And king ahasuerus imposed tribute on the land and on the islands of the sea. Study the bible online using commentary on esther 10 and more. Thus, the deeds of queen esther cast a ray of light forward into israels history from a dark time. The book of esther is part of the canon of the hebrew bibleold. He had banished his former wife and chose esther through a contest. Enter for a chance to win this niv cultural backgrounds study bible. It is a deeply profound and moving narrative of historical events that displayed the providence of god. Mordecai learned of a plot to kill the king and continue reading summary of the book of esther. The book of judiths canonical history is also complicated, even though. The book of esther was written during the 3 rd year of the reign of ahasuerus 485 465 bc. The most popular traditions are mordecai a major character in the book of esther, ezra and nehemiah who would have been familiar with persian customs. T he story of esther reads like a novel and is full of great spiritual lessons. Esther 9 commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary was written by john brown on selected books of the bible. The book of esther shows how the hand of god can move in a supernaturallynatural way.
The story gives us six powerful lessons about courage. The book of esther was likely written between 460 and 350 b. The prayers of esther and mordecai are especially noteworthy. Bible study magazine volume 11, issue 2, janfeb, 2019. Commentary on the book of esther matthew henrys bible commentary. How an interfaith wedding couple made me think about queen. The book of esther is one of the most exciting books in all the old testament and is nearly unique in employing a woman as its leading character. The book of esther makes a unique contribution to our understanding of. Esther 9 commentary browns commentary on selected books.
Esther is a young and beautiful jewish girl, orphaned but cared for by her. Esther 9 commentary browns commentary on selected books of. By a course of action which gives her a distinguished place among the women of the bible, the great enemy of the jews was destroyed, and her people were delivered. In 1934 annie became a missionary in china with oms. Read the verses of esther as an online bible study course resource. The next step is to enter your payment information. This is why many presume that the book was written in the second half of the fifth century bc. Summary of the book of esther genuine leather bible. Ezra 7 begins in the seventh year of artaxerxes i longimanus i. The book of esther is read every year to the assembled congregations of the jewish people in their synagogues to the present day. In megillat esther the book of esther, where we find the purim story, the. Study esther 1 using matthew henrys bible commentary concise to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. It is the last of the five scrolls ruth, song of songs, ecclesiastes, lamentations, and esther, and is read at the feast of purim.
It has been well said that the book of esther is a record of wonders without a miracle, and therefore, though equally revealing the glory of the lord, it sets it forth in another fashion from that which is displayed in the overthrow of pharaoh by. Youre already logged in with your bible gateway account. One in a series of twenty old testament versebyverse commentary books. God is not specifically mentioned in the book of esther, but the author found a sly way to.
Kiel points out in his commentary on esther, we have only. The book of esther and martin luther baptist christian. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. In his translation of the book, he introduced antisemitic undertones, depicting esther as the typical despicable jew, eager to shed gentile blood. This little gem, tucked away in an obscure corner of the old testament, is a very rich book, and it is historical. The book of esther begins with king ahasuerus known to history outside the bible as xerxes throwing a lavish.
Listen to this description in the five megilloth, a jewish commentary published by the soncino press. The book of esther begins with the queen of king ahasuerusvashtisnubbing the kings request to meet with her. The following are five of the most helpful commentaries on. He may not always do it in the way we think he should, but the book of esther shows that he is in control even when we dont see him. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple, and prayer are not mentioned. Esther commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Now all the acts of his power and his might, and the account of the greatness of mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of media and persia. Commentary on the book of esther, new york, i908, pp. Well, in short, the wicked haman, an agagite, worked his way to the top of the. In fact, god is not directly mentioned by name in the book of esther. During world war ii she spent 21 months in a japanese concentration camp as a prisoner. The events mentioned in esther therefore happened between ezra chapter 6 and chapter 7.
Megillat esther, the book of esther in the form that we have it in the hebrew bible, provides the story of the origin of purim, the blueprint for its celebration, and the authorization for its observance in perpetuity. Read esther commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Study esther 4 using matthew henrys bible commentary concise to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. The pride of ahasueruss heart rising with the grandeur of his kingdom, he made an extravagant feast. The queen was a beautiful woman, and the king wanted to show off her beauty to the officials and. Bob is a pastorteacher and elder at community bible chapel in richardson, texas, and has contributed many of his bible study series for use by the foundation. Bible study from the book of esther looking at the victory of the jews in the book of esther chapter 9 and 10. The book of esther is unusual gods name is not mentioned once, yet. Tom constables expository notes on esther this is also available in the net.
The author is unknown, but some biblical scholars conclude that it was mordecai, himself, who wrote the book of esther. The story itself is implausible as history and, as many scholars now agree, it is. Esther summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of esther for bible study or sunday school lessons. I want to embrace this book of the bible, i really do i used to think was illegitimate for reasons of not even mentioning god have realized that the sacred name may be in acrostic, whether in king james english or the hebrew manuscripts or both, i know not.
There are few books in the bible, maybe no other book in the bible, more relevant to christian life in a dominant postchristian culture, hostile to christianity and powerful enough to enforce its hostility, than the book of esther. In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is the writings hebr. Bickerman in his preface, the author is interested in the books of the bible which were written in the age of greek intellectual dominance. Esthers request to the king on the third day esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the kings hall. The book of esther is unique in that it is one of the only two books in the bible named for women the other, of course, is ruth. Esther, bible illustrations 19312009, published by sweet media. Bobdeffinbaugh graduated from dallas theological seminary with his th. The chapters and verses of esther from the douay rheims version of the online catholic bible.
Yet here in esther is a bible book that is fast moving, dramatic, funny, ironic. Book of prophecy that reveals gods magnificent plan of salvation through the person and work of jesus christ. Berlin begins with a lengthy introduction, discussing esther as comedy and as diaspora literature. Holman old testament commentary ezra, nehemiah, esther. Esther 5, new international version niv the bible app. In the hebrew bible, the book of esther is found in the third section of the canon, the writings. Starting your free trial of bible gateway plus is easy. An interpretation of the dream that relates its features to the plot of the book is given in f. The book of esther, also known in hebrew as the scroll megillah, is a book in the third section ketuvim, writings of the jewish tanakh the hebrew bible and in the christian old testament.
Esther bible study part 1 the story of esther is one of the most exciting and inspiring in all the word of god. The author of the book of esther is unknown, though some attribute the work to mordecai. The greek septuagint remedied this situation by adding six passages which include the name of god. The book is set during the period after the babylonian exile in which the nation of persia present day iran ruled judah. Although there are unfortunately those today who suggest that some of the stories in the old testament are legends, there is substantial. See all of our coronavirus resources here toggle navigation.
For the curious thing about the book of esther is that, although it has all the hallmarks of a romance, with its string of coincidences, its artfully told narrative, and its engaging characterisations, it can at no point be unequivocally faulted on historical grounds which cannot, incidentally, be said in the least of the greek book of esther. Read esther 10 commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Many christians suffer from what i have come to call a pious bias. The book of esther tells a story of the deliverance of the jewish people.
Book of esther, the book of esther bible study, commentary. Jonah, daniel, koheleth, esther, by elias bickerman. Online catholic bible click here for complete book of esther. Only would love to find his name hidden in the text. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. The events of the book of esther occurred between 483 and 473 bc. Your credit card wont be charged until the trial period is over. Esther is, among the generality of jews, the best known of all the books of the bible p. Esther bible story summary what christians want to know. The book of esther was written to give gods people hope during periods of hostility by showing gods. Esther a persian word meaning star is the more familiar name of a jewish girl named hadassah which is hebrew for myrtle. Nothing more is known of her than is recorded in the book which jewish gratitude has made to bear her name.
Now he needs to pick a new queen and eventually manages to select esthera comely, young secretly jewish woman who is a. The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. The book of esther is the only one not found in the dead sea scrolls. We might even think that he does not care about us. It is one of the five scrolls megillot in the hebrew bible. Esther with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. An introduction to the book of esther an argument of the book of esther selected bibliography of the book of esther. Commentary on the whole bible volume i genesis to deuteronomy ebook.
Esther was a jewish woman who was selected by the persian king ahasuerus to be his wife. Further artificialities are clear in the way characters are paired e. The writer of the book of esther probably wanted his readers to realise that god is always in control. Several things in this chapter itself are very instructive and of great use. Martin luther did deliberately translate the book of esther in a biased fashion, into german, as well as add inappropriate commentary. Here is the story of esther through a summary of each of the 10 chapters. Esther overview spurgeons verse expositions of the bible. Naturally, being a rather unstable fellow, ahasuerus firesslashdivorces her. Esther is the last of the historical books of the bible, so its main character is named esther that is, venus, the morning star, which sheds its light after all the other stars have ceased to shine, and while the sun still delays rising. In the biblical text itself no judgment is made on esther marrying out of her faith.
Esther commentary book of esther commentary lifeway. Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible, who published his works in 1706, sixvolume exposition of the old and new testaments 17081710 or complete commentary, provides an exhaustive verse by verse study of the bible, covering the whole of the old testament, and the gospels and acts in the new testament. Read below for some more fun and interesting facts on the book of esther. An introduction to the book of esther an argument of the book of esther selected bibliography of the book of esther j. Esther is the only book in the bible not to mention the name of god. So esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. The book was written no earlier than 470 bc and probably no later than 424 bc, during the reign of xerxes son artaxerxes. May 25, 2011 esther was a jewish woman who was selected by the persian king ahasuerus to be his wife. The book of esther in the bible is a dramatic account which can give us insight into gods special and purposeful plan for our lives. Book of esther overview insight for living ministries. Esther 1 commentary old testament matthew henry st. This informative commentary part of jpss bible commentary series dissects the book of esther and, by extension, the jewish holiday of purim. Not only is it a great story with all the drama and. Addition a has mordecai inform the king directly, whereas in 2.