Esther 1:5

_WHEN HE SHEWED THE RICHES OF HIS GLORIOUS KINGDOM AND THE HONOUR OF HIS EXCELLENT MAJESTY MANY DAYS, EVEN AN HUNDRED AND FOURSCORE DAYS._ No JFB commentary on these verses....

1-9 The pride of Ahasuerus's heart rising with the grandeur of his kingdom, he made an extravagant feast. This was vain glory. Better is a dinner of herbs with quietness, than this banquet of wine, with all the noise and tumult that must have attended it. But except grace prevails in the heart, self-exaltation and self-indulgence, in one form or another, will be the ruling principle. Yet none did compel; so that if any drank to excess, it was their own fault. This caution of a heathen prince, even when he would show his generosity, may shame many called Christians, who, under pretence of sending the health round, send sin round, and death with it. There is a woe to them that do so; let them read it, and tremble, Habakkuk 2:15; Habakkuk 2:16....

Verse Esther 1:5. _A FEAST UNTO ALL THE PEOPLE_] The first was a feast for the _nobles_ in general; this, for the _people_ of the city at large. _IN THE COURT OF THE GARDEN_] As the company was very numerous that was to be received, no apartments in the palace could be capable of containing them; therefore the _court of the garden_ was chosen....

Feasts on this extensive scale were not unusual in the East. Cyrus is said on one occasion to have feasted “all the Persians.” Even ordinarily, the later Persian monarchs entertained 15,000 persons at their table....

THE GREAT FEAST OF KING AHASUERUS AT SUSA, AND THE DISGRACE OF VASHTI EXPOSITION THE GREAT FEAST (Esther 1:1). King Ahasuerus (Xerxes) in the third year of his reign, which was B.C. 484-483, entertained at a great feast in the royal palace of Susa all his princes and his servants, "the power of Persia and Media," together with all the nobles and princes of the provinces (Esther 1:2, Esther 1:3). The hospitality was extended over a s

AND WHEN THESE DAYS WERE ENDED,.... The one hundred and eighty, in which the nobles, princes, and great men of the kingdom were feasted: THE KING MADE A FEAST UNTO ALL THE PEOPLE THAT WERE PRESENT IN SHUSHAN THE PALACE, BOTH UNTO GREAT AND SMALL; of every age, rank, state and condition of life; these were the common people, whether inhabitants of the city or country people there on business, whether natives or foreigners; according to the Targum, there were Israelites there, but not Mordecai and his family; yea, it is said in the Midrash n, that they were all Jews, and that their number was 18,500; but this is not probable; it is very likely there were some Jews among them, as there were many in the army of Xerxes, when he made his expedition into Greece, according to the poet Choerilus o; which is not to be wondered at, since there were so many of them in his dominions, and they men of...

ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS THE BANQUETS AND QUEEN VASHTI DISOWNED CHAPTER 1 _ 1. The first feast of the king (Esther 1:1)_ 2. The king's feast unto all the people (Esther 1:5) 3. The queen's feast for the women (Esther 1:9) 4. The queen's refusal to appear at the king's feast (Esther 1:10) 5. The queen put away (Esther 1:13) Esther 1:1. King Ahasuerus, one of the leading characters of this book, is known in history as Xerxes I. The n

ESTHER 1. THE ROYAL FEAST. VASHTI'S DISOBEDIENCE AND DEGRADATION. The opening words in MT (and it came to pass) are in good Heb style, which shows that an able scribe wrote here. But they prove that something once stood before them. Even Paton translates, And afterward! After what? He says strangely, This expression is used in continuation of a historical narrative, and adds, lamely and incorrectly, It is an imitation of the beginnings of the older histories. The tale has clearly been truncated here, doubtless because the original spoke of Yahweh. A version of the original still exists in LXX: it is a sort of preface, saying that a Jew lived in Shushan (Daniel 8:2 *), who had a Perso-Babylonian name Mordecai, i.e. related to Marduk, Lord of Fate which the scribes would dislike and he was descended from the house of king Saul, also disliked by scribes. He was a court servant of king Artax...

PALACE. house, or, large house....

_in the court of the garden_ See notes on Esther 1:2....