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Episode #19: "The Mysterious Hand"
HOST: Michael Whitworth
SPONSOR: BibleTalk.tv
The book of Esther is odd in that it no where mentions God or contains mention of worship to him through sacrifice or prayer. This has led to the book’s canonicity being hotly debated throughout the years. Does it belong in the Old Testament among other divinely inspired books? Or is it just a nice story? While the book does not explicitly mention God, it does concern itself with the survival of his people after some returned from exile. Along with Ezra-Nehemiah, it discusses how the Jew faced threats from those outside the covenant community.
The story centers around four main characters: Xerxes, king of Persia (reigned 485-465 BC); Haman, an Amalekite who has been promoted to second-in-command; Mordecai, a Jew who serves in Xerxes’ court in a lesser position; and Esther, Mordecai’s young cousin.
Ahasuerus is a Hebrew transliteration of his Persian name, while Xerxes is his Greek name. He is known to history as Xerxes I. Born in 518 B.C., Xerxes was the son of Darius. It was during his reign that Persia “won” the fierce battle against Greece at Thermopylae, which was immortalized in the movie 300. Xerxes was assassinated in 465 B.C.
Authorship
The author of the book is anonymous. There is little to no speculation of who wrote it, either in ancient Jewish literature, or modern scholarship.
Date & Audience
The book claims that the story took place during the reign of Xerxes (i.e. Ahasuerus), who reigned in the early-to-mid fifth century BC. This means that the book was likely written some time after, perhaps a century or less. Obviously, the feast of Purim had become very popular among the Jews by the time the author recorded this book. The story of Esther reminded God’s people once again that they could count on the Lord to providentially protect them.
Esther & the NT
The book of Esther discusses how the Jews survived near-extinction. Beginning with Abraham, God had set a plan in motion to bring his Son into the world to redeem sinners and reconcile everyone back to God. If the Jews were exterminated, what would happen to God’s plan? Also, there is a decidedly prevalent tone of Jew vs. Gentile in the book, one that looks forward to the coming Messiah who would break down that wall (cf. Gal. 3:28; Eph. 2:11-14).
Keys to Reading
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By Michael WhitworthHOST: Michael Whitworth
SPONSOR: BibleTalk.tv
The book of Esther is odd in that it no where mentions God or contains mention of worship to him through sacrifice or prayer. This has led to the book’s canonicity being hotly debated throughout the years. Does it belong in the Old Testament among other divinely inspired books? Or is it just a nice story? While the book does not explicitly mention God, it does concern itself with the survival of his people after some returned from exile. Along with Ezra-Nehemiah, it discusses how the Jew faced threats from those outside the covenant community.
The story centers around four main characters: Xerxes, king of Persia (reigned 485-465 BC); Haman, an Amalekite who has been promoted to second-in-command; Mordecai, a Jew who serves in Xerxes’ court in a lesser position; and Esther, Mordecai’s young cousin.
Ahasuerus is a Hebrew transliteration of his Persian name, while Xerxes is his Greek name. He is known to history as Xerxes I. Born in 518 B.C., Xerxes was the son of Darius. It was during his reign that Persia “won” the fierce battle against Greece at Thermopylae, which was immortalized in the movie 300. Xerxes was assassinated in 465 B.C.
Authorship
The author of the book is anonymous. There is little to no speculation of who wrote it, either in ancient Jewish literature, or modern scholarship.
Date & Audience
The book claims that the story took place during the reign of Xerxes (i.e. Ahasuerus), who reigned in the early-to-mid fifth century BC. This means that the book was likely written some time after, perhaps a century or less. Obviously, the feast of Purim had become very popular among the Jews by the time the author recorded this book. The story of Esther reminded God’s people once again that they could count on the Lord to providentially protect them.
Esther & the NT
The book of Esther discusses how the Jews survived near-extinction. Beginning with Abraham, God had set a plan in motion to bring his Son into the world to redeem sinners and reconcile everyone back to God. If the Jews were exterminated, what would happen to God’s plan? Also, there is a decidedly prevalent tone of Jew vs. Gentile in the book, one that looks forward to the coming Messiah who would break down that wall (cf. Gal. 3:28; Eph. 2:11-14).
Keys to Reading