A free bible version and commentary on the old testament book of esther in easy english. The greek septuagint remedied this situation by adding six passages which include the name of god. Its also heavy on action, drama, and game of thronesstyle intrigue, while being notably lacking in legal codes, commandments, theologyall that kind of thing. Read and study esther, including book summary, with the versebyverse bible commentary. The counsellors advise that a selection of virgins should be made throughout the empire, out of whom the king should choose one to be queen in place of vashti, esther 2. Summary of the book of esther genuine leather bible. Queen esther came to the throne for just such a time 4. Jobes volume is best for those seeking a biblicaltheological commentary on the book of esther. The purpose of the book of esther is to display the providence of god, especially in regard to his chosen people, israel.
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. 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. A jewish girl, esther, found favor in his eyes and became the new queen, though she refused to divulge her nationality. As with most of the ot writings the author of the book of esther esther meaning star is not mentioned. Neither mordecai, esther, nor the feast of purim is mentioned. The writer of the book of esther probably wanted his readers to realise that god is always in control. Esther commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. 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. This region was called ethiopia in graecoroman times, and included within its borders most of modern sudan and some of presentday.
The events mentioned in esther therefore happened between ezra chapter 6 and chapter 7. This is one book of the bible you could easily read while marinating in a bubble bath, without feeling particularly. The book of esther is one of the latest of the canonical books of scripture, having been written late in the reign of xerxes, or early in that of his son artaxerxes longimanus b. A critical and exegetical commentary on the book of esther. Do not think that because you are in the kings house you alone of all the jews will escape. According to most commentaries, moses is telling god to. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading esther the niv application commentary. Esther bible story summary what christians want to know. The book of esther is pa rt of the hebrew bible, one of the hagiographa or kethubim writings and describes events that occurred approxim ately 2,500 years ago after the destruction.
Enter for a chance to win this niv cultural backgrounds study bible. We are shown a persian emperor, ahasuerus loosely based on xerxes, 485464 b. Esther a persian word meaning star is the more familiar name of a jewish girl named hadassah which is hebrew for myrtle. Esther is a jewish woman with her uncle, mordecai, who is a very faithful jew. The book of esther is the only one not found in the dead sea scrolls. Naturally, being a rather unstable fellow, ahasuerus firesslashdivorces her. 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 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. The book of esther begins with the queen of king ahasuerusvashtisnubbing the kings request to meet with her. Adele berlins commentary in the jps series is better suited for a critical look at the hebrew text. The purim provocation our readers, commentary magazine. Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the first cataract of the nile river. A critical and exegetical commentary on the book of esther by paton, lewis bayles, 18641932. Esther 1 commentary old testament matthew henry st.
The first lesson we did an overview of the entire book. Commentary on the book of esther by matthew henry old. Mordecai learned of a plot to kill the king and made it known to esther who passed the news to the king. In this esther 3 sermon were going to see the two protagonists in this story esther and mordecai live by faith in the unseen god. While the books of ruth and esther each focus on a heroine, they depict very. She is chosen among the young women, and is placed under the care of hegai, the kings chamberlain, to go through a years purification, esther 2. Esther is a young and beautiful jewish girl, orphaned but cared for by her. What is book of esther about and why should i care. And king ahasuerus imposed tribute on the land and on the islands of the sea. The story of esther in t he bible has always been one of my favorites. Listen to this description in the five megilloth, a jewish commentary published by the soncino press. Esther commentary, sermon, illustration esther commentaries. Account of mordecai and his cousin esther, esther 2.
In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is. As a prize for winning the beauty contest, she becomes the queen to. Did you know that the book bearing her name in the old testament does. Esther bible study part 1 the story of esther is one of the most exciting and inspiring in all the word of god. The book of esther has a james bondish, tickingtimebomb plot. The pride of ahasueruss heart rising with the grandeur of his kingdom, he made an extravagant feast. The book of esther a story of courage and faith esther bible study, book. The book of esther was likely written between 460 and 350 b. Mordecai is brought into prominence at the right time 6. What follows is an an organized and curated list of content. This is my favorite commentary on any book of holy scripture. The above summary details the bible people and summary of important events which occur in the douay rheims version of the catholic bible scriptures of the book of esther.
The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. Esther free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. The author of the book of esther is unknown, though some attribute the work to mordecai. T he story of esther reads like a novel and is full of great spiritual lessons. Click here for an exhaustive list of content on esther.
The book is set during the period after the babylonian exile in which the nation of persia present day iran ruled judah. Addition a has mordecai inform the king directly, whereas in 2. Pdf this paper examines the book of esther, deriving important insights about a variety of approaches to. If esther fails to act, and both she and mordecai perish, then her family will be wiped out. Although esther follows nehemiah in the bible, its events are about 30 years prior to those recorded in nehemiah. A queen under control when esthers words were reported to mordecai, he sent back this answer. She was brought up at susa by her cousin mordecai, who seems to have held a position among the lower officials of the royal palace. Much closer to a better understanding of judaism is the story told on passover.
Not only is it a great story with all the drama and. The prayers of esther and mordecai are especially noteworthy. Esther bible explaining the book bible study guide. The story gives us six powerful lessons about courage. 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.
Esther is described in the book of esther as a jewish queen of the persian king ahasuerus. Esther was a jewish orphan, who became the queen of xerxes, in some respects the greatest of the persian kings. Thus, the deeds of queen esther cast a ray of light forward into israels history from a dark time. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the jews will arise from another place, but you and your fathers family will perish. Now he needs to pick a new queen and eventually manages to select esthera comely, young secretly jewish woman who is a part of his harem. Nyc comedy legend jeffrey gurian on surviving covid19 at 63. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple, and prayer are not mentioned.
This is why many presume that the book was written in the second half of the fifth century bc. Read esther commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Esther overview spurgeons verse expositions of the bible. In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is the writings hebr. Esther 1, new international version niv the bible app. Esther is the only book of the hebrew bible not represented among the dead sea scrolls. Nyc mta subway turnstile during coronavirus pandemic. Study the bible online using commentary on esther and more. Several things in this chapter itself are very instructive and of great use. Esther with book summary versebyverse bible commentary.
Esther 2 one of the princes in the kingdom was haman. The book of esther does not mention the name of god. Esther isbe esther ester ecter, akin to the zend tstara, the sanskrit stri, the greek aster, a star, esther. In the narrative, ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, vashti, refuses to obey him, and esther is chosen for her beauty. Esther is, among the generality of jews, the best known of all the books of the bible p. I love this story in the bible because it so beautifully illustrates how god can use anyone for his plans and how we, especially women, can fight our fears and bring glory to god. A beautiful, yet humble girl, raised by a cousin, and who saved a generation through her bravery. An interpretation of the dream that relates its features to the plot of the book is given in f. We might even think that he does not care about us. Sleep is taken from ahasuerus at precisely the right time 6. The story is set in the persian empire, and most of the action takes places in the kings palace in susa, the persian capital. The book of esther records the institution of the feast of purim and the obligation of its perpetual observation. Opposition to the book of esther is not a modern phenomenon.
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. Interestingly enough, in the new testament no allusions to esther exist gordis 361. Esther united states conference of catholic bishops. David guzik commentary on esther 1, where queen vashti refuses to display her beauty at king ahasuerus feast, and is therefore banished. In the book of esther this information is casually presented as unimportant, but comes up later in the story. See more ideas about queen esther, book of esther and esther bible. 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 book of esther tells a story of the deliverance of the jewish people. 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. 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. Are there any miracles in the books of esther and ruth. People of the roman catholic faith can this useful short summary of these bible scriptures. Interest in the book of esther has been both negative and positive. What is interesting about the book of esther, at least the hebrew portion.
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