Esther 3:1

Haman Conspires to Destroy the Jews

3:1 Some time later ¹  King Ahasuerus promoted ²  Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, exalting him and setting his position ³  above that of all the officials who were with him.

Esther 3:5

3:5 When Haman saw that Mordecai was not bowing or paying homage to him, he ⁴  was filled with rage.

Exodus 17:14

17:14 The Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in the ⁵  book, and rehearse ⁶  it in Joshua’s hearing; ⁷  for I will surely wipe out ⁸  the remembrance ⁹  of Amalek from under heaven.

Exodus 17:16

17:16 for he said, “For a hand was lifted up to the throne of the Lord ¹⁰  – that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” ¹¹ 

Deuteronomy 25:19

25:19 So when the Lord your God gives you relief from all the enemies who surround you in the land he ¹²  is giving you as an inheritance, ¹³  you must wipe out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven ¹⁴  – do not forget! ¹⁵ 

Deuteronomy 25:1

25:1 If controversy arises between people, ¹⁶  they should go to court for judgment. When the judges ¹⁷  hear the case, they shall exonerate ¹⁸  the innocent but condemn ¹⁹  the guilty.

Deuteronomy 15:3

15:3 You may exact payment from a foreigner, but whatever your fellow Israelite ²⁰  owes you, you must remit.

Psalms 15:4

15:4 He despises a reprobate, ²¹ 

but honors the Lord’s loyal followers. ²² 

He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise. ²³ 

[3:1]  ¹ tn Heb “after these things” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV “After these events.”

[3:1]  ² tn Heb “made great”; NAB “raised…to high rank”; NIV “honored.”

[3:1]  ³ tn Heb “chair”; KJV, NRSV “seat”; NASB “established his authority.”

[3:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “Haman.” The pronoun (“he”) was used in the translation for stylistic reasons. Repeating the proper name here is redundant according to contemporary English style, although the name is repeated in NASB and NRSV.

[17:14]  ⁵ tn The presence of the article does not mean that he was to write this in a book that was existing now, but in one dedicated to this purpose (book, meaning scroll). See GKC 408 §126.s.

[17:14]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew word is “place,” meaning that the events were to be impressed on Joshua.

[17:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “in the ears of Joshua.” The account should be read to Joshua.

[17:14]  ⁸ tn The construction uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense to stress the resolution of Yahweh to destroy Amalek. The verb מָחָה (makhah) is often translated “blot out” – but that is not a very satisfactory image, since it would not remove completely what is the object. “Efface, erase, scrape off” (as in a palimpsest, a manuscript that is scraped clean so it can be reused) is a more accurate image.

[17:14]  ⁹ sn This would seem to be defeated by the preceding statement that the events would be written in a book for a memorial. If this war is recorded, then the Amalekites would be remembered. But here God was going to wipe out the memory of them. But the idea of removing the memory of a people is an idiom for destroying them – they will have no posterity and no lasting heritage.

[17:16]  ¹⁰ tn The line here is very difficult. The Hebrew text has כִּי־יָד עַל־כֵּס יָהּ (ki yad ’al kes yah, “for a hand on the throne of Yah”). If the word is “throne” (and it is not usually spelled like this), then it would mean Moses’ hand was extended to the throne of God, showing either intercession or source of power. It could not be turned to mean that the hand of Yah was taking an oath to destroy the Amalekites. The LXX took the same letters, but apparently saw the last four (כסיה) as a verbal form; it reads “with a secret hand.” Most scholars have simply assumed that the text is wrong, and כֵּס should be emended to נֵס (nes) to fit the name, for this is the pattern of naming in the OT with popular etymologies – some motif of the name must be found in the sentiment. This would then read, “My hand on the banner of Yah.” It would be an expression signifying that the banner, the staff of God, should ever be ready at hand when the Israelites fight the Amalekites again.

[17:16]  ¹¹ sn The message of this short narrative, then, concerns the power of God to protect his people. The account includes the difficulty, the victory, and the commemoration. The victory must be retained in memory by the commemoration. So the expositional idea could focus on that: The people of God must recognize (both for engaging in warfare and for praise afterward) that victory comes only with the power of God. In the NT the issue is even more urgent, because the warfare is spiritual – believers do not wrestle against flesh and blood. So only God’s power will bring victory.

[25:19]  ¹² tn Heb “ the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

[25:19]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew text includes “to possess it.”

[25:19]  ¹⁴ tn Or “from beneath the sky.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.

[25:19]  ¹⁵ sn This command is fulfilled in 1 Sam 15:1-33.

[25:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “men.”

[25:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the judges) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “declare to be just”; KJV, NASB “justify the righteous”; NAB, NIV “acquitting the innocent.”

[25:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “declare to be evil”; NIV “condemning the guilty (+ party NAB).”

[15:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “your brother.”

[15:4]  ²¹ tn Heb “despised in his eyes [is] a rejected [one].” The Hebrew term נִמְאָס (nim’as, “rejected [one]”) apparently refers here to one who has been rejected by God because of his godless behavior. It stands in contrast to “those who fear God” in the following line.

[15:4]  ²² tn Heb “those who fear the Lord.” The one who fears the Lord respects his sovereignty and obeys his commandments. See Ps 128:1; Prov 14:2.

[15:4]  ²³ tn Heb “he takes an oath to do harm and does not change.” The phrase “to do harm” cannot mean “do harm to others,” for the preceding verse clearly characterizes this individual as one who does not harm others. In this context the phrase must refer to an oath to which a self-imprecation is attached. The godly individual takes his commitments to others so seriously he is willing to “swear to his own hurt.” For an example of such an oath, see Ruth 1:16-17.