The historical background of the book of esther

Here we see that the author chose a fascinating literary choice never once is god mentioned in. In addition, there is no reference to religious institutions or practices except fasting, making the task of adducing a theology of the book doubly difficult. Book of esther, in the hebrew bible and the christian old testament. They are listed, at least as it seems, in chronological dating order. Tracing the history of the book of esther and jewish festival. Even though the book of esther claims to be a strictly historical account, ever since j th. The book reflects the background of the jewish dispersion. In sum, simply by its shorter length not jus tin pages but the size of the book is a smaller paperback this commentary dose not go indepth in any areas. Archaeology and the book of esther andrews university. Assuming that esther was the queen of xerxes i 486465 b. The book is never alluded to in the new testament or dead sea scrolls, and even comments about it by the church fathers are rare. We will begin with the historical background of the book.

The events in the book of esther occurred from 483. Haman, the conniving chief minister at ahasuerus court, decreed to kill all the. God promised through jeremiah, isaiah and ezekiel that they would be restored to the land jer. The book of esther is renowned for its literary artistry, which functions as the principal vehicle for the book s. Esther is a book of history thats not difficult at all to understand its short and interesting. It belongs to the third section of the judaic canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings, and also appears in the protestant canon and in the roman catholic canon.

The story itself is implausible as history and, as many scholars now agree, it is. Seventy years later, the persians defeated the babylonians. God is not mentioned by name in the book of esther. The author also displays an accurate knowledge of persian customs and palaces. The book of esther historicaltheological background the book of esther took place in about 483473 b. 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. The book of esther began in the third year of the reign of ahasuerus which was around 484 bc during a great feast in shushan susa. Intro to esther biblica the international bible society. The blend of these literary features with a historical setting and a theological purpose, however, suggest that the genre of the book of esther is unique to itself. Shea in this study of esther for the anchor bible series, c.

The heroine of the book named for her, esther is a young jewish woman living in exile in the persian lit. The story of esther takes place in the persian empire during the reign of ahasuerus, known more familiarly to us by the greek form of his name, xerxes i. The book of esther unfolds, however, with the two intertwining. The book of esther was written during a time when the persian empire ruled the world and ahasuerus probably xerxes i was the king of persia. This morning, we need to do a background study on the book of esther in order to understand the historical context and application of this book. The texts style of hebrew and its lack of corroborating historical information from ancient persia suggest that the book of esther was not authored until well after the time it claims to describe. To provide the historical background for the feast of purim lots b. It is clear that the author was a jew, both from his emphasis on the origin of a jewish festival and. A classic story of good versus evil, the book of esther is a unique account in the bible. There are certain elements of the book of esther that are historically accurate. Sep 10, 2018 the book of esther is a story designed to echo israels literary history to encourage and inspire national hope for a good future. The willingness to face history with an openness to the possibility of divine providence, even when history seems to weigh against its likelihood, as it did in the dark days after hamans decree.

It took place in persia because one hundred years prior, king nebuchadnezzar attacked jerusalem and took the jews captive to babylon. Title esther serves as the title without variation through the ages. But it shows clearly that, even when god is most hidden, he is still working to protect his chosen people. The story told in the book of esther takes place during the rule of ahasuerus, who amongst others has been identified as the 5thcentury persian king xerxes i reigned 486465 bc. Xerxes had just put down rebellions in egypt and babylon, and was preparing to invade greece.

Esther is the only book in the scripture which does not mention gods name. Tracing the history of the book of esther and jewish. The book of esther is a romantic and patriotic tale, perhaps with some historical basis but with so little religious purpose the book purports to explain how the feast of purim came to be celebrated by the jews. Jun 18, 2019 the book of esther is one of only two books in the bible named for women. Although it provides the blueprint for the festival of purim, the origins of the book of esther remain obscure. The book of esther is a story designed to echo israels literary history to encourage and inspire national hope for a good future. Some may respond that the book can be true even if it is not historically accurate.

It is one of the five scrolls megillot in the hebrew bible. It gives us a glimpse of the jews who remained outside their homeland after the exile, particularly the jews living in the persian empire. The jewish community, and its areas of residence, outside erez israel. Feb 09, 2016 esther continued to hide her jewish background as mordecai had instructed her to do because he knew it would be dangerous for her if anyone found out she was a jew. Esther becomes queen, while mordecai plays the role of helpful advisor, encouraging her to use her position of power to undermine the lessthannoble desires of the kings secondincommand, haman. The events of the book of esther occurred between those found in ezra 6 and ezra 7 extending over a. Historical background to the book of esther the adversary and enemy is this wicked haman. Esther, the beautiful jewish wife of the persian king ahasuerus xerxes i, and her cousin mordecai persuade the king to retract. 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.

Like song of solomon, obadiah, and nahum, the nt doe. Today we continue our series, esther actually, with a look at the cultural, historical, and religious context that produced the book of esther. 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. 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. Esther in biblical historical context the jews of judah and jerusalem were taken into captivity in babylon when nebuchadnezzar sacked the city and burnt the city in 586 bc.

Its also heavy on action, drama, and game of thronesstyle intrigue, while being notably lacking in legal codes, commandments, theologyall that kind of thing. Book of esther overview insight for living ministries. It purports to explain how the feast of purim came to be celebrated by the jews. All the letters of the hebrew alphabet are found in esther 3. The persians allowed the jew to return to their home, however, many of. Historical setting, authorship, and date of esther. Why is israel in the book of esther still so far from their promised land. Very few bible scholars believe now in the historicity of the book of esther, but what is really incomprehensible is that their conclusion is based only on the following prejudice. The kings chief adviser, haman, is offended by esther s cousin and guardian, mordecai, and gets permission from the king to have all the jews in the kingdom killed.

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. Esther 1 background information with maps and images picture. The historic origin of the book of esther and its authenticity have been the subject of much debate and conjecture over the years. Overview of the book of esther third millennium ministries. Esther, theology of bakers evangelical dictionary of. God uses a young jewish lady just a normal girl to do great things save the nation of israel. The other king who some historians believe to be the ahasuerus of the book of esther is the persian king xerxes. But first i need to point out that the issue under question is the historical accuracy of the book of esther, not the related midrashim. It is a tale of deliverance, and the influences of other biblical deliverance narratives, such as joseph, moses and the judges, naturally imprint the organization of esthers rhythm as the reader cycles. To encourage the babylonianpersian jews and those who had returned to palestine if nehemiah is the author of gods providential ability and willingness to preserve them against their. Much could be said about this topic of course, but based on some of my favorite commentaries, ive identified three influences that, for the purposes of. Granted, historical details do not necessarily make a work nonfictional. To emphasize the continuing, ongoing, religious significance of the jewish people c.

This is a broad strategy to historical attacks on jewish traditions. During this time the enemies of israel hired counselors to bring false accusations to the ears of the different persian kings. Much could be said about this topic of course, but based on some of my favorite commentaries, ive identified three influences that, for the purposes of our discussions here, should be introducedpurim, persia, and patriarchy. Recently, the historicity of the biblical book of esther whether the book is historically true has been called into question an a most bold and audacious manner. Esther appears as the 17th book in the literary chronology of the ot and closes the ot historical section. Esthers brave actions saved the jews from massacre and preserved the lineage of christ. The times of esther and mordecai were one of great activity in the divine purpose. Due to this we will approach the book from both perspectives. I firmly believe this is a historical account of this part of esther and xerxes life, but i also believe it is a book of prophecy. Esther is described in the book of esther as a jewish queen of the persian king ahasuerus. The book of esther has a james bondish, tickingtimebomb plot. The postexilic books of 12 chronicles, haggai and zechariah were written to encourage the remnant who had returned to the land of yahwehs covenant with his people. 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. The events in the book of esther probably took place around 521495 bc.

The opening verses of esther place these events in a historical timeline. In this way, the book offers a stance of profound faith michael v. Astin was a queen of persia and the first wife of persian king ahasuerus in the book of esther, a book included in the tanakh hebrew bible and the old testament christian bible and read on the jewish holiday of purim. One night when mordecai was sitting by the kings gate, he overheard two guards named bigthana and teresh conspiring to assassinate king xerxes. What is book of esther about and why should i care. He was the son of darius the great and reigned from 486465 b. Whereas, for instance, the great jewish medieval scholar maimonides 151204 ranked esther immediately after the pentateuch in. The author of esther patterned much of his material on the events of the joseph story see notes on 2. Background to the book of esther the story of esther takes place in the persian empire during the reign of ahasuerus, known more familiarly to us by the greek form of his name, xerxes i. There is nothing like it in ancient literature, and in the bible, only the story of joseph comes close andrew e. Intimate knowledge of the topography of susa and the persian royal palaces 10. The book of esther relates the story of esther and mordecai, two jews living within the persian empire, who eventually thwart a plot to exterminate the jewish people. In fulfulment of the words of daniel the prophet, there would.

The book of esther background and outline of the book if we were to pick a passage from the book which could serve as a summary of the whole story, it would be from chapter 9. And what in the world does that have to do with us, living in the last days of the church age. Esther is an entertaining historical story that also reveals important truths about how and why the jews survived such an overwhelming threat. Discover purims exciting origins in the book of esther. Moore divided the arguments against the historicity of the book into three groups. No other nation, except israel, has more history and prophecy associated with it than iraq.

Purim will occur on the following days of our presentday calendar. Possibly a persian jew, who later moved back to israel, wrote esther. Even if the story is just a parable, its lessons remain equally strong. For this deed of the queen shall come abroad unto all women, so that they shall despise their husbands in their eyes. Although we do not know who wrote the book of esther, from internal evidence it is possible to make some inferences about the author. This is one book of the bible you could easily read while marinating in a bubble bath, without feeling particularly. This was during a time just before the wall of jerusalem was rebuilt. This unlikely contestant for a beauty pageant was crowned queen of persia and renamed esther, meaning star. The 70 years of babylonian supremacy had come to an end with the overthrow of the city by cyrus the persian. Remember that all jewish holidays begin at sundown on the day before the date specified. In the story of esther, youll meet a beautiful, young queen who risked her life to serve god and save her people.

Feasting is another prominent theme in esther, as shown in the outline below. The book of esther was written some 50 years after this decree allowing the jews to return to their homeland. He ruled over a vast empire that extended from india to ethiopia. The events of the book of esther took place in iraq. We started our study of the book of esther last week with a general survey of the book. In the narrative, ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, vashti, refuses to obey him, and esther is chosen for her beauty. The book of esther does not specifically name its author. We certainly know that many, perhaps most, midrashim were intended to relay allegorical religious messages and not to decsribe historical facts, as commentators such as maharal and maharsha demonstrate at length. Only ezra 710, nehemiah, and malachi report later ot history than esther. The hebrew word mishteh, meaning banquet, occurs 20 times in esther which is equal to the total of all the other times it is found in the rest of. Sep 17, 2012 today we continue our series, esther actually, with a look at the cultural, historical, and religious context that produced the book of esther. For many christians, the book of esther is the basis for a jewish festival that found no counterpart in the christian calendar.

The book of esther is not merely a dry, recollection of historical events, but rather a skillfully constructed comedy, and there are no outside sources to affirm the main elements of the story esther being made queen, the massacre of 75,000 persians, etc. This book and the book of ruth are the only ot books named after women. It is a tale of deliverance, and the influences of other biblical deliverance narratives, such as joseph, moses and the judges, naturally imprint the organization of esther s rhythm as the reader cycles through the threat of danger, cries for help, intercession. The book of esther is one of only two books in the bible named for women. The great prophets of israel taught us moral, not historical, lessons.