Purim and the Exceptional Book of Esther

Yesterday marked the Jewish holiday of Purim, when Jews will gather together for festive meals and merriment, exchange gifts, and most centrally, assemble in synagogue for mirthful public readings of the Book of Esther—all in celebration of the salvation recounted therein. A quick synopsis of the somewhat elliptical storyline: Ahaseurus, the king of Persia, is convinced by his advisor Haman to issue an edict licensing the mass slaughter of all the kingdom’s Jews. Meanwhile and unrelatedly, Esther the Jewess has been chosen as Ahaseurus’s queen, and her guardian Mordechai has won the king’s favor by foiling an assassination plot. Together, the two manage to leverage their positions in engineering a reversal of the king’s edict; the Jews are saved from slaughter, wicked Haman is hanged, and the people rejoiced.

Esther is a remarkable book in the context of Scripture, precisely because it hardly seems scriptural—there are no overtly religious themes, no miracles, sermons, or prayers. God's name is not mentioned even once in all of Esther, the only book in the Bible of which this is true. And indeed, Esther’s status as part of the biblical canon was still being debated by the Talmudic rabbis as late as the 4th century a.d.—the better part of a millennium after its composition.

And yet, the Book of Esther is in the end a member in good standing of the biblical canon, a fact which demands interpretation. Moreover, consider the following rabbinic tradition recorded by Maimonides:

All prophetic books and sacred writings will be nullified during the days of the Messiah except the Book of Esther. It will continue to exist just like the five books of the Torah and the laws of the Oral Torah that will never cease. Although ancient troubles will be remembered no longer…the days of Purim will not be abolished, as it is written: “These days of Purim shall never be repealed among the Jews, and the memory of them shall never cease from their descendants” (Esther 9:28).

Apparently, Esther is not only a legitimate part of Scripture, but is an essential, core element thereof, such that when all other books are abolished it alone will maintain its sacred status. Why is this book different from all other books?

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Bobseeks

Esther is indeed a great book and her line "If I perish, I perish" speaks to all of us who may be faced with some unpleasant consequences when we obey GOD's will. Esther was willing to die, we should at least be willing to suffer the consequences such as ridicule, contempt, harassment, slander and worse from the godless atheists, lieberals, and pseudos we meet. These are paltry consequences when compared to what Esther faced so we should not draw back from speaking out for GOD. Just remember, they face a fate worse than Haman's when Christ returns and be confident that those who stand up to be counted as GOD's people will be exalted.
- Myrtlelinder
  
  Great post, everybody should read the book of Esther, in the Bible. One of the most adventurous books in it. I tells of the ultimate sacrifice of an two ordinary people to save her people, the Jews, who were just about to be destroyed by the wicked Haman. A VERY EXCITING TRUE STORY!!!
  - Despeville
    
    Really? I thought that the Book of Esther is about GOD, about Him and then about Esther and the rest of people mentioned there…
Johnny

Poor Maimonides–he was living in the days of Messiah, and did not beleive that he was.
Gail

Esther is not a true story, There is no proof in history that Esther. Mordechai or Queen Vashti existed, but Gods name is hidden in acrostics so evidently he is trying to tell us something if we have eyes to see.
- Maggie
  
  Gail I know that you are only speaking for yourself….for the rest of the millions of Jews as well as Christians who do believe that Esther is a true story, we believe through faith in what is written.
  - Steve03
    
    The Jews themselves consigned Esther to the Writings (Kethuvim), meaning they considered it neither Law nor Prophecy. The Jewish Study Bible (Oxford UP, 2004) says Esther is "a pseudohistorical tale . . . best read as a comedy." And rabbinic midrashim have always treated it as such. That doesn't mean it doesn't covey truth, for as G.K. Chesterton notes "It is quite easy to see why a legend is treated, and ought to be treated, more respectfully than a book of history. The legend is generally made by the majority of people in the village, who are sane. The book is generally written by the one man in the village who is mad."
    - Bobseeks
      
      All that proves is that the Jews have lying lieberal pseudo-theologians just like the Christians have lying lieberal theologians.
- http://conservativebyte.com Michael G.
  
  If the Book of Ester is a lie, then all the Bible is a lie, and not worth our time.
  This book is about the Jewish Kinsman Redeemer. It's true.
  - Michael P
    
    If it is true why isn't credit given to God? It takes place after God had told the Jews to return to Palestine, only less than 50,000 obeyed. Why were they in exile in the first place? All the rest of the Bible is CLEARLY ABOUT GOD.
    - http://conservativebyte.com Michael G.
      
      So is the Book of Ester, if you read deeply enough, you'll see that.
- Michael Papich
  
  Not only did Vashti live she had the last laugh. Her son became King making her the Queen Mother.
http://www.missiontoisrael.org Ted R. Weiland

Often overlooked in the book of Esther is her and Haman's ancestry and the lesson for all of us found therein. Esther was a direct descendant of King Saul and Haman a direct descendant of Agag, King of the Amalekites, whom Saul had been commanded and refused to destroy. As a consequence, many generations later, Esther is confronted by one of the consequences of her progenitor's rebellion. The choices we make can and often do affect generations to follow.

For more, listen to "Esther: Taking Back What's Ours" at http://www.missiontoisrael.org/tapelist.php#T242.
- Steve03
  
  It's "overlooked" because the Bible says no such thing. Neither Agag nor Saul is mentioned in Esther, and Haman and Esther appear in no other book of the Bible. Are all Englishmen descendants of King Arthur, or all Frenchmen related to Roland?
  Please tell me you've invented these genealogies yourself. I'd hate to think there's a seminary or a denomination that theaches such doctrines.
  - http://www.missiontoisrael.org Ted R. Weiland
    
    Esther 3:1 identifies Haman as an Agagite – thus, a descendant of Agag.
    
    Esther 2:5 identifies Mordecai – the uncle of Esther – as "the son of Kish, a Benjamite. Kish was the father of King Saul.
    
    A second witness is gleaned from Josephus in the Antiquities of the Jews 11.6.1, which states of Esther "who was herself was of the royal family." Saul was the only Benjamite royalty in Israel – thus Esther must have be Saul's descendant.
    - Steve03
      
      Sorry I doubted! Thanks for the enlightenment.
      - Bobseeks
        
        Steve03: Once again you are proven to be a liar. Doesn't that get tiresome?
      - http://rationalresponses.blogspot.com/ Jeff Dixon
        
        Bobbiesocks, you never get tired of lying.
      - Steve03
        
        "Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee."
      - http://youtu.be/SLlvGDFVsf0 Despeville
        
        Are you suppose to be the wise man? The carnival is over…
      - http://rationalresponses.blogspot.com/ Jeff Dixon
        
        You would never be able to determine who is a wise man, Humpty. That requires being able to tell reality from delusion.
      - http://youtu.be/SLlvGDFVsf0 Despeville
        
        Hhahahaha I guess that is why I come back to this boring site… For cabaret and comedians like you. To be instructed about "reality and delusion" by a raging schizoid like you you does not have any basis nor tools for that assessment to begin with is really something special… :)
      - http://rationalresponses.blogspot.com/ Jeff Dixon
        
        No, you come to try and prove that you know more about the bible than anyone else. Which is an accomplishment along the lines of knowing more about alchemy than anyone else. It may be accurate, but it is meaningless.
      - Bobseeks
        
        Steve03: I guess you must hate those who rebuke you because you are no wise man. By the way – did the Jesus seminar approve that verse for use? Do your lieberal pseudo-theologians believe that verse is authentic? Do they have the autograph of Proverbs? You really should not quote from the Bible because you have nothing but contempt for what it teaches.
      - Steve03
        
        Does the truth frighten you so badly? "It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." You spew plently of abuse at those you disagree with, but never a fact or a reasoned argument.
        And they do have the autograph, or at least the source document, for part of Proverbs — it's called "The Instruction of Amenemope."
      - Bobseeks
        
        The truth is not abuse but, as a lieberal, calling the truth abuse is your first instinct. The fact is, the Instruction of Amenemope is an Egyptian document that has nothing to do with Proverbs, a book written by Solomon in case you didn't know that. Once again you prove to be a deceiver and an anti-Christ by trying to slander the authorship of the Bible. There can be no reasoned argument with a patholical liar and anti-Christ such as yourself. And, once again you quote the Bible, a book for which you lieberal liars have no respect and whom you endeavor (without success) to prove untrue, once again you prove to be a hypocrite.
      - Steve03
        
        The dependence of Proverbs 22:17-24:22 upon the Instruction of Amenemope is obvious to anyone who has read the two side by side. And did you notice the wording of 22:17 and 24:23? "Hear the words of the wise." Even conservative scholars set that section apart as a later addition to the Solomonic collection. Andas anyone who hase read the whole book knows, Proverbs also includes the sayings of Agur (Pr 30) and Lemuel (31:1-9). "Lemuel's sayings contains several Aramaic spellings that point to a non-Israelite background."
        There's no mention of or quotation from the Book Proverbs in the Bible or elsewhere until Sirach 47:7, which dates to 180 BC. It's hard to imagine that the prophets or other Biblical authors would have failed to use Proverbs as an authority had the book existed in their times. And if it wasn't around for Isaiah and company to quote, it wasn't written by Solomon, although some of the sayings may go back to him.
        They quote extensively from each other and from a number of sources that didn't survive (see Nu 21:14, Jos 10:13, 1 Ki 11:41, etc.)
Myrtlelinder

Anybody who knows nothing about a subject should keep quiet, and study the subject before opening their mouth, or putting their hand to writing something, to prove your are a fool. you know like in,"BE QUIET AND BE THOUGHT A FOOL IS BETTER THAN OPENING YOUR MOUTH AND PROVING YOU ARE A FOOL. The book of Esther is a real true part of GOD'S WORD AND ANYBODY WHO DENYS IT IS IGNORANT OF GOD AND HIS WORD, THERE IS NOT NEED TO REMAIN THAT WAY, STUDY AND LEARN THE TRUTH.