We might even think that he does not care about us. He took in esther as the new persian queen, not knowing she was an israelite. But while the characters might resemble a fairy tale, the book of esther depicts actual events that shaped jewish history and instituted the festival of purim. The book is named for the star of the story, a young jewish girl named hadassah who was taken from her guardian, mordecai, and forced to compete for the affection of the king. Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible. The story gives us six powerful lessons about courage.
It was certainly the kings weakness to send for vashti into his presence when he was drunk, and in company with abundance of gentlemen, many of whom, it is. But the megillahs mandate differs from the torahs in one crucial respect. Esther commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. In the book of esther this information is casually presented as. Waldman and appeared in volume one of the graphic canon, edited by russ kick and published by seven stories press. Classical sources such as josephus, the jewish commentary esther rabbah and the. The book of esther intrigues positively, too, one reason being its containing rationale for the celebration of the feast of purim, the popularity of which can be accounted for in part by the fact that it constitutes the only worldly holiday in the jewish calendar for the expression of the lighthearted side of life harrison 10951096.
Summary of the book of esther genuine leather bible. 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. 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. The writer of the book of esther probably wanted his readers to realise that god is always in control. The book of esther is a 20 movie starring jen lilley as queen esther and joel smallbone as king xerxes. In the book of esther this information is casually presented as unimportant, but comes up later in the story. The book of esther may remind you of a classic, once upon a time childrens story with a wealthy king, his beautiful queen, and an evil villain.
The following are five of the most helpful commentaries on this book of scripture. Matthew henrys commentary on the whole biblebook of. It is careful not to say that god commanded the observance of purim. Af, which most scholars regard as later additions to the book.
A free bible version and commentary on the old testament book of esther in easy english. This paper examines the book of esther, deriving important insights about a variety of approaches to leadership that can be applied to todays. Jews throughout the world, after 2,500 years, still celebrate this feast. Esther the niv application commentary kindle edition by jobes, karen h download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. In 2012, a graphic adaptation of the book of esther was illustrated by j. The whole history of this book in its connected order, with the occurrences in the persian empire at that time, will be found. The books happy ending is the cause of the establishment of the feast of purim, which celebrates the jews deliverance from destruction. Thus, the deeds of queen esther cast a ray of light forward into israels history from a dark time. Commentary on the book of esther by matthew henry old. In the book of esther, what is not said is vitally important. Esther free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. Thus esther was the only hope for their deliverance. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading matthew henrys.
The book of esther serves as the authorizing document for purim, a holiday that is not mentioned in the torah. Several things in this chapter itself are very instructive and of great use. In the celebration, jews read aloud the megillah, a scroll containing the book of esther, on purim eve and purim day. Sadly, many who read and study esther including bible scholars who write commentaries on the book fill in the blanks, rather than leaving them blank and learning from the silence of the author. We are shown a persian emperor, ahasuerus loosely based on xerxes, 485464 b. Karen jobes has written the most engaging, interesting, and helpful commentary on the book of esther presently available. The following are five of the most helpful commentaries on. The events in the book of esther occurred from 483. Esther was originally written in hebrew, which is represented by ch. The book of esther does not mention the name of god. The book of esther is one of only two books in the bible named for women.
Esther is described in the book of esther as a jewish queen of the persian king ahasuerus. Esther 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. Weibe suggests that this translation fits the context of the book of esther much better than the traditional rendering. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. On the mystical level king achashverosh alludes to gd, the king of the world. Esther the niv application commentary kindle edition. The whole history of this book in its connected order, with the occurrences in the persian empire at that time, will be found in the introduction. Matthew henrys commentary on the whole biblebook of esther.
A complete bibliography of the book of esther kayser commentary. Read esther 1 commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Overview of the book of esther third millennium ministries. The book of esther is read every year to the assembled congregations of the jewish people in their synagogues to the present day. She invites him to a feast in the company of haman 5. This little gem, tucked away in an obscure corner of the old testament, is a very rich book, and it is historical. While it is always important to understand the context of a particular scripture text, it is especially critical with this one. Esther commentary john gills exposition of the bible. In the hebrew bible, the book of esther is found in the third section of the canon, the writings. In the celebration, jews read aloud the megillah, a scroll containing the. The book of esther is read every year to the assembled congregations of the jewish people in. Esther 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Study the bible online using commentary on esther and more.
Esther is, among the generality of jews, the best known of all the books of the bible p. Listen to this description in the five megilloth, a jewish commentary published by the soncino press. Xerxes this is the ahasuerus of the book of esther. Esther the niv application commentary kindle edition by. Esther said, i myself have not been called to go in to the king these thirty days meaning she had not seen her husband for an entire month. The kings chief adviser, haman, is offended by esthers cousin and guardian, mordecai, and gets permission from the king to have all the jews in the kingdom killed.
Ahasuerusit is now generally agreed among learned men that the ahasuerus mentioned in this episode is the xerxes who figures in grecian history. I always appreciate it when there is clear consensus on the best commentary on any given book of the bible. This unlikely contestant for a beauty pageant was crowned queen of persia and renamed esther, meaning star. The book of esther begins with the queen of king ahasuerusvashtisnubbing the kings request to meet with her. Karen jobes esther niv application commentary, 1999. The original text of the megillah book of esther with a running commentary culled from the talmud and midrash, the great torah commentators and the chassidic masters.
The book belongs to the socalled five scrolls hebr. Baldwin, esther, tyndale old testament commentaries. Read esther commentary using john gills exposition of the bible. By many the book of esther is regarded as a fantastic romance, by some it is. In 1934 annie became a missionary in china with oms. The books of ezra and nehemiah were written during his reign. Megillah with indepth commentaryside by side version.
Matthew henrys commentary on the whole biblebook of esther kindle edition by henry, matthew. The book of esther is a story, and these brief passages from chapters 7 and 9. The author of the book of esther is unknown, though some attribute the work to mordecai. We can see how accurately it illustrates what is happening to us when god is at work in the human heart. 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. Vashti is sent for by the king, but refuses to come, esther 1. In the narrative, ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, vashti, refuses to obey him, and esther is chosen for her beauty. Waldman and appeared in volume one of the graphic canon, edited by russ kick and.
Artaxerxes this man was son of xerxes and stepson of esther. An exposition, with practical observations, of the book of esther chapter 1. A selection of the best commentaries and bible study resources on the book of esther. But as to the translation, commentaries admit that the marginal rendering that i. 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. Naturally, being a rather unstable fellow, ahasuerus firesslashdivorces her. Book of prophecy that reveals gods magnificent plan of salvation through the person and work of jesus christ. Esther 1 commentary old testament matthew henry st. Xerxes, the persian king, who rejected his other wife queen vashti, fell in love with esther in the beauty contest.
This mordecai was a prophet who not only wrote the book of esther, but who wrote six. This little gem, tucked away in an obscure corner of the old testament is a very rich book. The writer of esther clearly intended the book to explain the origin of the celebration of purim, to institutionalize it as a commemoration of the great deliverance of the jews during the persian period see note on esther 9. Esther is read during the purim feast on 14th and 15th adar februarymarch. The book of esther, also known in hebrew as the scroll megillah, is a book in the third. It is a deeply profound and moving narrative of historical events that displayed the providence of god. The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. He eventually chose esther as his queen, and by her influence the jews were saved from destruction.
The book of esther, the holy bible, complete audiobook. Although there are unfortunately those today who suggest that some of the stories in the old testament are legends, there is substantial evidence that the events of esther actually occurred. Book of esther overview insight for living ministries. During world war ii she spent 21 months in a japanese concentration camp as a prisoner. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading esther the niv application commentary. Though some christians have hesitated to receive the book of esther into the sacred canon. Best commentaries and books on esther logos bible software. In the story of esther, youll meet a beautiful, young queen who risked her life to serve god and save her people. Such a reading would, however, limit the resources of god, who brought this about, and transplant the. Mordecai learned of a plot to kill the king and made it known to esther who passed the news to the king.
In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is the writings hebr. It is the last of the five scrolls ruth, song of songs, ecclesiastes, lamentations, and esther, and is read at the feast of purim. The thing that makes the book of esther so fascinating is this is our story. Now he needs to pick a new queen and eventually manages to select esthera comely, young secretly jewish woman who is a. Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the kings palace any more than all the other jews. See all of our coronavirus resources here toggle navigation.