Esther 1:13

13 And the king said to the wise men, {the ones who know the times}^[a]--for it [was] the procedure of the king before all those who knew law and rights;^[b]

Esther 1:13 Meaning and Commentary

Esther 1:13

Then the king said to the wise men that knew the times
Astrologers, as Aben Ezra, that knew the fit time for doing anything; or that had knowledge of ancient times, historians, well read in history, and knew things that had happened similar to this:

for so was the king's manner towards all that knew law and judgment;
it was customary with him in any case of difficulty to have the opinion and advice of those that were expert in the law, and well understood right and wrong. These are called by Herodotus ^F20 the king's judges.

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FOOTNOTES:

F20 Thalia, sive, l. 3. c. 14, 31. so in Aelian. Var. Hist. l. 1. c. 34.

Esther 1:13 In-Context

11 to bring Queen Vashti before the king {with her royal crown} to show the people and the officials her beauty, {for she was very attractive}.

12 But Queen Vashti refused to come at the word of the king that [was] {conveyed by} the eunuchs. And the king became very angry, and his anger burned in him.

13 And the king said to the wise men, {the ones who know the times}--for it [was] the procedure of the king before all those who knew law and rights;

14 and those next to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, Memucan, the seven officials of Persia and Media who {had access to the king} and sat first in the kingdom--

15 "According to [the] law, what is to be done with Queen Vashti, because she has not done the command of King Ahasuerus {conveyed by} the eunuchs?

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "the knowers of the times"
• [b]. Or "custom and legalities"