In the hebrew bible, the book of esther is found in the third section of the canon, the writings. On that night could not the king sleep how vain are all the contrivances of foolish man against the wise and omnipotent god, who hath the hearts and hands of kings and all men perfectly at his disposal, and can by such trivial accidents as they are accounted change. It tells the story of a jewish girl in persia, who becomes queen and saves her people from a genocide. A free bible version and commentary on the old testament book of esther in easy english. Commentary on the book of esther by matthew henry old. Then the biblical narrative continues as the scene shifts to persia, to a mountainous plateau situated to the southeast of the tigriseuphrates valleythe setting for the book of esther.
Artaxerxes this man was son of xerxes and stepson of esther. Sep 29, 2015 this commentary by frederic bush on ruth and esther is one of the best in the typically superb word biblical commentary series. Ruth, esther word biblical commentary, volume 9 wbc. You will also find options for commentaries on esther that help pastors, teachers, and readers with application of the bible, commentaries that approach the scripture versebyverse, classic christian commentaries, and much more. It belongs to the third section of the judaic canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings.
On that night could not the king sleep how vain are all the contrivances of foolish man against the wise and omnipotent god, who hath the hearts and hands of kings and all men perfectly at his disposal, and can by such trivial accidents as they are accounted change their minds, and produce such terrible effects. The word biblical commentary delivers the best in biblical scholarship, from the leading scholars of our day who share a commitment to scripture as divine revelation. Xerxes this is the ahasuerus of the book of esther. Commentaries for the book of esther haman seeks to destroy the jews. Study scripture verses with commentary, concordances, and use highlighting, underlining, take notes in the bible. Esther is the only book in the bible not to mention the name of god. Naturally, being a rather unstable fellow, ahasuerus firesslashdivorces her. John calvin never preached from the book and did not write a commentary on the book.
Jun 18, 2019 the book of esther is one of only two books in the bible named for women. We are shown a persian emperor, ahasuerus loosely based on xerxes, 485464 b. But in the lxx there are additions to the book of esther which give it and the festival associated with it a religious tone previously lacking. The book of esther tells a story of the deliverance of the jewish people. Featuring the nlt, indepth book introductions, and uptodate evangelical scholarship, this readable resource provides students, pastors, and laypeople with the exegetical knowledge to better understand and apply the message of each passage in ezra, nehemiah, and esther. Jerome, the whole book, including the greek additions, was included in the canon of scripture by the council of trent. Now he needs to pick a new queen and eventually manages to select esthera comely, young secretly jewish woman who is a. Esther is read during the purim feast on 14th and 15th adar februarymarch.
There is hardly a book in the bible, upon the trustworthiness of which there has been made so determined an attack, as the book of esther. The story gives us six powerful lessons about courage. The gathering together of a harem for king ahasuerus. You can find the best commentary on esther for you using the tools on the right side. Yet esther, of all the biblical books outside of the torah, is the only one that addresses the origin of a new festival. During world war ii she spent 21 months in a japanese concentration camp as a prisoner. Berlin begins with a lengthy introduction, discussing esther as comedy and as diaspora literature. Before the king this may refer either, 1st, to the writing of it, signifying that it was written in the kings presence by scribes, who were continually with the king, to record all remarkable things which happened in the court from time to time. A treasury of theological insight into key historical old testament books. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple, and prayer are not mentioned. The whole history of this book in its connected order, with the occurrences in the persian empire at that time, will be found. In other words, esther acts reluctantly, and in large measure, in selfinterest. A story of the providence of god in a pagan land page 4 introduction to the book the book of esther is the only book in the bible that does not mention the name of god.
Book of esther, book of the hebrew bible and the christian old testament. After these things, when the wrath of king ahasuerus subsided, he remembered vashti, what she had done, and what had been decreed against her. But the writer wants us to know that the story is true. Esther commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Although a bit too technical for most readers, it will be of benefit to seminary students and others doing indepth study of the text. Esther is the most secular of the biblical books, making no reference to gods name, to the temple, to prayer, or to distinctive jewish practices such as kashrut keeping kosher. Study the narratives of these books by drawing on bushs knowledge of ancient near eastern customs, languages, and hebrew narrative and poetry to illuminate the meaning of these books, and the development and transmission of each books textual witnesses. Note that the dramatic events of the book of esther take place between the events of ezra 6 and ezra 7, between the first return led by zerubbabel and the second return led by ezra. Praise for the print edition this informative commentary. While it is always important to understand the context of a particular scripture text, it is especially critical with this one.
The jewish community, and its areas of residence, outside erez israel. In 1934 annie became a missionary in china with oms. The book belongs to the socalled five scrolls hebr. Several things in this chapter itself are very instructive and of great use. 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. Vashti is sent for by the king, but refuses to come, esther 1. A story of the providence of god in a pagan land page 4 introduction to the book the book of esther is the only book in the bible that does not. 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 reversal of fortunes which esther secured, attributed to her beauty and her daring in the book, are ascribed, in the additions, to her piety.
Esther 1 new international version niv queen vashti deposed. In the present translation, the greek additions are indicated by the. Listen to this description in the five megilloth, a jewish commentary published by the soncino press. In case you are unfamiliar with this series, the scholarship in its various volumes is typically impeccable. The book of esther begins with the queen of king ahasuerusvashtisnubbing the kings request to meet with her. It is a deeply profound and moving narrative of historical events that displayed the providence of god. For those seeking a more extensive commentary on the book of esther, frederic bushs work in the wbc series is a good place to start. See all of our coronavirus resources here toggle navigation.
In the story of esther, youll meet a beautiful, young queen who risked her life to serve god and save her people. The prayers of esther and mordecai are especially noteworthy. 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. The bible book of esther is a dramatic account which can give us insight into gods special and purposeful plan for our lives. This commentary by frederic bush on ruth and esther is one of the best in the typically superb word biblical commentary series.
It is clear that the author was a jew, both from his emphasis on the origin of a jewish festival and from the jewish nationalism that permeates the story. The heroine of the book named for her, esther is a young jewish woman living in exile in the persian lit. Esther 1 niv queen vashti deposed this is what bible. Esther is, among the generality of jews, the best known of all the books of the bible p. In the jewish bible, esther follows ecclesiastes and lamentations and is read on the festival of purim, which commemorates the rescue of the jews from hamans plottings. We might even think that he does not care about us. Study guide on the book of esther, on line bible commentary for book of esther, niv commentary esther, free esther commentary, best commentaries on esther. Although we do not know who wrote the book of esther, from internal evidence it is possible to make some inferences about the author and the date of composition.
Best esther commentaries updated for 2020 best bible. The bible does not mention the book of esther anywhere else. Read and study esther, including book summary, with the versebyverse bible commentary. At the start of the book, he says when it happened. Frederic bush ruthesther word biblical commentary, 1996. Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible. The greek septuagint remedied this situation by adding six passages which include the name of god. Engage the challenging books of ruth and esther utilizing the dynamic. The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. At the end of the book, he says that the official records included the story about esther. Esther is the last of the historical books of the bible, so its main character is. An exposition, with practical observations, of the book of esther chapter 1. Esther with book summary versebyverse bible commentary.
Neither mordecai, esther, nor the feast of purim is mentioned. Martin luther renounced the book, along with other apocryphal books saying, i am so great an enemy to the second book of the maccabees, and to esther, that i wish they had not come to us at all, for they have too many heathen unnaturalities. Esther free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. The writer of the book of esther probably wanted his readers to realise that god is always in control. Engage the challenging books of ruth and esther utilizing the dynamic expertise of frederic bush.
It was written in the book of the chronicles a daybook, wherein all memorable things were recorded. Frederic bush, word biblical commentary wbc, thomas nelson, 1996, 528 pp. The story gives us six powerful lessons about courage, divine. 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.
Commentary on esther 1 by matthew henry blue letter bible. Did you know that esther is mentioned more times in the bible than any other woman. The book of esther does not mention the name of god. The greek title for this book is esther latin hester. Esther 3 is the third chapter of the book of esther in the hebrew bible or the old testament of the christian bible. The author of the book is unknown and modern scholars have established that the final stage of the hebrew text would have been formed by the second century bce. In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is the writings hebr. Read esther commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. 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. 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.
Book of esther overview insight for living ministries. The books of ezra and nehemiah were written during his reign. Study the bible online using commentary on esther and more. David guzik commentary on esther 1, where queen vashti refuses to display her. He eventually chose esther as his queen, and by her influence the jews were saved from destruction. 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. 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. Best commentaries and books on esther logos bible software. The book of esther is one of only two books in the bible named for women. His presence permeates much of the story, as though he were behind the scenes coordinating coincidences and circumstances to make his will happen.
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