, or of a better disposition than her; let her be
made queen, and enjoy all the honour, and dignity, and marks of royalty Vashti
did; her throne, her crown, and royal apparel, as it is interpreted in an
ancient Jewish writingF1Tikkune Zohar, correct. 21. fol. 59. 2. .
Esther 1:20. 20 When
the king’s decree which he will make is proclaimed throughout all his empire
(for it is great), all wives will honor their husbands, both great and small.”
YLT 20and the sentence of the
king that he maketh hath been heard in all his kingdom -- for it [is] great --
and all the wives give honour to their husbands, from great even unto small.'
And when the
king's decree which he shall make shall be published throughout all his empire,....
As it was proper it
should, since the report of the queen's deed would be made everywhere:
for it is great;
the empire consisting of
one hundred and twenty seven provinces, Esther 1:1, Aben
Ezra and Abendana interpret it, "though" it is great, yet the decree
should be published throughout; the latter observes, that this may respect the
king's decree; and so the Targum is,"for his decree is great;'it
respecting a matter of great importance, and relating to a great personage, and
would have great effect on the minds of persons, when it was observed that one
so great was treated in this manner: and therefore
all the wives
shall give to their husbands honour, both to great and small;
speaking respectfully to
them, yielding a ready and cheerful obedience to all their commands; which
would be done to princes and peasants, to high and low, to every rank of men.
Esther 1:21. 21 And
the reply pleased the king and the princes, and the king did according to the
word of Memucan.
YLT 21And the thing is good in
the eyes of the king, and of the princes, and the king doth according to the
word of Memucan,
And the saying
pleased the king and the princes,....
The king, and the other
six princes and counsellors, approved of the proposal, and unanimously agreed
to it:
and the king
did according to the word of Memucan;
passed a law according to
his advice, and signed and sealed it, and registered it among the laws of the
kingdom, not to be revoked.
Esther 1:22. 22 Then
he sent letters to all the king’s provinces, to each province in its own
script, and to every people in their own language, that each man should be
master in his own house, and speak in the language of his own people.
YLT 22and sendeth letters unto
all provinces of the king, unto province and province according to its writing,
and unto people and people according to its tongue, for every man being head in
his own house -- and speaking according to the language of his people.
For he sent
letters unto all the king's provinces,....
The one hundred and twenty
seven provinces, Esther 1:1, which,
according to the Targum, were written and sealed with his own seal; which is
very probable:
into every
province according to the writing thereof, and to every people after their
language;
that is, these letters
were written in the language, and in the characters in which that language was
written, used in each of the provinces to which these letters were sent, that
they might be easily read and understood by all: the sum of which was:
that every man
should bear rule in his own house;
be prince, lord, and
master there, and his commands obeyed, not only by his children and servants,
but by his wife also:
and that it
should be published according to the language of every people;
but as this is expressed,
or at least implied, in the first clause of this verse, it should rather be
rendered, "and that he should speak according to the language of his
people"; and so is the latter Targum; it seems as if a man, who had
married a woman in another country, in complaisance to her had neglected his
own native tongue, and used hers in the family, by which means he lost, or
seemed to lose, his authority in it: now, to guard against this, this part of
the law was made; and, according to Jarchi, the husband was to compel his wife
to learn and speak his language, if she was a foreigner; to which agrees the
first Targum, which paraphrases the whole thus,"that a man rule over his
wife, and oblige her to speak according to the language of her husband, and the
speech of his people;'and, in later times, Bahram Gaur forbid any other
language, besides the Persian, to be used within his port, either in speaking
or writingF2Vid. Castel. Lexic. Persic. col. 266. .
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New
King James Version (NKJV)
a.
Esther 1:1
Generally identified with Xerxes I (485–464 b.c.)
b.
Esther 1:2 Or Susa,
and so throughout this book