Bulletin for biblical research 8 1998 3954 1998 institute for biblical research the book of esther. This chapter presents an exegetical analysis of the book of esther, focusing on the characteristics and actions of esther and mordecai as they related to navigating the crisis of possible jewish. 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. We also can see parallels in the story of esther to the relationship of. It is excellent and free to download and also a commentary that is excellent too. The authors use of irony is an effective literary device in this narrative. Esther a2 classic bible study guide 2 introduction the book of esther is a graphic narrative, which relates how gods people were preserved from ruin during the fifth century b. Esther is read during the purim feast on 14th and 15th adar februarymarch. Esther commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. This summary of the book of esther provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of esther. What is that theology as it relates to the jews and as it relates to the idea of pride. First, this is not a typical study because esther is not a typical book.
He did not always interpret scripture l iterally and so was amillennial he interpreted revelation as a historicist which led him to interpret the. Scope the events of the book of esther took place during the persian period of. 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. With this statement, the author affirmed theology conveyed throughout the book. On the mystical level king achashverosh alludes to gd, the king of the world. Bible it is one of five short books the socalled megillot that. Thus, the deeds of queen esther cast a ray of light forward into israels history from a dark time. In 2012, a graphic adaptation of the book of esther was illustrated by j.
Read esther commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Xerxes this is the ahasuerus of the book of esther. Waldman and appeared in volume one of the graphic canon, edited by russ kick and published by seven stories press. Susa, where the story of the book of esther takes place, was. I have a few things id like to leave you before i reluctantly turn the last page of a cherished chapter in my life. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple, and prayer are not mentioned. You can work through this bible study on your own or with your small group, and you can go through this in ten days, or over a tenweek or semester long schedule. Mordechai and haman who are referred to in the book of esther as. On the second page you will see an outline of this commentary.
Book of esther download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Entire book with notes on pdf esther 1 commentary esther 2 commentary esther 3 commentary esther 4 commentary. The book of esther was written during the 3 rd year of the reign of ahasuerus 485 465 bc. In 1934 annie became a missionary in china with oms. Id give anything to embark on this journey with you, but my journey as research assistant ends where yours begins. Study the bible online using commentary on esther and more. Bible it is one of five short books the so called megillot that. The book of esther is a 20 movie starring jen lilley as queen esther and joel smallbone as king xerxes.
There are like 40 different amazing truths from the blessed book of esther. Now he needs to pick a new queen and eventually manages to select esthera comely, young secretly jewish woman who is a. Pdf this paper examines the book of esther, deriving important insights about a variety of. 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 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. The greek septuagint remedied this situation by adding six passages which include the name of god.
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. It relates the story of a hebrew woman in persia, born as hadassah but known as esther, who becomes queen of persia and thwarts a genocide. The book of esther is the only one not found in the dead sea scrolls. The book of esther does not mention the name of god. Another biblical theme in the book of esther is divine providence follows people god that use to serve his purposes, jonah 1. Click download or read online button to get book of esther book now. A oman of strength an ignity after the ache celebrate.
Esthers mother, he explains, died in childbirth, and her father died only two years later. See all of our coronavirus resources here toggle navigation. Studying the book of esther is well worth your time. She was a jewess named hadassah the myrtle, but when she entered the royal harem she received the name by which she henceforth became known esther 2. Ezra 7 begins in the seventh year of artaxerxes i longimanus i. Like song of solomon, obadiah, and nahum, the nt doe. The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. The writer of the book of esther probably wanted his readers to realise that god is always in control. Neither mordecai, esther, nor the feast of purim is mentioned.
This book and the book of ruth are the only ot books named after women. The canonicity of the book was questioned by some in ancient judaism and early christianity. Esther is one of the worlds greatest examples of a dramatic narrative. This would place the story a few decades before the events in the book of.
Adam clarke commentary on esther 17601832 clarke was methodist, wesleyan, arminian, e. Those eight books are now combined into the onevolume bridgeway bible commentary, which is a companion in size, style and format to the bridgeway bible dictionary, an a to z of biblical information. Please identify the section you wish to read, and then use your readers searchfind feature to navigate to it. Naturally, being a rather unstable fellow, ahasuerus firesslashdivorces her. Listen to this description in the five megilloth, a jewish commentary published by the soncino press. While esther is primarily theological history, at least one writer observed similarities with wisdom literature. 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. In the book of jonah, he used a storm to convince the fleeing prophet, jonah 1.
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. Artaxerxes this man was son of xerxes and stepson of esther. We might even think that he does not care about us. Weve created a 10day study guide for you, each day working through a chapter of the exciting story of esther. 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. There are groups of people in contemporary culture, such as african american women, native americans, and immigrants, who are marginalized, disenfranchised, and powerless. Intertextual ripples of the book of esther vrije universiteit. The pulpit commentary introduces the book of esther with the following. Vashti is sent for by the king, but refuses to come, esther 1.
Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible. The book takes its name from the beautiful, orphaned jewess who became the queen of the persian king ahasuerus. The book belongs to the socalled five scrolls hebr. Esther is a young and beautiful jewish girl, orphaned but cared for by her.
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. Esther with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The literary figure of esther is a personification of leadership wisdom from an unlikely source. Indeed, martin luther expressed contempt for esther, claiming that it is spoiled by too much pagan impropriety.
The author of the book of esther is unknown, though some attribute the work to mordecai. Scripture says mordecai recorded certain events in order to relate them to jews throughout the kingdom see esth. Pdf new anatomy of the book of esther rick arons academia. Nehemiah and with the historical books, but in the hebrew. In the hebrew bible the book of esther is placed in the third main part, that is the writings hebr.
The examples of esther and her cousin mordecai can teach us much, as can other principles we can draw from their experiences, and help us to make a difference for god in our world. The book of esther and ancient storytelling society of biblical. The book is set during the period after the babylonian exile in which the nation of persia present day iran ruled judah. The preservation of the jews church of christ zion. Is religious tradition the only evidence that testifies to its veracity. Title esther serves as the title without variation through the ages.
If youre looking for a free download links of the moody bible commentary pdf, epub, docx and torrent then this site is not for you. The king happens to prefer esther, which becomes the means of protection for mordecai and the jewish people. The prayers of esther and mordecai are especially noteworthy. During world war ii she spent 21 months in a japanese concentration camp as a prisoner. Commentaries need not explicitly state, as some of those above have, that the book of esther was unused by earliest christianity. Although we do not know who wrote the book of esther, from internal evidence it is possible to make some inferences about the author. In the book of esther god used mordecai an ungodly man to rebuke esther into obedience. It is a literary masterpiecea historical novel filled with action and suspense. Esther is, among the generality of jews, the best known of all the books of the bible p.
The book of esther begins with the queen of king ahasuerusvashtisnubbing the kings request to meet with her. The greek title for this book is esther latin hester. Early jewish and christian traditions suggest that among the people named in the book, mordecai, esthers cousin and guardian, was in the best position to record the events. Ahasuerusit is now generally agreed among learned men that the ahasuerus mentioned in this episode is the xerxes who figures in grecian history.
Several things in this chapter itself are very instructive and of great use. It is a syroarabian modification of the persian word satarah, which means a star. Commentary on the book of esther by matthew henry old. Bush fuller theological seminary the book of esther tends to be an unaccepted book in christendom. Part two fastforwards to esther looking back and explaining how she became queen to her son, and what gods providential purposes were in saving the jews. He eventually chose esther as his queen, and by her influence the jews were saved from destruction. Its one of the most beautiful books in the bible and so full of great takeaways for the modern christian woman today. It is one of the five scrolls megillot in the hebrew bible. The whole history of this book in its connected order, with the occurrences in the persian empire at that time, will be found. This book teaches us much about the sovereignty of god despite mankinds evil intentions. The books of ezra and nehemiah were written during his reign.
596 844 282 1557 71 1527 375 1187 328 937 1609 258 1501 212 1513 232 1177 1340 590 1355 1040 162 39 1601 1089 890 822 1647 1616 1534 953 5 483 291 783 1294 139 525 272 1245 1197 1126