translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: EST

label: NET translator note

text: Heb “it came about”; KJV, ASV “Now it came to pass.”


text: Where the Hebrew text has “Ahasuerus” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV) in this book the LXX has “Artaxerxes.” The ruler mentioned in the Hebrew text is Xerxes I (ca. 486-465 B.C. ), and a number of modern English versions use “Xerxes” (e.g., NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT).


text: Heb “in the days of Ahasuerus, that Ahasuerus who used to rule…” The phrase “I am referring to” has been supplied to clarify the force of the third person masculine singular pronoun, which is functioning like a demonstrative pronoun.


text: Heb “Cush” (so NIV, NCV; KJV “Ethiopia”) referring to the region of the upper Nile in Africa. India and Cush (i.e., Ethiopia) are both mentioned in a tablet taken from the foundation of Xerxes’ palace in Persepolis that describes the extent of this empire. See ANET 316-17.


text: Heb “Shushan” (so KJV, ASV). Most recent English versions render this as “Susa.” sn The city of Susa served as one of several capitals of Persia during this time; the other locations were Ecbatana, Babylon, and Persepolis. Partly due to the extreme heat of its summers, Susa was a place where Persian kings stayed mainly in the winter months. Strabo indicates that reptiles attempting to cross roads at midday died from the extreme heat ( Geography 15.3.10-11).


text: The Hebrew word בִּירָה ( birah ) can refer to a castle or palace or temple. Here it seems to have in mind that fortified part of the city that might be called an acropolis or citadel. Cf. KJV “palace”; NAB “stronghold”; NASB “capital”; NLT “fortress.”


label: NET textual note

text: Due to the large numbers of people implied, some scholars suggest that the original text may have read “leaders of the army” (cf. NAB “Persian and Median aristocracy”; NASB “the army officers”; NIV “the military leaders”). However, there is no textual evidence for this emendation, and the large numbers are not necessarily improbable.


text: Heb “many days” (so KJV, ASV); NASB, NRSV “for many days.”


text: The words “to be exact!” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied in the translation to bring out the clarifying nuance of the time period mentioned. Cf. KJV “even an hundred and fourscore days.”


text: The Hebrew text of Esther does not indicate why this elaborate show of wealth and power was undertaken. According to the LXX these were “the days of the wedding” ( αἱ ἡμέραι τοῦ γάμου , Jai Jhmerai tou gamou ), presumably the king’s wedding. However, a number of scholars have called attention to the fact that this celebration takes place just shortly before Xerxes’ invasion of Greece. It is possible that the banquet was a rallying for the up-coming military effort. See Herodotus, Histories 7.8. There is no reason to adopt the longer reading of the LXX here.


text: The LXX has ἕξ ( {ex , “six”) instead of “seven.” Virtually all English versions follow the reading of the MT here, “seven.”


text: Heb “were found.”


text: Heb “from the great and unto the small.”


text: The Hebrew noun מִטָּה ( mittah ) refers to a reclining couch (cf. KJV “beds”) spread with covers, cloth and pillow for feasting and carousing ( Ezek 23:41 ; Amos 3:12; 6:4 ; Esth 1:6; 7:8 ). See BDB 641-42 s.v.; HALOT 573 s.v.


text: Heb “to cause to drink” (Hiphil infinitive construct of שָׁקָה , shaqah ). As the etymology of the Hebrew word for “banquet” ( מִשְׁתֶּה , mishteh , from שָׁתָה , shatah , “to drink”) hints, drinking was a prominent feature of ancient Near Eastern banquets.


text: Heb “the drinking was according to law; there was no one compelling.”


text: Heb “every chief of his house”; KJV “all the officers of his house”; NLT “his staff.”


text: Heb “according to the desire of man and man.”


text: Heb “as the heart of the king was good with the wine.” Here the proper name (King Ahasuerus) has been substituted for the title in the translation for stylistic reasons.


text: Heb “King Ahasuerus”; here the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons. Cf. similarly NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT “King Xerxes.”


text: Heb “was good of appearance”; KJV “was fair to look on”; NAB “was lovely to behold.”


text: Heb “at the word of the king”; NASB “at the king’s command.”


text: Heb “burned in him” (so KJV).


text: Heb “judgment” (so KJV); NASB, NIV “justice”; NRSV “custom.”


text: Heb “seers of the face of the king”; NASB “who had access to the king’s presence.”


text: Heb “were sitting first”; NAB “held first rank in the realm.”


text: These words are not present in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for clarity (cf. NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT, all of which supply similar phrases).


text: The location of the prepositional phrase “according to law” is somewhat unusual in the Hebrew text, but not so much so as to require emendation. Some scholars suggest deleting the phrase as an instance of dittography from the final part of the immediately preceding word in v. 14 . Others suggest taking the phrase with the end of v. 14 rather than with v. 15 . Both proposals, however, lack adequate justification.


text: Heb “her neighbor”; NIV “someone else.”


text: Heb “who is better than she.” The reference is apparently to worthiness of the royal position as demonstrated by compliance with the king’s wishes, although the word טוֹב ( tob , “good”) can also be used of physical beauty. Cf. NAB, NASB, NLT “more worthy than she.”


text: Heb “heard”; KJV, NAB, NLT “published”; NIV, NRSV “proclaimed.”


text: The phrase “vast though it is” is not included in the LXX, although it is retained by almost all English versions.


text: Heb “in his house”; NIV “over his own household.”


text: The final prepositional phrase is not included in the LXX, and this shorter reading is followed by a number of English versions (e.g., NAB, NRSV, NLT). Some scholars suggest the phrase may be the result of dittography from the earlier phrase “to each people according to its language,” but this is not a necessary conclusion. The edict was apparently intended to reassert male prerogative with regard to two things (and not just one): sovereign and unquestioned leadership within the family unit, and the right of deciding which language was to be used in the home when a bilingual situation existed.