A Challenging Book

Esther 1-2

            Esther recounts events that occur between 482 and 474 BC, before Ezra returned to Jerusalem, in that gap of years between Ezra 6 and 7. It presents some historical difficulties for us. For example, according to Greek historian Herodotus, Xerxes queen was named Amestris, not Vashti. A lot of the problems are more apparent than real, and scholars can resolve most of them. In our example, names were pretty fluid in the ancient world, with people bearing several names and many of them spelled differently as they moved between languages.

            The bigger issue, as far as I’m concerned, is what position exactly Vashti and Esther hold. They are both called queens in the book of Esther, but I wonder if they are really favorite concubines from Xerxes’ harem. Esther 2:3 refers to Hegai, the king’s eunuch, and eunuchs were often associated with the harem because, well, they wouldn’t be tempted… And the harem is specifically mentioned several times. It seems to me (and others) that Esther was not being chosen as a wife. Truth be told, the only wife mentioned in Esther is Haman’s wife, Zeresh. No, it seems to me that Esther is being fitted for the harem, one concubine among many, maybe the favorite but still a concubine, an object.

            If this is correct and Esther was a concubine, the fact really highlights what humiliation Esther endured in order to eventually save her people. (Sorry, don’t mean to spoil the rest of the book for you!) And contemplating that humiliation will certainly lead us forward to Jesus and the humiliation he endured for us (cf. Philippians 2).