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Texts -- Esther 3:8-15 (NET)

Context
3:8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus , “There is a particular people that is dispersed and spread among the inhabitants throughout all the provinces of your kingdom whose laws differ from those of all other peoples . Furthermore, they do not observe the king’s laws . It is not appropriate for the king to provide a haven for them. 3:9 If the king is so inclined , let an edict be issued to destroy them. I will pay ten thousand talents of silver to be conveyed to the king’s treasuries for the officials who carry out this business .” 3:10 So the king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman the son of Hammedatha , the Agagite , who was hostile toward the Jews . 3:11 The king replied to Haman , “Keep your money , and do with those people whatever you wish .” 3:12 So the royal scribes were summoned in the first month , on the thirteenth day of the month. Everything Haman commanded was written to the king’s satraps and governors who were in every province and to the officials of every people , province by province according to its script and people by people according to its language . In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written and sealed with the king’s signet ring . 3:13 Letters were sent by the runners to all the king’s provinces stating that they should destroy , kill , and annihilate all the Jews , from youth to elderly , both women and children , on a particular day , namely the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar ), and to loot and plunder their possessions. 3:14 A copy of this edict was to be presented as law throughout every province ; it was to be made known to all the inhabitants , so that they would be prepared for this day . 3:15 The messengers scurried forth with the king’s order . The edict was issued in Susa the citadel . While the king and Haman sat down to drink , the city of Susa was in an uproar !

Pericope

NET
  • Est 3:1-15 -- Haman Conspires to Destroy the Jews

Bible Dictionary

  • SEAL

    [ebd] commonly a ring engraved with some device (Gen. 38:18, 25). Jezebel "wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal" (1 Kings 21:8). Seals are frequently mentioned in Jewish history (Deut. 32:34; Neh. 9:38; 10:1...
    [isbe] SEAL - sel (substantive chotham, "seal," "signet," Tabba`ath, "signet-ring"; Aramaic `izqa'; sphragis; verb chatham, (Aramaic chatham); (sphragizo), (katasphragizomai, "to seal"): I. Literal Sense. A seal is an instrument of...
    [smith] The importance attached to seals in the East is so great that without one no document is regarded as authentic. Among the methods of sealing used in Egypt at a very early period were engraved stones, graved stones, pierced th...

  • SATRAPS

    [isbe] SATRAPS - sa'-traps, sat'-raps ('achashdarpenim, Ezr 8:36; Est 3:12; 8:9; 9:3, the King James Version "lieutenants"; Dan 3:2,3,27; 6:1 ff, the King James Version "princes"): The viceroys or vassal rulers to whom was entruste...

  • Prince

    [ebd] the title generally applied to the chief men of the state. The "princes of the provinces" (1 Kings 20:14) were the governors or lord-lieutenants of the provinces. So also the "princes" mentioned in Dan. 6:1, 3, 4, 6, 7 were ...

  • Mordecai

    [ebd] the son of Jair, of the tribe of Benjamin. It has been alleged that he was carried into captivity with Jeconiah, and hence that he must have been at least one hundred and twenty-nine years old in the twelfth year of Ahasueru...

  • Lieutenant

    [ebd] (only in A.V. Esther 3:12; 8:9; 9:3; Ezra 8:36), a governor or viceroy of a Persian province having both military and civil power. Correctly rendered in the Revised Version "satrap."

  • Jew

    [ebd] the name derived from the patriarch Judah, at first given to one belonging to the tribe of Judah or to the separate kingdom of Judah (2 Kings 16:6; 25:25; Jer. 32:12; 38:19; 40:11; 41:3), in contradistinction from those belo...

  • JOEL (2)

    [isbe] JOEL (2) - (yo'el; Ioel): I. THE PROPHET II. THE BOOK 1. Literary Form 2. Outline of Contents 3. Interpretation (1) Literal (2) Allegorical 4. Indications of Date (1) Place in the Canon (2) Language and Style (3) Quotations ...

  • Haman

    [nave] HAMAN Prime minister of Ahasuerus, Esth. 3:1. Plotted against Esther and the Jews, thwarted by Esther and Mordecai, hanged, Esth. 3-9.

  • Government

    [nave] GOVERNMENT Paternal functions of, Gen. 41:25-57. Civil service school provided by, Dan. 1:3-20. Maintains a system of public instruction, 2 Chr. 17:7-9. Executive departments in. See: Cabinet; King; Ruler; Statecraft. Ju...

  • GUARD

    [isbe] GUARD - gard: (1) sar ha-Tabbachim, "captain of the guard," literally, "slaughterers" (Gen 37:36; 39:1; 40:3,1; 41:10,12); rabh Tabbachim (2 Ki 25:8,11,20; Jer 39:9, etc.); rabh tabbachayyah (Dan 2:14); ratsim, "guard," the ...

  • GOVERNOR

    [ebd] (1.) Heb. nagid, a prominent, conspicuous person, whatever his capacity: as, chief of the royal palace (2 Chr. 28:7; comp. 1 Kings 4:6), chief of the temple (1 Chr. 9:11; Jer. 20:1), the leader of the Aaronites (1 Chr. 12:27...
    [isbe] GOVERNOR - guv'-er-ner: The word "governor" is employed in English Versions of the Bible in rendering a great variety of Hebrew and Greek words. In certain cases strict consistency is neither observed nor possible. 1. In the...

  • ESTHER, THE REST OF

    [isbe] ESTHER, THE REST OF - || Introductory 1. Name 2. Contents 3. Original Language 4. Versions 5. Date LITERATURE Introductory. The Book of Esther in the oldest manuscripts of the Septuagint (B,A,N, etc.) contains 107 verses mor...

  • ESTHER, BOOK OF

    [isbe] ESTHER, BOOK OF - 1. The Canonicity of Esther 2. Its Authorship 3. Its Date 4. Its Contents 5. The Greek Additions 6. The Attacks upon the Book 7. Some of the Objections 8. Confirmations of the Book This book completes the h...

  • EPISTLE

    [isbe] EPISTLE - e-pis'-'-l (epistole, "a letter," "epistle"; from epistello, "to send to"): 1. New Testament Epistles 2. Distinctive Characteristics 3. Letter-Writing in Antiquity 4. Letters in the Old Testament 5. Letters in the ...

  • ENEMY

    [isbe] ENEMY - en'-e-mi ('oyebh, tsar, tsar; echthros): "Enemy," "enemies," are frequent words in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word most often so translated is 'oyebh, meaning perhaps literally, "one who hates"; very frequent in t...

  • Captive

    [ebd] one taken in war. Captives were often treated with great cruelty and indignity (1 Kings 20:32; Josh. 10:24; Judg. 1:7; 2 Sam. 4:12; Judg. 8:7; 2 Sam. 12:31; 1 Chr. 20:3). When a city was taken by assault, all the men were sl...

  • Babylon

    [nave] BABYLON City of Built by Nimrod, Gen. 10:10. In the land of Shinar, Gen. 10:10; 11:2. Tower of, Gen. 11:1-9. Capital of the kingdom of Babylon, Dan. 4:30; 2 Kin. 25:13; 2 Chr. 36:6, 7, 10, 18, 20. Gates of, Isa. 45:1, 2...

  • BUSINESS

    [isbe] BUSINESS - biz'-nes: Is the rendering of four Hebrew words: (1) mela'khah, in Gen 39:11 (the American Standard Revised Version "work"); 1 Ch 26:29,30; 2 Ch 13:10 (the American Standard Revised Version "in their work"); 17:13...

  • Adar

    [ebd] large, the sixth month of the civil and the twelfth of the ecclesiastical year of the Jews (Esther 3:7, 13; 8:12; 9:1, 15, 17, 19, 21). It included the days extending from the new moon of our March to the new moon of April. ...

  • AGAGITE

    [ebd] a name applied to Haman and also to his father (Esther 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5). Probably it was equivalent to Amalekite.
    [isbe] AGAGITE - a'-gag-it, ('aghaghi, from, 'aghagh, "a member of the house of Agag"): A title of opprobrium given to Haman (Est 3:1,10; 8:3,5; 9:24). Jewish tradition always assigned the arch-enemies of Israel membership in the h...

Arts

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • "In the short pericope 13:7b-15a obedience was the stone on which Saul stumbled; here it is the rock that crushes him."147Chapter 15 records one of the battles Saul had with the Amalekites, Israel's enemy to the south (cf. 14...
  • I. God's preparations 1:1-2:20A. Vashti deposed ch. 11. The king's feast 1:1-92. The queen's dismissal 1:10-22B. Esther elevated 2:1-201. The plan to replace Vashti 2:1-42. Esther's selection 2:5-113. The choice of Esther as ...
  • This chapter records the providential circumstances whereby Esther was able to rise to her influential position with the Persian king."Though no mention is made of God's providence, it nevertheless plays a prominent part, and...
  • Ahasuerus is the Hebrew name of the Persian king, Khshayarsha, whom we know better in ancient history by his Greek name, Xerxes.22He reigned over the Persian Empire from 486 to 464 B.C. and was the son of Darius I (521-486 B....
  • The events we read in chapter 3 took place four years after Esther became queen (cf. 2:16; 3:7).Agag was the name of an area in Media that had become part of the Persian Empire.54However, Agag was also the name of the Amaleki...
  • Haman cast the lot--puris the Persian word for "lot"--to determine the day most propitious to wipe out the Jews. In the pagan ancient Near East it was unthinkable to make plans of this nature without astrological guidance. Th...
  • Perhaps Haman did not mention the Jews by name since Ahasuerus' predecessors, Cyrus and Darius I (Hystaspes), had issued proclamations favorable to them (Ezra 1:1-4; 6:3-5, 8-12). In any case his failure to mention them by na...
  • The imprint of an official's signet ring (v. 10) was the equivalent of his signature in ancient times (cf. Gen. 41:42; Esth. 8:2, 8, 10). Ahasuerus gave permission to Haman to confiscate the Jews' wealth and to put them to de...
  • The first decree to destroy the Jews had gone out on April 17, 474 B.C. (3:12).93Ahasuerus published this one allowing the Jews to defend themselves on June 25, 474 B.C. The Jews had over eight months to prepare for the day t...
  • "Crown"(v. 15) should be "turban."Mordecai's clothing reflected his important position in the government.Evidently Mordecai read the second decree at a public meeting in Susa. Contrast the Jews' reaction here with their respo...
  • 15:11-12 The man in the story had two sons, a younger and an older one (v. 25). Therefore the younger son's inheritance would normally have been one-third of his father's estate since the older son would have received a doubl...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedathna the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him. 2. And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate...
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