Yǐsītièjì 1

1 Yàhǎsuílǔ zuò wáng , cóng Yìndù zhídào Gǔshí , Tǒng guǎn yī bǎi èr shí qī shĕng .

2 Yàhǎsuílǔ wáng zaì Shūshān chéng de gōng dēng jī .

3 Zaì wèi dì sān nián , tā yīqiè shǒulǐng chénpú shè bǎi yánxí , yǒu Bōsī hé Mǐdǐyà de quán guì , jiù shì gè shĕng de guìzhòu yǔ shǒulǐng , zaì tā miànqián .

4 Tā bǎ tā róngyào zhī guó de fēngfù , hé tā mĕihǎo wēiyán de zūnguì , gĕi tāmen kàn le xǔduō rì , jiù shì yī bǎi bá shí rì .

5 Zhè rìzi mǎn le , yòu wèi suǒ yǒu zhù Shūshān chéng de dà xiǎorén mín , zaì yù yuán de yuànzi lǐ shè bǎi yánxí qī rì .

6 Yǒu bái sè , lù sè , lán sè de zhàng zǐ , yòng xì má shéng , zǐse shéng cóng yín huán neì jì zaì bái yù shí zhù shang . yǒu jīn yín de chuáng tà bǎi zaì hóng , bái , huáng , hēi yù shí pū de shí dì shang.

7 Yòng jīnqì mǐn cì jiǔ , qìmǐn gè yǒu bù tóng . yù jiǔ shén duō , zú xiǎn wáng de hòu yì .

8 Hē jiǔ yǒu lì , bù zhún miǎnqiǎng rén , yīn wáng fēnfu gōng lǐ de yīqiè chénzǎi , ràng rén gè suí jǐ yì .

9 Wáng hòu Wǎshítí zaì Yàhǎsuílǔ wáng de gōng neì , yĕ wèi fùnǚ shè bǎi yánxí .

10 Dì qī rì , Yàhǎsuílǔ wáng yǐn jiǔ , xīn zhōng kuaìlè , jiù fēnfu zaì tā miànqián shì lì de qī gè taì jiān , Mǐhùmàn , Bǐsītā , Hǎbōná , Bǐgétā , Yàbátā , Xīdá , Jiǎjiā ,

11 Qǐng wáng hòu Wǎshídī tóu daì wáng hòu de guānmiǎn dào wáng miànqián , shǐ gè dĕng chén mín kàn tāde mĕimào , yīnwei tā róngmào shén mĕi .

12 Wáng hòu Wǎshítí què bù kĕn zūn taì jiān suǒ chuán de wáng méng ér lái , suǒyǐ wáng shén fānù , xīn rú huǒshào .

13 Nàshí , zaì wáng zuǒyòu cháng jiàn wáng miàn , guó zhōng zuò gāo wèi de , yǒu Bōsī hé Mǐdǐyà de qī gè dàchén , jiù shì jiǎ Shìnádì , Shìdá , Yēmǎtā , Tāshīsī , Mǐlì , Mǎxīná , Mǐmǔgān ,

14 Dōu shì dá shí wù de míng zhé rén . àn wáng de cháng guī , bàn shì bì xiān xún wèn zhī lì míng fǎ de rén . wáng wèn tāmen shuō ,

15 Wáng hòu Wǎshítí bù zūn taì jiān suǒ chuán de wáng méng , zhàolì yīngdāng zĕnyàng bànlǐ ne .

16 Mǐmǔgān zaì wáng hé zhòng shǒulǐng miànqián huídá shuō , wáng hòu Wǎshítí zhè shì , búdàn dé zuì wáng , bìngqiĕ yǒu haì yú wáng gè shĕng de chén mín .

17 Yīnwei wáng hòu zhè shì bì chuán dào zhòng fùrén de ĕr zhōng , shuō , Yàhǎsuílǔ wáng fēnfu wáng hòu Wǎshítí dào wáng miànqián , tā què bù lái , tāmen jiù miǎoshì zìjǐ de zhàngfu .

18 Jīnrì Bōsī hé Mǐdǐyà de zhòng fūren tīngjian wáng hòu zhè shì , bì xiàng wáng de dàchén zhàoyàng xíng . cóngcǐ bì dà kāi miǎoshì hé fèn nù zhī duān .

19 Wáng ruò yǐwéi mĕi , jiù jiàng zhǐ xiĕ zaì Bōsī hé Mǐdǐyà rén de lì zhōng , yǒng bù gēnggǎi , bù zhún Wǎshítí zaì dào wáng miànqián , jiāng tā wáng hòu de wèi fēn cìgĕi bǐ tā hái hǎo de rén .

20 Suǒ jiàng de zhǐyì chuán biàn tōng guó ( guódù bĕnlái guǎngdà ) , suǒyǒude fùrén , wúlùn zhàngfu guì jiàn dōu bì zūnjìng tā .

21 Wáng hé zhòng shǒulǐng dōu yǐ Mǐmǔgān de huà wèi mĕi , wáng jiù zhào zhè huà qù xíng ,

22 Fā zhào shū , yòng gè shĕng de wén zì , gè zú de fāngyán tōng zhī gè shĕng , shǐ wèi zhàngfu de zaì jiā zhōng zuò zhǔ , gè shuō bĕn dì de fāngyán .

Yǐsītièjì 1 Commentary

Chapter 1

We find in this book, that even those Jews who were scattered in the province of the heathen, were taken care of, and were wonderfully preserved, when threatened with destruction. Though the name of God be not in this book, the finger of God is shown by minute events for the bringing about his people's deliverance. This history comes in between (Ezra 6 and Ezra 7 ) .

The royal feast of Ahasuerus. (1-9) Vashti's refusal to appear, The king's decree. (10-22)

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 ) .

Verses 10-22 Ahasuerus's feast ended in heaviness, by his own folly. Seasons of peculiar festivity often end in vexation. Superiors should be careful not to command what may reasonably be disobeyed. But when wine is in, men's reason departs from them. He that had rule over 127 provinces, had no rule over his own spirit. But whether the passion or the policy of the king was served by this decree, God's providence made way for Esther to the crown, and defeated Haman's wicked project, even before it had entered into his heart, and he arrived at his power. Let us rejoice that the Lord reigns, and will overrule the madness or folly of mankind to promote his own glory, and the safety and happiness of his people.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF ESTHER

This book has its name from the person who is the principal subject of it; it is by Clemens of Alexandria {a} called the Book of Mordecai also; it is commonly called, in the Hebrew copies, "Megillah Esther", the Volume of Esther; and sometimes in the Jewish writings only "Megillah", by way of eminency, "the Volume". It was written, according to the Talmudists {b}, by the men of the great synagogue, composed by Ezra; and some think it was written by Ezra himself {c}; but Aben Ezra is of opinion it was written by Mordecai, since he was concerned in, and had perfect knowledge of, all things related in it; which is rejected by Spinosa {d}, who conceits that this, and the books of Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah, were written by one and the same historian long after the times of Judas Maccabaeus: as to the canonical authority of it, it has been generally received by Jews and Christians; our wise men, says Maimonides {e}, openly and plainly affirm of the book of Esther, that it was dictated by the Holy Spirit; so Aben Ezra on Es 6:6, and he himself {f} affirms, that

``all the books of the prophets, and all the Hagiographa (or holy writings), shall cease in the days of the Messiah, except the volume of Esther; and, lo, that shall be as stable as the Pentateuch, and as the constitutions of the oral law, which shall never cease.''

Though the versions of other books of Scripture might not be read in the synagogues, versions of this book might to those who did not understand Hebrew {g}; and so Luther {h} says, the Jews more esteem the book of Esther than any of the prophets. Whence Mr. Baxter {i} had that notion, I can not devise, that the Jews used to cast to the ground the book of Esther before they read it, because the name of God was not in it: nor is that any objection to its authenticity, since the hand and providence of God may be most clearly seen in it; in raising Esther to such grandeur, and that for the deliverance of the people of the Jews, and in counter working and bringing to nought the plots of their enemies, and in saving them: nor that it is not quoted in the New Testament; it is sufficient there is no disagreement between them, yea, an entire agreement, particularly in the account of the captivity of Jeconiah, which is expressed almost in the same words in Es 2:6 as in Mt 1:11,12. It stands in Origen's catalogue {k} of the books of the Old Testament; nor is it any material objection that it appears not in the catalogue of Melito {l}, since in that list is comprehended under Ezra not Nehemiah only, but Esther also, which Jerom {m} mentions along with it. This book is not only of use to the Jews, as it shows the original and foundation of a feast of theirs, still kept up by them, the feast of Purim, and makes for the glory of their nation, and therefore it is no wonder it should be so highly esteemed by them; but serves to show the singular providence of God in taking care of his people in adversity, in humbling the proud, and exalting the lowly, and saving those that pray to him, and trust in him; it furnishes out various instructions in the conduct of the several persons herein mentioned; it is a history but of ten or eleven years at most, from the third of Ahasuerus, to the twelfth of his reign, Es 1:3, 3:7.

{a} Stromat. l. 1. p. 329. {b} T. Bava Bathra, fol. 15. 1. {c} August. de Civ. Dei, l. 18. c. 36. Isidor. Origin. l. 6. c. 2. {d} Tract. Theolog. Politic. c. 10. p. 189 {e} Moreh Nevochim, par. 2. c. 45. {f} Hilchot Megillah, c. 2. sect. 18. {g} Misn. Megillah, c. 2. sect. 1. T. Bab. Megillah, fol. 18. 1. {h} Mensal. Colloqu. c. 31. p. 358. {i} The Saints Everlasting Rest, part 4. c. 3. sect. 1. {k} Apud Euseb. Eccl. Hist. l. 6. c. 25. {l} Apud ib. l. 4. c. 26. {m} Ad Domnion. & Rogat. tom. 3. fol. 7. F.

\\INTRODUCTION TO ESTHER 1\\

This chapter relates, how that Ahasuerus, a great king of Persia, made a feast, first for the grandees of his kingdom, and then for his people, as his queen did for the women, Es 1:1-9, who being sent for by him, and she refusing to come, was, by the advice of one of his counsellors, divorced from him, and an order made and published throughout his dominions, that every man should bear rule in his own house, Es 1:10-22.