Esther 4 Footnotes

4:11 Skeptics often attack the credibility of the book of Esther by claiming that the law Esther quoted was ludicrous. They assert that if such a law existed, no one could ever be in the king’s presence. However, these objections result from a failure to read the text carefully. Esther did not say that no one could see the king without being summoned, but that anyone who approached the king without being summoned could forfeit their life. Josephus supports this fact (Antiquities, XI 205), also noting that the king surrounded himself with men bearing axes who would punish anyone who approached the throne without being summoned. Herodotus describes a similar, but not exact, policy (Her 3:85,118,140).

4:14 Mordecai acknowledged the sovereignty of God. He knew that Haman could not ultimately succeed in his campaign because God’s design cannot be thwarted. God is the one in control, and he was committed to the preservation of the Jews, who are beneficiaries of God’s covenant with Abraham (Gn 17:1-9).

4:17 Some feminists claim that the Bible devalues women. Mordecai’s response to Esther reveals the opposite. Obviously, he held women in high esteem. Mordecai was perfectly willing to follow the leadership of a woman, an example found in other places in the Bible, for example, Deborah (Jdg 4). (See also the article, “Does the Bible Demean Women?” p. 591.)