19:24 Now Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, 1 came down to meet the king. From the day the king had left until the day he safely 2 returned, Mephibosheth 3 had not cared for his feet 4 nor trimmed 5 his mustache nor washed his clothes.
1:1 After the death of Saul, 6 when David had returned from defeating the Amalekites, 7 he stayed at Ziklag 8 for two days.
4:1 Now when Mordecai became aware of all that had been done, he 9 tore his garments and put on sackcloth and ashes. He went out into the city, crying out in a loud 10 and bitter voice. 4:2 But he went no further than the king’s gate, for no one was permitted to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth. 4:3 Throughout each and every province where the king’s edict and law were announced 11 there was considerable 12 mourning among the Jews, along with fasting, weeping, and sorrow. 13 Sackcloth and ashes were characteristic 14 of many. 4:4 When Esther’s female attendants and her eunuchs came and informed her about Mordecai’s behavior, 15 the queen was overcome with anguish. Although she sent garments for Mordecai to put on so that he could remove his sackcloth, he would not accept them.
5:1 It so happened that on the third day Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner court of the palace, 16 opposite the king’s quarters. 17 The king was sitting on his royal throne in the palace, opposite the entrance. 18
61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,
by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,
oil symbolizing joy, 19 instead of mourning,
a garment symbolizing praise, 20 instead of discouragement. 21
They will be called oaks of righteousness, 22
trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. 23
61:10 I 24 will greatly rejoice 25 in the Lord;
I will be overjoyed because of my God. 26
For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;
he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. 27
I look like a bridegroom when he wears a turban as a priest would;
I look like a bride when she puts on her jewelry. 28
1 tn Heb “son.”
2 tn Heb “in peace.” So also in v. 31.
3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Mephibosheth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 tn Heb “done his feet.”
5 tn Heb “done.”
6 sn This chapter is closely linked to 1 Sam 31. It should be kept in mind that 1 and 2 Samuel were originally a single book, not separate volumes. Whereas in English Bible tradition the books of Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, and Ezra-Nehemiah are each regarded as two separate books, this was not the practice in ancient Hebrew tradition. Early canonical records, for example, counted them as single books respectively. The division into two books goes back to the Greek translation of the OT and was probably initiated because of the cumbersome length of copies due to the Greek practice (unlike that of Hebrew) of writing vowels. The present division into two books can be a little misleading in terms of perceiving the progression of the argument of the book; in some ways it is preferable to treat the books of 1-2 Samuel in a unified fashion.
7 sn The Amalekites were a nomadic people who inhabited Judah and the Transjordan. They are mentioned in Gen 36:15-16 as descendants of Amalek who in turn descended from Esau. In Exod 17:8-16 they are described as having acted in a hostile fashion toward Israel as the Israelites traveled to Canaan from Egypt. In David’s time the Amalekites were viewed as dangerous enemies who raided, looted, and burned Israelite cities (see 1 Sam 30).
8 sn Ziklag was a city in the Negev which had been given to David by Achish king of Gath. For more than a year David used it as a base from which he conducted military expeditions (see 1 Sam 27:5-12). According to 1 Sam 30:1-19, Ziklag was destroyed by the Amalekites while Saul fought the Philistines.
9 tn Heb “Mordecai.” The pronoun (“he”) was used in the translation for stylistic reasons. A repetition of the proper name here is redundant in terms of contemporary English style.
10 tn Heb “great.”
11 tn Heb “reached” (so NAB, NLT); KJV, NASB, NIV “came”; TEV “wherever the king’s proclamation was made known.”
12 tn Heb “great” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the Jews went into deep mourning.”
13 sn Although prayer is not specifically mentioned here, it is highly unlikely that appeals to God for help were not a part of this reaction to devastating news. As elsewhere in the book of Esther, the writer seems deliberately to keep religious actions in the background.
14 tn Heb “were spread to many”; KJV, NIV “many (+ people NLT) lay in sackcloth and ashes.”
15 tn The words “about Mordecai’s behavior” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in translation for the sake of clarity. Cf. NIV, NLT “about Mordecai”; TEV, CEV “what Mordecai was doing.”
16 tn Heb “of the house of the king”; NASB, NRSV “of the king’s palace.”
17 tn Heb “the house of the king”; NASB “the king’s rooms”; NIV, NLT “the king’s hall.” This expression is used twice in this verse. In the first instance, it is apparently the larger palace complex that is in view, whereas in the second instance the expression seems to refer specifically to the quarters from which the king governed.
18 tn Heb “the entrance of the house” (so ASV).
19 tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”
20 tn Heb “garment of praise.”
21 tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”
22 tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”
23 tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”
24 sn The speaker in vv. 10-11 is not identified, but it is likely that the personified nation (or perhaps Zion) responds here to the Lord’s promise of restoration.
25 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
26 tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”
27 tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”
28 tn Heb “like a bridegroom [who] acts like a priest [by wearing] a turban, and like a bride [who] wears her jewelry.” The words “I look” are supplied for stylistic reasons and clarification.
29 tn Heb “made his throne above the throne of
30 tn The subject is unstated in the Hebrew text, but Jehoiachin is clearly the subject of the following verb.