Esther 2 Footnotes

2:1-2 The king acted very rashly. His behavior is not condoned by the Bible. The Bible instructs a husband to “take pleasure in the wife of your youth” (Pr 5:18). The king felt that he had been dishonored, and chose to rid himself of his wife rather than reconcile with her. His pride and misunderstanding about the proper relationship between a husband and wife prevented him from doing the right thing (Mt 19:1-12).

2:5-6 Critics looking for evidence of historical inaccuracies often cite this passage as evidence. They contend that the text says Mordecai is the one who had been carried into exile with Jeconiah. If this were so, then Mordecai would have been about 119 years old when Esther became queen. While this cannot be ruled completely out of the realm of possibility, there is another possible explanation. The Hebrew text of v. 6 actually begins with a relative pronoun, asher. The immediate antecedent is “Kish,” not “Mordecai.” So the pronoun may be referring to Kish, Mordecai’s great-grandfather, as the person who had been taken into exile.

2:6 This mention supports the Bible’s account of the exile and captivity of the people of Judah (2Kg 24:10-16). It even corroborates the role of Nebuchadnezzar and Jehoiachin in the captivity. “Jeconiah” was another name for the Judean King Jehoiachin.

2:7 The reference to Esther’s beautiful figure should not be construed as an indication of sexist attitudes by the biblical writers. The statement helps the reader understand one reason Esther came to the king’s attention.

Mordecai’s kindness to Esther reveals an important pro-life principle. He was willing to care for Esther when she was essentially destitute. His act provides an important example for believers today as they consider what can be done for the millions of unwanted babies and orphans throughout the world. Adoption is a biblical principle.

2:9 The king had numerous wives, which was customary for rulers of his day. The fact that the Bible acknowledges this does not mean that it condones it. To the contrary, the Bible makes it clear that God’s ideal is the union of one man and one woman for life (Gn 2:18-25).

2:17 Some critics contend that this marriage could not have occurred. They note that according to Herodotus the Persian kings agreed to restrict themselves to marrying only within a circle of seven noble families (Her 3:84). However, Herodotus also records that Darius, who was a party to the agreement, married three women, none of whom were related to any of those seven noble families (Her 3:88).

2:21-22 Mordecai persisted in his obedience despite the fact that Esther had been taken from him by that same government (v. 8). Mordecai’s behavior exemplified the biblical command to obey the ruling authorities (1Pt 2:13-17).