ESTHER Chapters 1-3 Introduction “The basic starting point of the book of Esther would go all the way back to the deportation of Jehoiachin, 598 B.C., for it was at this time that the ancestors of Mordecai, Esther’s foster father, were carried to Babylon (Esther 2:5-6). But the story probably spans about nine years. It opens with the feast of Ahasuerus (Xerxes), king of Persia, in the third year of his reign, 483 B.C. (1:1-3), and ends with the establishment of the Feast of Purim in the twelfth year, 474 B.C. (3:7; 8:12; 9:1). Chronologically, this would place the events in the book of Esther in the long period between the sixth and seventh chapters of Ezra” 1 Concerning the date of the book, the author saw the necessity of identifying the Persian monarch during whose reign the events of the book took place (1:1). Therefore, the book must have been written sometime after 483 B.C.. The reader is also told that the greatness of Moredcai is also recorded in the official court records of the Persian Empire (10:1:3). This seems to place the writing of this book sometime after the lifetime of Mordecai. The book may have been written sometime between 450-400 B.C. The unique feature of the book of Esther is that it is the only book in the Bible that does not mention God. And yet, God’s providential workings and His rulership of even the kingdoms of men is probably more powerfully demonstrated in this book than any other. The purpose of the book is twofold: 1. It demonstrates God’s providential care of His people, even those outside of Palestine. “Esther implicitly teaches God’s providential care of His people. Vashti’s deposition, Esther’s selection as her successor, and Mordecai’s discovery of the plot against the king and his subsequent reward, are only a few of the many ‘chance’ happenings that are better explained by God’s way of effecting the deliverance of His people from their persecutors” (Gaebelein p. 793). 2. It commends to the Jewish people the observance of the Feast of Purim by relating how it originated (9:24-28). Lessons To Learn 1. The faith of the individual can change history. 2. Human agents are the tools God uses to bring justice. 3. God is the Lord of history. 4. God can protect His people without working a miracle. 1
Commentary on Ezra-Nehemiah-Esther, Clayton Winters, pp. 156-157 1