Exposition of the Whole Bible

and to all the people that are in all the Tdbinces of the king Aba/uerus; he means, by fetting a bad example to their wives, as after explained; exaggeration of her crime, andymade with a defigh to incenfe the king the more againft her.

y. 18. Likewile /hall the ladies of Perfia and Media fay this day unto the king’s princes, which have heard of the deed of the queen, &c.) From henceforward they’ll give a like anfwer to their hufbands, when they lay their commands upon them, as Vajhti has to the king; they'll tellthemtotheir faces they’ll not’ obey their orders: thus fhall there arife too much contempt and wrath, there will be in for it vinces, “y. Aben Ezra and Abendana interpret it is an Jt, thoug iis great, yet the decree fhould be publifhed throughout; the latter obferves, that this may refpect the king’s decree; and fo the Targum is, ** for his decree is great;” it refpeting a matter of great importance, and relating to a great perfonage, and would have great effect on the minds of perfons, when it was obferved, that one fo great was treated in this. manner: and there-~ fore al/ he wives fhall give to their hufvands honour, Jet to great and {mall; {peaking refpectfully to them, yielding a ready and chearful obedience to all their commands; which would be done to princes and peafants, to high and low, to every rank of men.

y. 17. For this deed of the queen foall come abroad unto all women, &c.| It will foon be fpread all over the king’s dominions, and reach the ears of the wives of all his fubjects, and become their general talk every where: fo that they fhall defpife their hulbands in their eyes; make light of their authority, refufe fubjection to them, flight their commands, and neglect to yield obedience to them, and fo not give them the honour that is due unto them: when it fhall be reported, the king Abafuerus commanded Vajfbti the queen to be brought in before _ him, and fhe came not; was difobedient to hiscommands, refufed to go along with the chamberlains fent by the king to fetch her.

y. 21. dud the faying pleafed the king and the princes, &c.] The king, and the other fix princes and counfellors approved of the'propofal, and unanimoufly agreed to it: and the king did according to the word of Memucan; pafied a law according to his advice, and figned and fealed it, and regiftered it among the laws of the kingdom, not to be revoked.

y.22. For be fent letters unto all the king’s provzmces, &c.] The 127 provinces, ¥. 4. which, according to the Yargum, were written and fealed wives a general contempt of their hufbands, which with his own feal; which is very probable: into will caufe difcord and ftrife, quarrels, wrath and every province according to the writing thereof, and anger; Contempt on one part, wrath on the other, to every people after their language; that is, thefe and contention between both.

letters were written in the language, and in the chay. 19. If it it please the king, let there go a royal racters in which that language was written, ufed commandment from him, 8&c.} Not only a proclamation made, but a law ena¢ted and publifhed in each of the provinces to which thefe. letters were fent, that they might be eafily read and underftood by royal authority: ayd let it be written among the by all: the fum of which was, that every man laws of the Perfians and Medes, that it be not altered, for fo it:was, that when a law was made, and figned, and:fealed, and regiftered among laws of the kingdom, it remained unalterable, Dan. vi. 8, 1g. this precaution Memucan took tor his| own fafety; for had the king acted upon his advice, without paffing it into a law in fuch form, he might change his mind, and recal Vafbti, who] would not fail;of venting her wrath upon they is counfellor, and fo he be in danger of lofing his life for it: that Vafbti come no before king Abafuerus; but be entirely divorced, never.to be received any foould bear rule in bis own houfe; be prince, lord, and matter there, and his commands obeyed, not thejonly by his children and fervants, but by his wife alfo: and that it-fhould be publifhed according to the anguage of every people; but as this is expreffed, or at leaft implied in the firft claufe of this verfe, it fhould rather be rendered, and that be fhould peak according to the language of bis people; and fo the latter Targum; it feems as if a man, who had married a woman in another country, in complaifance to her had neglected his own native tongue, and ufed hers in the family, by which means he’

more: and let the king give ber royal eftate unto an- loft, or feemed to lofe his authority in it: now to other that is better than fhe; or to her companion”; guard againft this, this part of the law was made;

that was with her in the houfe of the women in and, according to Farchi, the hufband was to comthe feraglio; one that was fairer, as the Targum, pel his wife to learn and fpeak his language, if or of a better difpofition than her; let her be made queen, and enjoy all the honour, and dignity, and fhe was a foreigner; to which agrees the firlt Targum, which paraphrafes the whole thus, “that a marks of royalty Va/bti did; her throne, her crown, man rule over his wife, and oblige her to fpeak acand royal apparel, as it is interpreted in an ancient cording to the language of her huiband, and the

; fpeech of his people;” and in after-times, Babram

¥. 20. And when theking’s decree which he foail make, fhall be publifhed throughout all his empire, &c.| As it was propes it fhay|dy*fince the report Gaur forbid any other language, befides the Perfian, to be ufed within his port, either in {peaking or writing °.

ef the queen’s deed would* be made every where:

great; the empire confilting of 127 pro-

B* the advice of the minifters of king Aba/uerus, fair virgins were fought for throughout his dominions, and brought to his chamberlain, the keeper of the women, among whom was Ether, a Fewi/h virgin, ¥. 1—8. who found favour with the chamberlain, and afterwards with the king, who made her queen inftead of Va/bti, and a feat on that account, ¥. g—18. Mordecai, to ts

Pftber was related, and according to whofe fhe aéted, fitting in the king’s gate, di confpiracy, againft the king, which he known to Ejiber, ¥. 19—23.

Yor. After thefe things, when the wrath of king Abafuerus was appeafed, cc. ] Which went off with his wine, and fo was quickly after, a few days at moft, unlefs this can be underftood as after the expedition of Xermes into Greece, from whenice he returned to Shu/ban, in the 7th year of his reign; and if he is the Aba/uerus here meant, he married Efher that year, ¥. 16. and it feems certain, that after his expedition he’ gave himfelf up to his amours,.and in his way at Sardis he fell in love with his brother’s wife, and then with. his daughter”: ‘be remembered Vajbti 3 her beauty, and was grieved, as Yarchi obferves, that fhe was removed from him;' and fo Jofepbus fays‘, that he paffionately loved her, and could not bear parting with her, and therefore was grieved that he had brought himfelf into fuch difficulties: the Targumifts carry it farther, and fay, that he was wroth with thofe that advifed him to it, and ordered them to be put to death, and that they were: and what fee bad done, that it was a trivial thing, and not deferving of fuch a fentence as he had paffed upon lier; that it was not done from contempt of him, but from modefty, and a ftrié&t regard to the laws of the Perfians: and what was decreed againft ber, that fhe fhould come no more before him, but be divorced from him; the thought of which gave him great great pain and uneafinefs.

¥. 2. Then faid the king’s fervants that minifiered unto bim, &c.|] Fearing that if Vafbti fhould be reftored, vengeance would be taken on them; or however to remove the grief and melancholy of the king, they gave the following advice: let there be fair young virgins fought for the king, that he might enjoy them, and choofe one of them, the moft agreeable to him, and put her in the room of Vafhti,

¥. 3. And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of bis kingdom, &c.] Who beft knew where beautiful virgins might be found in their refpective provinces, in which they dwelt: that tbey may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shufban the palace; the metropolis of the kingdom, where was the royal palace: to the houfe of the women, unto the cuftody of Hege the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, in which houfe it feems were two apartments, one for the virgins before they were introduced to the king, the other for them when they were become his concubines, which had a keeper alfo; but this Hege feems to have been over the whole houfe, ¥..14. it was not only ufual with the eaftern people, as with’ the Turks now, for great perfonages to have keepers of their wives and concubines, but with the Romans alfo*: and let their things for purification be given them; fuch as oif of myrrh, fpices, &e, to remove all impurity and ill {cent from them, and make them look {mooth and beautiful.

y. 4. And let the maiden which pleafeth the ‘king be queen inftead of Vafotl, 8c.) Tiave the royal eftare that was taken from Vafbti, given to her, the crown royal fet on her head, &c. and the thing in all his provinces to feek out the moft-: ful virgins, and bring them: to his palace; fo with the Chinefe now, thg king never marries with any of his kindred, though ever fo remote; but there is fought throughout his kingdom a damfel of. 12 or 14 years, of perfect beauty; good natural parts, and well inclined to. virtue; whence, for the moft part, the queen is the daughter of fome artifan; and in their hiftory °, mention-is made of one that was the daughter of a mafoni.,

¥. 5. Now in Shufhan. the palace was a certain Few, &c.] Not one of the tribe of Fudab, for he was afterwards called a Benjaminite; but was focal- - led, becaufe he was of the kingdom of Fudab,which confifted of both tribes. archi fays, all that were carried captive with the kings of Fudah were called Jews among the nations, though of another tribe: whofe name was Mordecai, the fon of Fair, the fon of Shimei, the fon of Kifb, a Benjamite;\ who was among thofe that came with Zerubbabel from Babylon to Ferufalem, and returned to. Perfia again, Ezra iii. 2. was another Mordecai; fee the note on Ezra ii. 2. who defcended not from Ki/b, the father of Sau/, but a later and more obfcure perion,

¥. 6. Who bad been carried awey from Ferufalem, &c.].. Which, according to fome ‘, is to, be connected, not with Mordecai, but with Ki, his great grandfather 5 and indeed: otherwife Mordecai muft — be now a very old man, and Efser his coufingerman, they being brothers children, muft be at an age, one would think, not to be reckoned among, young virgins, and not be fo amiable as the is reprefented and indeed,’ according to the former Targum, the was 75. years of age, which is not credible 5 and yet this, and. more. fhe muft be, to, be equal to. Mordecai, if he was carried captive, as. follows: with the captivity which had been carried away with Fecouiah-king of Fudab, whom Nebuchadnexzar the king of Babylon bad carried away which was eleven years before the deftruction of Ferufalem, for fo long Zedekiah reigned after that captivity of Fecontab: hence Sir Fobn Marfhem*® makes this affair of E/fber to be within the time of the Babylonifh captivity, and places Abafuerus her hufband between Darius the Mede and Cyrus, — contrary to hiftory and feripture, fee Dan. vi. 28. - ¥. 7. And he brought up Hadaffah (that is Efther) his uncle’s daughter, 8cc.| Her Hebrew name was Hadaffah, which fignifies a myrtle, to. which the Tfraelites, and good men among them, are fometimes compared, Zech. 1.8. Her Perfian name, was Ljther, which fome derive ftom Sater, to hide, becaufe hidden in the houfe of Mordecai, fo the former Targum, and by his advice concealed her kindred: or rather fhe was fo called by Abafuerus, when married to him, this word fignifying in the Perfian language ajftar*, and fo the latter Targun fays, the was called by the name of the ftar of We- nus, which in Greek is acne; though it is faid that the myrtle, which is called Hadaffab in Hebrew, is in the Syriac language Effa; fo Afa in the rus‘, Efther fignifies the black myrtle, which is nedthe moft excellent; and {0 Amefiris, acgorc; him, fignifies the fole myrtle, the incomparable 6ne. |;: 44 ae EM Xernes [ab pied

Neb..vii. 7. though fome think this.

it not being afked, fhe was under

Xerxes had a wife, whofe name was Amofiris, which as Aben Haag or rather; a8 the fame writer thinks,

Scgliger thinks is as if it was 4nDK rom, and the fame with Efteer 5. but. to this ar objected, that her father’s name was Oranes, and he cruelty in the mutilation of the wife of Ma/iftis, it her hufband’s brother, and burning alive 14 children, of the beft families of the Perfians, as afi acrifice to the infernal gods; and befides,, Xerxes had a.fon by -her marriageable, in the feventh year of this reign, ‘the year of Aba-

_ fuerus, in which’ he married-Efher: but it is obferved by fome,.that thefe things are confounded with the deftruction of Haman’s family, or told by the Perfians to obliterate, the memory of Ether, from whom. they ‘pafled to the Greek hiftorians: for foe had neither. father nor mother; according to the former Zargum, her ‘father died and left her mother with child, of her, and her mother died as foon as fhe was delivered; of her: andthe inaid was fair and beautiful; which was both the reafon why fhe was.taken and, brought into the king’s houfe, and why Mordecai took fo much care of her: whom Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took for his own daughter; loved hers and brought her up as if fhe had been his daughter, and called her fo, as the Targum. The Radbins, as Jarchi and. Aben Ezra obferve, fay, he took her in ‘order to make her his wife; and fo the Sep:uagint render it; though perhaps no more may be intended by that verfion, than that: he brought her up to woman’s eftate. Fo/epbus * calls him her uncle; and fo the Vulgate Latin verfion, his brother’s daughter; but both are mittaken. ¥.8. So it came to pafs,. when the king’s com mandment and decree was beard, &c.} In the feveral provinces of his kingdom: and when many maidens were gathered unto Shufoan the palace, to the cufiody of Hegai; Fofepbus ° fays, there were gathered to the number of 400: shat Ether was brought alfo unto the king’s houfe, to the cufiody of Hegai, the keeper of the women; by force, as Aben Ezra and the former Targum, and fo the word is fometimes ufed.

¥. 9. And the maiden pleafed bim, &c.] Not the king, into whofe prefence. fhe was not yet introduced, but the chamberlain; her beauty and her behaviour recommended her to him, and he concluded within himfelf that fhe was the perfon that of all would be acceptable to the king: and foe obtained kindne/s of him, had favours fhown others had not: and be fpeedily gave ber her things for purification; as oil, ipices, ec. that the might be the fooner fitted to be had into the king’s prefence: «with fuch things as belonged to ber; food and drink from the king’s table; the 7 ergum interprets it gifts, as chains and royal apparel: and feven maidens which were given ber, out of the king’s houfe; to wait upon her the feven days of the week, as the farne Zargum: and be preferred ber and ber maids unto the beft place of the houfe of the women removed her and them to it, which was the moft f{plendid, had large, airy, and pleafant rooms..

¥.10. Efther bad not fhewed ber people nor. her kindred, sec. | What nation or family the was of; no obligation to declare it; and being born in Shujban, as very probable, fhe was taken to be a Perfian: for Mordecai bad ie Gola that fe foould not foew it; lett the fhould be defpifed and ill treated on that account;

fearing if the king knew it, he would not marry her, that fhe might keep the law of God privately, obferve the fabbath, €?c.\». Yor a eraeh ‘4

¥e11. And Mordecai walked every day before thé court of the womens houfes8cc.] Being dne of the court, andinan high poft, as Aden Ezra thinks, he might walk there without being examined, and called “to an account for it: to know how Effher did; to enquire of her health and profperity, or peace, the word here:ufed fignifies, even all forts of it: and what should become of ber; or was done to her, whether fhe was well ‘ufed,° ot as yet. in-’ troduced to the king, how it fared with her, and what befel her..

y. 12. Now when every maid's turn was come to £0 in to king Abafuerus, after that fhe had been 12 months, according to the manner. of women, Sec. | That were prepared in the houfe of the women to be prefented to the king for his liking’; for it feems that thefe virgins came in turns to him, according ‘tothe time they had been in the houfe; as did the wives of the kings of Perfa, as Heros dotus relates?: for fo were the’ days of their purifications accomplifbed, that is, in the fpace of 12 months, which were thus divided:° to wit, Ax months with oil of myrrhe; which Ben Mélecb inters prets of mufk » and fix months with feet odours, - the former was ufed to make the fkin ‘fmooth and foft, and thefe to remove all ill fcents thro’ fweat, or any other caufe: and with other things for the purifying of women, by bathing, rubbing, ed, and fuch’a {pace of time was obferved not only for the thorough purification of them, but partly was: of {tate and grandeur, and partly that it might be a clear cafe they were not with child by another, ‘before they came to the king.

¥. 13. Then thus came every virgin unto the king, 8c. ] ‘When her 12 months were up, and the was purified in the manner before obferved: what- Soever foe defired was given ber, to.go with ber out of the houfe of the women unto the king's boufe; whatever fhe demanded the chamberlain was obliged to furnifh her with, or grant it to her, whether for ornament, as jewels, rich apparel, &¢. or for attendance; whatever prince or peer fhe required to accompany her to the king, was to be obtained for her, as the Targum; and every thing for mirth, all kinds of fongs, or inftruments of mufic, as Farcht: ~

¥. 14. In the evening fhe went, and on the morrow foe returned into the fecond houfe of the women, &c.] Or the other apartment of- the houfe of the’ women, where were kept thofe the king” had made his concubines or fecondary wives. Aber Ezra interprets it the fecond time, and fo the Targum by again: to the cuftody of Shaafhgax the king’s chamberlain, which kept the concubines; of which the kings of Perfia had agreat number; Darius, whom Alexander conquered, had 360%: fhe came in unto the king no more, except the king delighted in ber, and that foe was called by name; but remained fhut up in the houfe, and might’ not lie with, nor be married to‘another man.

¥.15. Now when the turn of Eber the daughter of Abibail, %e.] For this was her father’s name, and not Aminadab; as the Septuagint verfion: the uncle of Mordecai, who bad taken ber for his denghter; which makes it quite clear that Mordecai was not E/ther’s uncle, as TY epbus, but her own coufin:

now when her turn was come to go in unto the king three years to come”; and Grotius fays, kings ufed which the virgins under purification took by turns, y. 14. fhe required nothing but what Hegai the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, appointed, what he ordered her to have, or to do, fhe fubmitted to, being in his hands, and fo obeyed his orders; but more fhe afked not, either for ornament or attendance, being not at all folicitous whether the king liked her or not; for it was not of choice, but by conftraint fhe went unto him; nor needed fhe any thing to recommend her, her virtue, modefty and beauty were fufficient: and Ejther obtained favour of all them that looked upon ber; when the came to court, the eyes of all were attracted to her; all admired her beauty, her innocent and modeft look, and her graceful mien and deportment.

¥. 16. So Ether was taken unto king Abafuerus, into bis houfe royal, &c.] Did not return on the morrow to the houfe of the women, as thofe who only became the king’s concubines did, ¥, 14. but fhe was taken to be his wife, and defigned for his queen, and fo was retained in his palace, and placed in an apartment fuitable to the dignity fhe was about to be advanced unto: and this was done iz the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth; and an- {wers to part of December and part of Fanuary; not the 12th month dar, as the Septuagint verfion, and fo Fofephus*, contrary to the original text: either that law had not obtained among the Perfians,-or the king thought himfelf not bound by it, which forbid marriage at any other time than the beginning of the vernal equinox’: in the 7th year of his reign and the divorce of Va/bti being in the third year of his reign; it was four years before Ether was taken by him; who, if Xerxes, it may be accounted for by his preparation for, and engagement in a war with Greece, which took him up all this time; and from whence he returned in the feventh year of his reign, at the beginning of it, and married E/ther at the clofe of it, fee y. 1. as may be fuggefted.

y.17. And the king loved Efther above all the qwomen, &c.} The virgins he made his concubines, as next explained; though archi interprets it of married women, for fuch he fuppofes were gathered and brought to him, as well as virgins: and fhe obtained grace and favour in bis fight more than all the virgins; who had been purified, and in their turns brought to him: /o that he fet the royal crown upon ber head, and made ber queen infread of Vafoti, declared her queen, and gave her all the enfigns of royalty: fo it was ufual with the eaftern kings, to put a crown or diadem on the heads of their wives at the time of marriage, and declare them queens *,

y. 18. Then the king made a great feaft unto all his princes and fervants, even Ejfther’s feaft, &c.

A feaft to all his nobles, courtiers, and minifters of ftate, on account of his marriage with E/her; which, according to the Greek verfion, was held feven days; but, according to Fo/epbus, it lafted a whole month‘: and be made a releafe to the provinces; of taxes and tribute due to him, as was the cuftom of the kings of Perfia when they came to the throne, as Herodotus relates; fo Smerdis the magus that mounted the throne after Camby/es, pretending to be his brother, reJeafed them for to do it at their marriage, but gives no inftance of it: and gave gifts; according to the latter Zargum, to the provinces, all of them, that he might be fure that the people of Efher fhared his favours, who were as yet unknown; but rather thefe gifts were given to his nobles, or it may be to Efther; fo the former Targum, ‘* he gave to her a gift and portion:” according to the fate of the king + his royal ability and. munificence, and fuitable to his grandeur; dnd it was ufual with the Perfan kings to give to their wives whole cities for one thing or another, as for necklaces, hairlaces, fhoes, &¢.* Socrates” {peaks of a whole country in Perfia called the Queen’s girdle, and another her Headdrefs.

y. 19. And when the virgins were gathered together the fecond time, &c.) Some think this fecond collection is, that which was made when E/fher was taken and brought to the keeper of the women, called the fecond, in reference to a former collection of them, made when Va/bti was taken and made queen; but as there. is no proof of any fuch collection then made, rather the cafe was this, fuch was the luft of the king, though he had a queen he loved, and a multitude of concubines, yet a fecond collection of virgins was made for his. gratification: shen Mordecai fat in the king’s gate; or court, being an officer in it, promoted by the inteteft of Z/fher, though not as yet known to be a relation of her’s; fo Svex in Xenophon” is ufed of the court of the king of Perfia, as the Ortoman or Turkifb court is now called the Port, y.20. Efther had not Jhewed her kindred nor her people, as Mordecai bad charged ber, &c.] As not before, fo neither fince fhe was made queen, fee ¥. 10. though, according to the Zargums, fhe was urged to it by the king himfelf: for Ether did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when fhe was brought up with him; which fhewed great humility in her, notwithftanding her advancement, great refpect to him, and a fenfe of gratitude for the kindnefs he had fhown; and this charge to her was ftill continued by Mordecai, partly that fhe might not fall into contempt, and partly to prevent hatred and envy to the Yewi/h nation, through her promotion; but chiefly fo it was ordered in providence, the proper time. being not yet come.

¥. 21. In thofe days, while Mordecai fat in the king’s gate, &cc.] Being, as before obferved, an officer at court: fwo of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan aud Terelb, of thofe that kept the door, of the inner court, as Aben Ezra, of the doors of his bed-chamber; perhaps they were the chief of his body-guards, as the Septuagint verfion; in aftertimes, fuch officers were about the chambers of great perfonages as their gwards*: thefe were wroth, and fought to lay hand on the king Abafuerus; to poifon him, as Farchi and*both the Largums, however, to take away his life by fome means or another. Gorionrdes* fays, their defign was, while the king was afleep, to cut off his head, and carry it.to the king of Greece; there being at that time great wars between the kingdom uf Greece, and the kingdom of Perfia, which exactiy agrees with the times of Xerxes, and with this part of his reign, about the feventh year of ig; what was the occafion of this wrath is not faid; it is thought to be either the divorce of Va/bti, whofe creatures they were, or the marriage of Ether, and particularly the promotion of Mordecai, fearing they fhould be turned out of their places; fo the former Targum.

¥.22. And the thing was known to Mordecai, &c.] But by what means does not appear; the Fewifh writers fay *, thefe two men were Tarfans, and {poke in the Tarfian language, which they thought Mordecai did not underftand; but he being {fiilled in languages over-heard them, and underitood what they faid; but, according to Fo/ephus"*, it was difcovered to him by Barnabazus, a fervant of one of the chamberlains; the latter Targum fays, it was fhewed unto him by the Holy Ghoft: who told it unto Efther, and Efther certi- Jied the king thereof in Mordecai’s name; whole name fhe mentioned, partly as a voucher of the ' ans, tiate Mordeeai to the king, that he might be ftill yet more promoted in due time.

¥. 23. And when inquifition was made of thé mat’ ter, it was found out, &c.] That thefe two men had entered into a confpiracy to take away the king?’s life; full proof and evidence were given of © it: therefore they were both banged on a tree 3 Jaephus* fays, they were crucified; but hanging was frequent among the Perfians, as Grotius oblerves, and better agrees with the word here ufed: and i? was written in the book of the Chronicles before the king; ina diary kept by the king’s order, in which memorable events were fet down, and might be done in the prefence of the king, as well as the book lay open before him to read at any time 3 and this sis obferved to agree with the manner of Xerxes, who is reported ‘ to fit ona throne of gold to behold a fea-fight between the Grecians and Perand had feveral fcribes by him to take down truth of what fhe reported, and partly to ingrawhatever was done. in the fight.

THis chapter gives an account of the promotion of Haman, and of the mortification of him by Mordecai, who refufed to bow to him, upon which he vowed revenge on him, and on all his people the ews, y. 1—6. for which purpofe, through a falfe reprefentation of them, he obtained letters of the king, and fent to the deputies of all the provinces to deftroy them all on a certain day fixed,

¥. 1. After thefe things, &c.1 After the marriage of Eftber, and the difcovery of the confpiracy to take away the king’s life; five years after, as Aben Ezra obferves, at leaft more than four years, for fo it appears from y. 7. did king Abafuerus promote Haman the fon of Hammedatha the Agagite; whom both the Zargums make to defcend trom Amalek, and to be of the ftock or family of Agag, the common name of the kings of Amalek; and fo Fofephus®; but this is not clear and certain; in the apocryphal Ejther, he is faid to be a Macedonian; and Sulpitius the hiftorian fays.*, he was a Perfian, which is not improbable; and 4gag might be the name of a family or city in Perfia, of which he was; and Aven Ezra obferves, that fome fay he is the fame with Memucan, fee ch. i. 14. and advanced him, and fet his feat above all the princes that were with him; erected a throne for him higher than the reft, either of his own princes and nobles, or fuch as were his captives, fee 2 Kings xxv. 28. It was the cuftom of the kings of Perfia, which it is probable was derived from Cyrus, to advance thofe to the higheft. feats they thought beft deferved it: fays he to his nobles, let there be feats with you as with me, and let the beft be honoured before others;— and again, let all the bett of thofe prefent be honoured with feats above others‘.

y¥.2. And the king’s fervants that were in the king’s gate, &c.]} Or court, all his courtiers: for it can’t be thought they were all porters, or fuch’ only, that owed and reverenced Haman, gave him divine honours as to 4 deity; for fuch were given to the kings of Perfia*, and might be given to their favourites, and feems to be the cafe; for though Haman might not erect a ftatue of himfelf, or have images painted on his clothes, as the argum and dben Ezra, for the Perfians did not allow of ftatues and images'; yet he might make himfelf a god, as Farchi, and requite divine worfhip, with leave of the king, which he had, yea an order for it: for the king bad fo commanded concerning bim 3; which fhows that it was not mere civil honour and refpect, for that in courfe would have been given him as the king’s favourite and prime minifter by all his fervants, without an expre s or- derforit; this therefore muft be fomething uncommon and extraordinary: ut Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence; which is a farther proof that it was not mere civil honour that was required and given; for that the Fews did not refufe to give, and that in the moft humble and pro- {trate manner, and was admitted by them, 1 Sas, xxi. 8. 2 Sam, xiv. 4 and xviii. 28. 1 Kings i. 16, nor can it be thought that Mordecai would refule to give it from pride and fullennefg, and thereby rifque the king’s difpleafure, the lofs of his office, and the ruin of his nation; but it was fuch kind of reverence to a man, and worfhip of him, which was contrary to his con{fcience, and the law of his God. — ¥. 3. Then the king’s fervants which were in the king’s gate, &c.] Oblerving the behaviour of Mordecai towards Haman from time to time: /eid unto Mordecai, why tranfgreffift thou the kings commandment? of giving reverence to Haman, which they knew he could not be ignorant of. ¥. 4. Now it came to pafs, when they fpake daily unto bim, 8c.) Putting him in mind of his duty to obey the king’s command, fugeefting to him the danger he expofed himfelf to, preffing him to give the reafons of his conduct: and be hearkened uot unto them; regarded not what they faid, and continued difobedient to the king’s order, and difre{pecttul ee 162 ESTEE SES Ch. iii ys 5—g. refpectful to Haman: thqt they told Haman to fee cobeth:r Mordecai bis matters would fand, they informed Haman that Mordecai refufed to give him reverence as the king had ordered; this they did to try whether fuch a conduct would be fuffered and bore with; and whether Merdecai would perfevere in it when taken notice of: for be bad told them that he was a Few; which was all the reafon he gave why he would not reverence Haman; and a reafon fufficient; becaufe, by a fundamental law of his religion, he was not to worfhip mere man, but God only: and this confirms what has been before obferved; for this would have been no reafon for refufing civil refpect and honour, but.was a {trong one for denying religious worfhip and reverence; and no wonder that the Zews fhould refule it, when even the Grecians, though heathens, refufed to give the Perfian kings tlie divine honours they required™; yea, the Athenians put Timagoras to death for proftrating himfelf in fuch a manner to Darius"; for the Perfian kings were, as Ariftetle fays°, called Lord and God, and faid to hear and fee all things.

y. 5. And when Haman faw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, &c.| For after the information given him, he obferved. and watched him, to fee whether he bowed and did him reverence or no; then was Haman full of wrath; exceedingly difpleafed and angry; it was fuch a mortification to him he could not bear.

y. 6. And he thought {corn to lay bands on Mordecai alone, &c.} That would not be a fufficient gratification of his revenge; he was too low and mean a perfon only to reak his vengeance on; nothing fhort of his whole. nation would fatisfy him: for they bad foewed him the people of Mordecai; that they were the Jews; tor Mordecai had told the king’s fervants that talked with him on the fubject, that he was a Yew, and gave that as a reafon why he could not and would not reverence Haman: wherefore Haman fought to deftrey all the Fews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Abafuerus, even the people of Mordecai; and that not merely to be revenged on Mordecai, but becaule he plainly faw, that both by his example, and upon the fame

- principle with him, they would all to a man refufe to give him reverence; and therefore he was refolved to root them out of the whole empire, that he might not be mortified by them.

y¥. 7. In the firft month, that is the month Nifan, &c.} Which was the ft month of the facred year of the Jews, by divine appointment, Exod. xii. 2. and xiii. 4. there called 4dib, and anfwers to part of Februery and part of March; from hence it is clear this book was written by a Few, and very probably by Mordecai: in the 12th year of king Abafuerus; four years and near two months after his marriage of Efther, ch, ii, 16. they ca? pur, that is, tbe lot, before Haman; being a Perfian word, it is explained in Hebrew alot, the word fignifying free! in the Perfian language; Reland? con- anfwers to part of\¥anuary and part of February — ‘ fo that the lot was caft for every month and every day of the month throughout the year, to find out which was the moft lucky month, and which the moft lucky day in that month to deftroy the Jews =» in; and none could be found till they came to the’ laft month, and the 13th day of that month, ¥. 13. the providence of God fo over-ruling the lot, that there might be time enough for the Yews, through the mediation of E/fher to the king, to prevent their deftruction; fo in other nations the heathens had their lucky and unlucky days % Bi Ax ¥. 8, And Haman faid unto king Abafuerus, Bec | Or bad faid', as fome chufe to render it; nor ihdeed is it likely, that Haman fhould ¢aft lots to know when would be a proper time to’ deftroy the Jews, until he he had got leave of the king to do it: There is a certain people fcattered abroad, and. dilperfed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom, for though many of the Yews returned to their own land on the proclamation of Cyrus, yet others remained, being well fettled as to worldly things, and not having that zeal for God and his worfhip as became them, and not caring to be at the trouble and expence of fuch a journey, and efpecially thofe of the ro tribes; now Haman, through contempt of them, mentions them not by name, only defcribes them as a feattered infienificant people: and their laws are different from all people; concerning their diet and obférvation of days, and other things; fo Empedocles, an heathen, obferves* of the Jews, that they were a feparate people from all others in thofe things, for he fays, ‘* They feparated not only from the Romans, but even from all men; for having found out an unmixed way of living, they have nothing common — with men, neither table nor libations, nor prayers, nor facrifices, but are more feparate from us than the Sufians or BaGrians, or the more remote Jndians:” neither keep they the king’s laws; and no doubt he had a {pecial refpeét to the non-obfervance of the king’s command -to-give him reverence; and in like manner the ews are’ reprefented by heathen writers, as by Tacitus, Fuvenal*,and others: therefore it is not for the king’s profit to fuffer them = that is, to dwell in his dominions; he got nothing ~ by them, and they might be prejudicial to his fubjects, and poifon them with their notions; and fince they were not obedient to the laws of the kingdom, it was not fit and equitable that they fhould be continued ‘in it.

y. 9. Uf it pleafe the king, let it be written, that they may be deftroyed, 8c.) That is, a law made, figned and fealed, for their deftru@tion, and letters written and fent every where, ordering it to be put’ in execution: and I will pay 10,000 talents of filuer to the hands of thofe who have the charge of the bufi-. ne[i, to bring it into the king’s treafury 5 thishe propofed to prevent any objection che aS j from the lofs of tribute paid by this people to the king; and this was a very large fum for to jeCtures that this was that fort of lot called Sideromantia: who caft this lot is not faid; whether Haman himfelf, or one of his fervants; perhaps a diviner; the latter Targum calls him Shimbai the {cribe: from day to day, and from month to month, to the 12¢h month, that is the month Adar; which pay out.of his own-eftate, it being near - lions of our money; it is computed by Brerewood * at 3,750,000 pounds; for as to what is fuggelt by fome, that he intended to rep the {poil of the Fews, it may he ob d, cording to. the king’s letter, they that ployed in deftroying the Fews were to have the fpoil) revoke his for a prey or booty to themfelves, y. 1 3.

the hands of the king’s receivers of the dues, that they might lay it up in the king’s treafury or.exchequer:

¥. 10. And the king took bis ring from bis hand,

and gave it unto Haman, the fon of Hammedatha the

Agagite, the Fews enemy.). As a token of his affection for him, and a mark-of honour.to him; with the Perfens™ for a king to give a rine to any one, was.a token and bond of the greateft love and friendfhip imaginable; and it may be this was given to Haman, to feal with it the letters that were or fhould be written, giving order for the ‘deftruction of the Fews. It feems as. if as yet Ether had not acquainted the king who her kindred and people were; or it can hardly be thought he would have fo eafily come into fuch a fcheme, or fo highly favoured an enemy of her people.: ¥. it. And the king faid unto Haman, the Silver is given unto thee, &c.] The 10,000 talents of filver Haman propofed to pay into the treafury, were reurned to him, or the king out of his great muni-+ ficence refufed to take them: the people alfo, to do with them as feemeth good unto thee; that is, the people of the Fews; he gave him full power to do with them as he thought fit, and who breathing] y.

revenge upon them, would not fpare them.

¥. 32. Then were the king’s ferives called, on the 13% day of the iff month, &c.] The month Nifan, ¥. 9. after Haman had leave and power from the king to deftroy the Yews, and his ring given him in token of it itate were called together on that day, to write the letters for that purpofe: and there was written according to all that Haman had commanded; whatever he would have done; he had an unlimited power to do what he pleafed, and he made ufe of it, and directed the feribes what they fhould write: unto the king’s lieutenants, and to the governors that were over every province, the deputy-governors of the 127 provinces, ch. i, 1. and to the rulers of every people, of every province 5 it feems there were different people in every province, which had their rulers; and thefe were fent to: according to the writing thereof, and to every people after their language; and letters were written in the language and character of the language each people {fpoke, that they might be underftood by them: in she name of king Abafuerus was it written, and fealed with the king’s ring. All this Haman took care to have done fo early as the’ 13th of Nifan, though the execution was not to be until the 1 3th of Adar, eleven months after; time enough to fend the letters every where, even to the moft diftant parts; and chiefly, leaft Abafuerus fhould change his mind, and:be prevailed upon to

| eds C>H:A\_P.. icolVi HIS chapter relates the mourning of Mordecal, and of the Fews in every province, on account of the edié&t to deftroy them, y. 1—3. The information Ether had of it, _and what pafied between her and Mordecai, through Hatach, a chamberlain, by whom he put her upon making a re-

Now| Jews in continual this fum of money he propofed not to put into the hands of them that fhould flay the Fews, but. into

5 the king’s feribes or fecretaries off lickly

163. and it may be, either to keep the dread, or caufe them to fee. ¥.13. And the letters were fent by poft into al} the king’s provinces, &c,] Or by the runners*; by which it feems as if thefe letters were carried by running footmen, men fwift of foot; or rather they were running horfes, on which men rode poft with letters, and which the Perfans called Angari; a fcheme invented by Cyrus, for the quick difpatch of letters from place to place, by fixing horfes and men to ride them at a proper diftance, to receive letters one from another, and who rode night and day”, as our poft-boys do now 3 and nothing could be fwifter, or done with greater {peed; _ neither fnow, nor rain, nor heat, nor night, could ttop their courfe, we are told#: the purport of thefe letters was, fo deftroy, to kill, and to caufe to peri h, ' all Fews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even upon the 1 3th day of the 12th month, which is the month Adar; {ee ¥. 7. The ofders were to deftroy, by any means whatfoever, all the Fews, of every age and fex, all in-one day, in all the provinces which are here named, that they might be cut off with one blow: and to take the

Spoil of them for a prey; to be their own booty;

which was propofed to engage them in this barbarous work, to encourage them in it to ufe the greater feverity and difpatch. 14. Lhe copy of the writing, for a commandment to be given in every province, was publifbed unto all people, 8c.) Not only letters were fent to the governors, but a copy, or the fum of the contents of them, was publifhed by heralds, or ftuck up as with us, in various places, that it might be pubknown by the common people every where: that they fhould be ready againft that day, and fall upon the people of the Fews, and flay them, and feize on their goods as a prey, ¥.15. The poft went out, being haftened by the king’s command, &c.] Both to fet out and malge.as much difpatch as poffible: aad the decree was given in Shufban the palace, by the king, and with the advice of his courtiers: and the king and Haman fat down to drink, at a banquet which perhaps Haman had prepared, in gratitude to the king for what he had granted him, both being highly delighted with what had been done: but the city Shufhan was perplexed; the court was agreed, but the city was. divided, as the former Targum fays, with the joy of ftrange nations, and the weeping of the people of Irael, there being many ews in the city; with whom no doubt there were many in connection, through affinity or friendfhip, or commerce, ‘that were, concerned for them; or however, were fhocked.at.fuich a‘barbarous fchemé; and which partly that’ there might be|they knew not where it would end, and how far they themfelves might be involved in it, when once

; mob had fuch a power granted to them.

queft to the king in their favour, y. 4—8. to which fhe at firft objected, becaufe of a law in Perfia which forbids any to come to the king unlefs called, ¥. g—12. but being prefiéd to it by Mordecai, the agreed, and ordered a general faft among the Yews, manner, expreffing his grief and forrow: which was before the king’s gate; that led to the royal palace.

y. 7. And Mordecai told bim of all that had bap- y. 1. When Mordecai perceived all that was done, &c.] By the king, at the inftigation of Haman, againft the ews; which he came to the knowledge of, either by fome of the courtiers or by common fame, or on the fight of the ediéts which were publithed in Shufban; though the Yews think it was made known to him in a fupernatural way, by Elijah, as the former Yargum™, or by the Holy Ghoft, as the latter: Mordecai rent bis cloaths, both behind and before, according to the fame Targum; and this was a cuftom ufed in mourning, not only with the Yews, but with the Perfians alfo, as dotus’ relates: and put on fackcloth with afbes; his head, as the former Targum;

. ¥. 6. So Hatach went forth to Mordecai, unto the Street of the city, &c.| Where he was, in a public pened unto him, &c.) How that, for refufing to reverence Laman, he was incenfed againft him, eitherjand againft all the ews for his fake; and had vowed revenge on them, and had formed a fcheme. for the ruin of them: and of the fam of money that Haman bad promifed to pay to the king’s sreafuries for she Jews, to defiroy them, the 10,000 talents of Hero-jfilver he propofed to pay into the king’s exchequer upénjin lieu of the Fews tribute; which Mordecai obwhich was ufual ferves, to fhew how bent he was upon the deftrucix,juon of the Yews, and cared not what it coft him to gain his point; and perhaps Mordecai as yet might not know that the king had remitted it. x. 8. Alfo be gave bim the copy of the writing of the decree that was given at Shufhan to defiroy them, Which had,now been publifhed in the city;. by which means Mordecai had had a fight of it, * and had tranicribed it; fee ch. iii: 14. to fhew it unto Either, and to declare it unto her; what Haman ac- intended again{ft the people of the Jews; as the Targum adds: dnd to charge ber; in his name; whofe charges the had always regarded, both before and fince fhe was queen; or in the name of God: shat fhe /hould go in unto the kiug to make fuprequeft before him for ber people fignifying there was a neceffity of doing it {peedily, and of urging her requeft with great placejearnettnefs and importunity, finee it was not the life of a fingle perion, but the lives of a body of people, and her own, that lay at ftake.

in mourning, even both; Job. ii. 8. 12, Dan. 3. and went out into the midft of the city; not Elam the province, as Aben Ezra, but the city Shufban: and cried with a loud and bitter cry; thatall the Jews in the city might be alarmed by it, and enquire the reafon of it, and be affected with it; and a[&c. clamorous mournful noife was ufed among the Perfians, as well as others, on fad occafions.

¥. 2. And came even before the king’s gate, 8cc.] Or court, that H/fher might if poffible be made quainted with this dreadful calamity coming upon her people: for none might enter into the king’s gote clothed with fackcloth, or appear in fuch a drefs at court, where nothing was admitted to damp the pleafures of it. plication unto him, and to make

¥. 3. And in every province whitherfoever the king’s commandment and bis decree came, &c.| For deftroying the ews on fuch a day, in every where they were to be found: there was great mourning among the Jews, and weeping, and wailing; which continued all day: and many lay in fackcloth and afbes; all night; made ufe of no other bed to lie on, nor clothes to cover them with.

Y. 9. And Hatach came and told Efther the words of Mordecat.] Both the cafe of the ews, and the caufe of it, and what he would have her do at this critical juncture, } y. 4. So Ejfther’s maids and her chamberlains came and told it ber, &c.] Her maids of honour andj eunuchs that attended her, which they might tell her merely as a piece of news, there being fomething fhocking in it to tender minds; er perhaps nothing more than that Mordecai was in fack- ‘cloth; and they might have obferved by fome cidents or another, that there was fome connection between Mordecai and Ejfher, and that fhe had a peculiar refpect for him: then was the queen exceedingly grieved; even tho’ fhe might not know the whole of the matter; but perceiving whatever it was it greatly affected Mordecai, with whom fympathized: and fhe fent raiment to clothe Mordecai, and to take away bis fackcloth from him; that fo he might appear at court, and fhe get better intelligence of the caufe of all this: but be received it not; refuting to be comforted, or appear chearful under {uch melancholy circumftances.

¥.10. Again Efther [pake unto Hatach, &c.| For there was no other way of correfponding and converfing, but by an eunuch; the wives of kings being altogether under their watch and care: amd gave him commandment unto Mordecai, to go unto in-jhim, and what he fhould fay to him from her, which is as follows:.

¥. 11. AU/ the king’s fervants and the people of the king’s provinces do know, &c.] Not only the princes and courtiers, but all the king’s fubjeéts, the meaneft of them; there is fcarce a perfon throughfhejout the whole empire, to whom the following law is not known; this is faid, to fhew how notorious it was: that whofoever, whether man or woman, /hall come unto the king into the inner court, who is mot called, there is one Jaw of bis to put him to death; according to the former Targum, Maman got this law to be made now, to prevent any application to the king about this affair; but then it would not have been fo univerfally known as before declared; and it appears that there was fuch a law among the Medes, made by Dejeces, that none fhould go into the king’s prefence, but all fhould be done by meffengers”; and this was altered among the Perfans, for the feven princes that flew Smerdis made an agreement, that whoever of them was chofen king, the reft fhould have the liberty of going unto him when they pleafed, without a meflenger to introduce them‘; it feems by this account it was death to go into the inner parlour, where the king ufually was, without leave, or being called; this was made both for the king’s fafety, and for awe and y¥. 5. Then called Efther for Hatach, one of the king’s chamberlains, whom he had appointed to attend upon her, &c.| Which, according to the Targum, was Daniel*; but it is not likely that Daniel fhould nave lived to this time; however, this officer was not only entrufted with the care of the queen by the king, but fhe had alfo an high opinion of him, and therefore employed him in this affair: amd gave a commandment to Mordecai, to know what it was, and why it was; what was the reafon of his appearing in fackcloth, and why he did not receive the cloaths fhe fent him.

reverence of his majefty, and to prevent any infinuations into him by ill defigning perfons: except Juch to whom the king fhall bald out the golden fceptre, - that be may live; which, whether he would or no, was very precarious; fo that a perfon ran a rifque to go in uncalled: dut I have not been called to go in unto the king thefe thirty days 5 which looked as if the king had nog that fond affection for her he formerly had; and therefore there was greater danger in going in to him uncalled, and the lefs hope of fuccefs. ‘i t fuccefs;

¥. 16. Go, gather together all the Fews that are prefent in Shufban, &c.| To acquaint them with \what follows; but not.to continue in a body tovether; which might cafe fufpicion of an ill defign greatlin them; according to the latter Targam, 12,000 chofen priefts were found init; but that muft bé an exaggeration of their number; it can hardly be thought there were fo many ‘fews in all there: aad faft ye for me, that is, pray for her, that fhe might have courage to go in to the king, and meet with for prayer was the principal thing, fafting only an acceffary to it, and as fitting for it, and affliction and humiliation of foul: and neitber eat nor drink three days, night nor day, it was to be a continued faft unto the third day; as Abenezra interprets it, they were not to eat.at evening, \but faft two whole days, and two whole nights, until the third day came, on which E/fber went in wouldjto the king, ch. v. 1. I alfo and my maidens will aft likewife, in the fame manner, and as long; thefe maids of honour were either profelytes, perhaps of her making, or Yewi/b ladies, fhe being fhejallowed by the king to choofe whom fhe pleafed: theland fo will 1 goin unto the king, which is not accord-

¥. 12. And they told to Mordecai Efther’s words.| The meffengers fhe fent to him, | Jexpreffive of y. 13. Then Mordecai commanded to anfwer Efther, &c.] Gave in charge to the meffengers what they fhould fay to Efther from him, by way of reply: Think not with thyfelf that thou foalt efcape in the king’s boufe, more than all the Jews; fignifying that her being queen, and in the king’s‘palace, be no protection to her; and fhe would be no fafer there than the Yews elfewhere, fince they had no greater enemies any where thanin the king’s court; and it was or would be known of what nation was, and therefore muft not expect to efcape fury of the enemy. ing to the law; or afterwards, or and then“, when

¥. 14. For if thou altogether boldeff thy peace at this time, 8cc.\ And will not fpeak to the king favour of the Ferws, becaufe of the danger fhe would be expofed to in doing it: then fhali there enlargement and deliverance arife to the Jews from another place; Mordecai.feemed confident of it, that by fome means or another the ews would be delivered; if not through the interceffion of Ejther, yet from fome other quarter, or by fome other hand: Sut thou and thy father’s bouje foall be deftroyed; for fuch neglect of the people of God when in diftrefs, want of pity to them,- and not exerting herfelf as fhe might in their behalf; fo that feeing _ fhe and her family muft perifh, it was better to pe- ‘rifh in a good caufe than ina bad one: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for fuch a time as this? he intimates that he believed that the providence of God had raifed her to that dignity, that fhe might be an inftrument of faving his people in the time of their diftrefs; and this he faid to encourage her to make the experiment. y¥. 15. Then Efther bade them return Mordecai this anfwer,] which follows, and was fent by the meflengers fhe fent the above to ‘him. they, and fhe and her maids, had fafted and prayed injfo long, then fhe was determined in the ftrength of |the Lordto go into the king’s prefence with her petition, though it was contrary to law: and if I perifh, I perifo, fignifying, that fhe readily and:cheerfully rifqued her life for the good of her people; and if fuch was the pleafure of God, that fhe fhould lofe it, fhe was content, and acquiefced in his will, leaving herfelf entirely in his lrands, to difpofe of her as he thought fit. ° y¥. 17. So. Mordecai went his way, &c.} About the bufinefs he was directed to; the word ufed having fometimes the fignification of paffing over or tranferefling, ‘Jarchi interprets it of Mordecai’s tranferefling the command, by fafting on a feftival; the letter being written on the 13th of Niaz, ch. iit. 12. the next day was the paffover, on which he fuppofes the faft began; and the three days were, the 14th, 15, and 16th of the month, and belonged to the feaft of the paffover and of unleavened bread; fo the Targum: and did according to all that Eftber had commanded him, got the Fews together, and kept a faft three days; according to the Midrafb*, they were the 13th, 14th, and 15th of Nifan.