But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by the eunuchs. Therefore the king was very angry, and his anger burned in him.
Parallel Translations
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But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by the eunuchs. Therefore the king was very angry, and his anger burned in him.
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But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
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But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by the chamberlains; therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
Cross-references (16)
Passages linked to Esther 1:12 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Proverbs 19:12 The king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
- Proverbs 20:2 The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion. He who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.
- 1 Peter 3:1 In the same way, wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; so that, even if any don’t obey the Word, they may be won by the behavior of their wives without a word,
- Genesis 3:16 To the woman he said, “I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. You will bear children in pain. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”
- Exodus 32:19 As soon as he came near to the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. Then Moses’ anger grew hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke them beneath the mountain.
- Exodus 32:22 Aaron said, “Don’t let the anger of my lord grow hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil.
- Deuteronomy 29:20 Yahweh will not pardon him, but then Yahweh’s anger and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and all the curse that is written in this book will fall on him, and Yahweh will blot out his name from under the sky.
- Psalms 74:1 God, why have you rejected us forever? Why does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture?
- Psalms 79:5 How long, Yahweh? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealousy burn like fire?
- Daniel 2:12 Because of this, the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed.
- Daniel 3:13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and fury commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. Then these men were brought before the king.
- Nahum 1:6 Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the fierceness of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken apart by him.
- Ephesians 5:22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
- Ephesians 5:24 But as the assembly is subject to Christ, so let the wives also be to their own husbands in everything.
- Daniel 3:19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the form of his appearance was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He spoke, and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.
- Revelation 6:16-17 They told the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of his wrath has come; and who is able to stand?”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Hebrew, which was in the hand of the eunuchs.
Hebrew, which was in the hand of the eunuchs.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Est 1:12 But the queen Vashti refused to come…
Est 1:12 But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by [his] chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
Ver. 12. But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment] She peremptorily and contumaciously refused, ουκ ηθελεν (Septuag.), though sent for again and again (as Josephus hath it), by her lord and husband, who had in his cups boasted of his wife’s beauty, courtesy, and obedience, whereof he would now make proof to the company, sending for her by such an honourable convoy; yet she would not, that she would not, as the Hebrew word signifieth, but carried herself as if she had been his mistress, and not his wife, to his great grief, and the marring of all their mirth. What if the king were not so well advised? what if he were in his cups? what though she had the law on her side and a pretence of modesty, and lest she could, by coming, occasion the king’s jealousy, &c.? yet Vashti was to have submitted herself unto her own husband (such a husband especially), as it was fit in the Lord, Col 3:18, to yield obedience to all his lawful commands and restraints, seem they never so unreasonable. If woman were given to man for a comforter, and in some cases for a counsellor, yet in no case for a controller, as they are apt to be that are fair ( fastus inest formae), rich ( argentum accepi, dote imperium vendidi, saith he in Plautus), better descended, &c., si vis nubere, nube pari. An insolent wife is an insufferable evil; and he hath lost half the comfort of his life who is married to such a one.
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Therefore was the king very wroth] He even foamed at the mouth like a wild boar, and frothed as the raging sea, as the word importeth. The Persian kings were noted by some for uxorious; such, as though they commanded the whole world, yet were commanded by their wives and concubines, Captivarum suarum captivi Enslaved by their captives! (Plut.). But here it proved otherwise. This mighty monarch could not bear such a public affront and scorn as he construed it; but rageth beyond reason (whereof his wine for the time had bereft him), and resolveth upon revenge. How much better our William the Conqueror, who though he knew that Maud, his wife, maintained her son, Robert Curtoise, in his quarrel for Normandy, and out of her own coffers paid the charge of that war against his father, and her own husband, yet because it proceeded but from a motherly indulgence for advancing her son, he took for a cause rather of displeasure than of hatred. He loved her while alive, often lamented her death with tears, and most honourably interred her (Speed).
And his anger burned in him] As Nebuchadnezzar also did upon a like occasion, hotter than his seven times heated oven, or than the mountain Etna doth. Moses’s anger waxed hot in him, Exo 32:19, so that he knew not well what he did in it, it raised such a smoke. Jonah was ready to burst with anger, Jon 4:9, his blood boiled at his heart, as brimstone doth at the match: therefore is the heart set so near the lungs, that when it is heated with anger, it may be allayed and cooled by the blast and moisture thereof. Josephus saith that he brake off the feast upon this occasion.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Vashti refused to come; being favoured in this refusal…
Vashti refused to come; being favoured in this refusal by the laws and customs of Persia, which was to keep men’s wives, and especially queens, as much as might be from the view of other men.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain But the queen refused to came at the king's…
But the queen refused to came at the king's commandment by his chamberlains,.... Even though he sent by them again, as the Targum; and so says Josephus (o); which might not purely arise from pride in her, and contempt of him, but because she might conclude he was drunk, and knew not well what he did; and therefore had she come at his command, when he was himself and sober, he might blame her for coming, nay, use her ill for it, and especially if she was to come naked, as say the Jews (p); and besides, it was contrary to the law of the Persians, as not only Josephus (q), but Plutarch (r) observes, which suffered not women to be seen in public; and particularly did not allow their wives to be with them at feasts, only their concubines and harlots, with whom they could behave with more indecency; as for their wives, they were kept out of sight, at home (s); and therefore Vashti might think it an indignity to be treated as an harlot or concubine:
therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him; which was the more fierce, as he was inflamed with wine.
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(o) Antiqu. l. 11. c. 6. sect. 1. (p) Targum in loc. Midrash Esther, fol. 90. 1. (q) Antiqu. l. 11. c. 6. sect. 1. (r) In Themistoele. (s) Macrob. Saturnal. l. 7. c. 1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Refused - Being favoured in this refusal by the…
Refused - Being favoured in this refusal by the law of Persia, which was to keep mens wives, and especially queens, from the view of other men.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 12. Vashti refused to come] And much should…
Verse 12. Vashti refused to come] And much should she be commended for it. What woman, possessing even a common share of prudence and modesty, could consent to expose herself to the view of such a group of drunken Bacchanalians? Her courage was equal to her modesty: she would resist the royal mandate, rather than violate the rules of chaste decorum.
Her contempt of worldly grandeur, when brought in competition with what every modest woman holds dear and sacred, is worthy of observation. She well knew that this act of disobedience would cost her her crown, if not her life also: but she was regardless of both, as she conceived her virtue and honour were at stake.
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Her humility was greatly evidenced in this refusal. She was beautiful; and might have shown herself to great advantage, and have had a fine opportunity of gratifying her vanity, if she had any: but she refused to come.
Hail, noble woman! be thou a pattern to all thy sex on every similar occasion! Surely, every thing considered, we have few women like Vashti; for some of the highest of the land will dress and deck themselves with the utmost splendour, even to the selvedge of their fortunes, to exhibit themselves at balls, plays, galas, operas, and public assemblies of all kinds, (nearly half naked,) that they may be seen and admired of men, and even, to the endless reproach and broad suspicion of their honour and chastity, figure away in masquerades! Vashti must be considered at the top of her sex: -
Rara avis in terris, nigroque simillima cygno.
A black swan is not half so rare a bird.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Est 1:12. The queen Vashti refused to come —…
Est 1:12. The queen Vashti refused to come — Being favoured in this refusal by the law of Persia, which was, to keep men’s wives, and especially queens, from the view of other men. His anger burned in him — It was the more immoderate, because his blood was heated with wine, which made his passion too strong for his reason. Otherwise he would not have thought it decent for the queen, nor safe for himself, to have her beauty, which was very great, exposed in this unusual manner, and would have thought she had acted prudently in refusing.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Fury. This is the usual consequences of excess. (Worthington)
Fury. This is the usual consequences of excess. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 12. Vashti refused to come — Assuming the dignity…
12. Vashti refused to come — Assuming the dignity and boldness of a queen, she refused to be treated as an ordinary concubine, and to suffer her person to be immodestly exposed to the promiscuous crowd of half drunken revellers. “The summons,” remarks Tyrwhitt, “probably found her with a crowd of female guests before her. She might have been loth at another time to obey; but while they looked on, it was a severer trial to be required to abdicate her dignity, and, confessing her royal state his bounty, to cast, as it were, her crown before his footstool.” Only such a king as Xerxes would have made such a demand upon a favourite concubine, but it is perfectly in keeping with his character.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 12. refused to come] as being aware of the…
12. refused to come] as being aware of the insults likely to be put upon her in a scene of drunken revelry, and by a king so capricious and uncontrolled in temper.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain But the queen Vashti refused. Vashti"s refusal was morally…
But the queen Vashti refused. Vashti"s refusal was morally quite justifiable. Neither a husband"s nor a king"s authority extends to the wanton requirement of acts that, if done, would disgrace the doer for life. Had Vashti complied, she would have lost the respect not only of the Persian nation, but of the king himself. Therefore was the king very wroth. Had Ahasuerus really loved his wife, or been a man of fair and equitable disposition, be would have excused her refusal, and felt that he had deserved the rebuff. But, not really loving her, and being of a hot and ungovernable temper, he was violently enraged with her, as he always was when anything fell out contrary to his wishes (see Herod., 7:11, 35, 39, etc.).
The king"s anger.
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Scripture never spares the great. Their follies and vices are exposed and castigated. The Old Testament has some striking examples of the sin of anger and wrath. Moses gave way to temptation, and sinned in his anger. Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury when the Hebrew youths would not worship the golden image he had set up. Jonah was angry when Nineveh was spared, and when the gourd was withered. In all these cases there was no sufficient cause to justify wrath. So was it with Ahasuerus.
I THE OCCASION OF THE KING"S ANGER. His own drunken and foolish wish was thwarted, and thus his pride was wounded. "It is not for kings to drink wine, lest they drink and forget the law." The law of Solon punished a drunken magistrate with death. The wish of Ahasuerus was thwarted by a woman, and that woman his wife. He was not accustomed to meet with opposition or resistance to his will, and could ill brook his consort"s disobedience. Circumstances heightened his anger. He had boasted of his wife"s beauty and complaisance, and now, in the presence of his lords, to whom he had boasted, his vaunt was proved empty and vain.
II THE UNREASONABLENESS AND FOLLY OF THE KING"S ANGER. A monitor might have put to him the question, "Doest thou well to be angry?" If he had not been intoxicated with pride, as well as with wine, he would have blamed himself instead of his spouse, the queen. How much indefensible, unreasonable, and ridiculous anger there is in human society! How often the wrathful would do well to transfer their indignation from others to themselves! "Be ye angry, and sin not; let not the sun go down upon your wrath!" In those occupying high and prominent and influential positions, anger is very unseemly. Here was a man bearing rule over 127 provinces, and yet unable to rule his own spirit!
III THE RESULTS OF THE KING"S ANGER.
1. It was tempered by counsel. Ahasuerus did not act at once under the impulse of his burning indignation and resentment. This was good. But he should have taken counsel of his own heart, and not of flatterers who ministered to his passions.
2. It led him to part with his wife, and to proclaim his own folly in a public,imperial decree. The man who lashed the sea, who cruelly slew the eldest son of Pythius, who dishonoured the corpse of the brave Leonidas, was just the man to act as here described. It is true that the king"s anger was overruled by Providence for good; but this is no palliation of his serious offence. We have in this narrative a warning against yielding to the impulses of capricious anger. There is a time to be angry; but we may well suspect ourselves when we are under the influence of vehement feeling of this kind. "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation!" "Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself." Christ left us "an example, who when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not." "Blessed are the meek." "Forgive one another, even as God, for Christ"s sake, hath forgiven you!
Justifiable disobedience.
The commission of the seven chamberlains to the queen was in vain. Vashti refused to appear before the king and his guests. Why this disobedience? Several considerations, favourable and unfavourable, may be suggested.
I CONSIDERATIONS UNFAVOURABLE TO VASHTI
1. She knew the absolute authority with which the king was invested. Inthis knowledge she had become his wife and queen. Ought she not, therefore, to have obeyed him, even at personal sacrifice, when he commanded her, with befitting circumstance, to come to him, that her beauty might be seen and admired?
2. She knew the importance of the occasion, and the disappointment andhumiliation that would fall on the king, her husband, if she ventured to disobey his command. Should she not have been willing to suffer pain herself in order to save the king from the pain of a public manifestation of revolt against his declared will? Such self-denial is sometimes good, and, whenever good, is praiseworthy.
1. She may have been influenced merely by the wilfulness of pride. All reflection on the claims of duty, on the requirements of the occasion, and on the effects of her conduct on the king"s dignity and peace, may have been rendered impossible by the flushings of a resentful pride. Nothing more easily drowns reflection, nothing is more unreasoning and unreasonable, than a haughty and self-exalting disposition. Pride is a bad helm for the guidance of life.
2. Whatever the queen"s motive, her answer to the chamberlains may havebeen given in an abrupt and defiant manner. It is a good quality, and a proof either of self-discipline or of a kindly and sympathetic nature, to be able to express even strong feelings in ways that will not kindle wrath or breed discord. "A soft answer turneth away wrath." We must observe, however, that nothing is said of the manner in which the queen responded to the king"s messengers. All we are told is that she refused.
II CONSIDERATIONS FAVOURABLE TO VASHTI
1. The king"s command showed a want of sympathy with her in her faithfuldiligence as entertainer of the women. Inside the palace she was doing the work which the king" was doing in the garden court. Why should she be called away from this real and appropriate work to pose herself as the central figure of an idle and foolish pageant? The command was inconsiderate and frivolous. Honest work, however secretly performed, is to be preferred at all times to showy ostentations which minister only to the gratification of self. A humble mind and a diligent hand are better in a woman than the most lauded beauty that courts the gaze of the world.
2. The king"s command was a violation of custom. We know the seclusionin which Eastern women then, as now, lived. It was a shame to a woman to appear unveiled before any man except her husband. Vashti would be staggered when she received the message of the chamberlains. National or social customs may be bad, but they cannot be safely or wisely departed from except under the force of enlightened and conscientious reasons. Especially are they binding when any breach of them implies a conscious self-degradation.
3. The king"s command was the result of partial drunkenness. Vashti could hardly fail to perceive its cause. She would know that the king could not have issued it if he had been in possession of his sober senses. It is said of one that he appealed from Alexander drunk to Alexander sober. So may have been the thought of Vashti. Rather than subject herself to insult, she would risk the immediate displeasure of the king, in the hope that when he came to his right mind he would perceive the wisdom and propriety of her conduct.
4. The king"s command was an outrage on Vashti, as queen, as wife, and as woman.
(1) As sole and acknowledged queen of the empire, she could not, without utter loss of dignity, stoop to expose herself, as a royal puppet, to the excited multitude.
(2) As the true and legitimate wife of the king, she could not, consistently with wifely honour, allow her beauty to be made a public plaything and gazing-stock at the whim of a wine-flushed and self-forgetting husband.
(3) As a woman (apart altogether from outward position), every true instinct would make her shrink from exhibiting herself as a mere wanton to eyes that were inflamed with wine. If she had been of a soft nature she might have yielded, at the cost of much suffering". If she had been proud of her beauty, and shameless, she might have gladly obeyed. But she was neither so soft as to submit to outrage, nor so unprincipled as to welcome it. A modest spirit is the most precious jewel which nature grants to women, and when it is sanctified by the fear of God and the love of Jesus, its power as an instrument of good is wonderfully increased.
5. The king"s command threatened the reputation of Vashti. It was given to the chamberlains in presence of the princes and nobles, and it was delivered to Vashti in presence of the women. Thus all were informed of it, and all understood its meaning. If Vashti had obeyed it, she would have lost caste in the estimation of her own sex, and she would have imperilled, if not sacrificed altogether, the respect and reverence of the "princes and people," and even of the king himself. The praise of men may, and often does, cost too much. It should never be allowed to enter into rivalry with the praise of God, or the approbation of a good conscience. At the same time, the esteem of the good a high reputation for integrity of heart and life is of exceeding price, and is usually but the reflection of the Divine favour. All who play fast and loose with their reputed character, as honourable or godly men and women, give evidence that they are loosely attached to the sacred principles of truth and virtue. (see 1Pe_2:2) Vashti may be taken as an example of devotion to just thought and pure feeling. At all hazards she did what her true mind and heart would only allow her to do. She risked much, and in the event she suffered much. But we do not pity her. Whatever were the motives that inspired her, our sympathies go with her in her refusal to obey the king"s command. We give her honour as a woman who, in very trying circumstances, was true to herself and her position. The one act by which she is known has made her name honourable in all time. Her firmness in a critical moment may also be regarded as an illustration of the Divine providence. It produced results which she could not anticipate. It paved the way for that great deliverance of the Jews from the devices of the wicked of which this book is the record. Honest action, whatever troubles it may bring, never goes without its ultimate reward. The lines of self-denying allegiance to truth stretch far; eternity only will realise their full issue. D.
Anger.
Vashti"s disobedience kindled in the king"s mind
(1) a strong resentment he "was very wroth.
(2) An abiding resentment anger burned in him." Considering the man and the circumstances, this should not surprise us.
1. It was a case of rebellion. The worst crime in the view of a despot is todispute his will. Nothing so easily inflames anger in a man who is used to power and unused to self-control as any want of submission to his authority.
2. The rebellion was in the king"s own household. It was the queen, hiswife, who ventured to disobey him. Men naturally expect a special readiness of sympathy and co-operation from those who are united to them by blood or family ties. And resentment caused by opposition from such relations as wife or children often assumes a peculiar intensity. But weak and self-willed minds are apt to abuse these ties by exacting more than is just. We should be especially considerate in our demands on the obedience or service of those who have the highest claims on our respect and love.
3. The rebellion was made public. A private humiliation is much moreeasily borne than one suffered in presence of many. Vashti"s refusal to appear was announced before the princes and the assembled citizens. This circumstance would add a sting to the affront, and supply fuel to the flame of the king"s wrath. One of the penalties of wrong-doing is that it cannot be kept secret. In its effects at least it is sure to become known, and to bring confusion and shame on the evil-doer.
1. The rebellion occurred at an unfortunate time. It was just before theclose of the prolonged festival that the queen failed in submission to her husband"s command. So far all had gone well. All ranks had been obsequious and flattering. Not a jarring note had arisen to disturb the serenity of the vain king"s heart. But now, when the triumph seemed complete, the glory of it was utterly despoiled by the disobedience of Vashti. A bitter sense of humiliation and a burning anger were the necessary results.
2. The rebellion was produced by the king"s own act. He had been guilty ofa folly that was full of risk. The consciousness that he had brought the dishonour on himself would be no salve to his mind. It would only aggravate the wound that had been inflicted on his pride, and the helpless rage that unmanned him. Sufferings, however severe, that come on us from without are light compared with those that are hatched by our own follies and misdeeds. It has been often observed that the hatred of ungodly men is greater to those whom they have injured than to those from whom they have received injury. According to this law of the natural heart, the anger of the king against Vashti, instead of being allayed or softened, would be increased by the knowledge that she had been driven to rebellion by his own foolish conduct. It should be remarked, however, that though the king"s anger can be understood and explained, it cannot be approved. For
I ANGER IS NEVER DIGNIFIED. It shows a want of self-command. The king lost dignity when he became "very wroth" in presence of his guests. He was no longer king, but a suffering subject under the will or caprice of Vashti. Anger always makes a man look inferior to the occasion that gives birth to it.
II ANGER INVARIABLY ADDS TO A SUPPOSED OR REAL HUMILIATION. If the king had received Vashti"s refusal to obey him with a calm mind and a pleasant countenance, as a thing personal to himself and Vashti, and therefore above the observance of the crowd, the last hour of the banquet might have been in keeping with all the other hours that had preceded it. But his breaking into an ungovernable fury brought the festival to a miserable close. The princes and people separated in confusion and fear. The king"s anger did not mend matters.
III ANGER IS ALWAYS UNJUST. There can be no true judgment when the mind is perturbed by wrathful feelings. The angry man is shut up to one view of the conduct that has enraged him. He sees everything through the mist of his passion. The last man to judge or act truly is he who has given up the reins of temper, and yielded himself to the power of anger.
IV ANGER IS ALWAYS SELFISH. It is violently selfish. Like the king of Persia, it has no consideration for the thoughts, influences, or circumstances which have actuated those against whom it is turned, or for the initiative or contributory wrong-doing of the heart in which it burns. While it lasts it is simply absorbed by the self that is pained, and has no regard for others. All the springs of charity are dried up when anger rules a soul.
V ANGER IS A PROLIFIC CAUSE OF INJUSTICE AND CRUELTY. It led Ahasuerus, as we shall see, to be unjust and cruel to Vashti. But to what terrible and varied crimes does it give birth in ordinary life! What a place it occupies in our criminal records! How many injure others and ruin themselves by giving "place to wrath!" There is much in the every-day experience of the world to warn men against allowing themselves to yield to the power of anger.
VI ANGER IS A SIN AGAINST THE CHRISTIAN RULE OF LIFE. There is an anger which is Christlike. "Be ye angry and sin not," said Paul. But that is an anger, or holy indignation, against sin and its temptations. It has reference to things that are evil, and not to persons. Jesus himself hated sin and all its works, but he loved sinners and died for them. We cannot cherish at the same time the forgiving spirit of Christ and the feeling of anger towards any man. It was at once a recognition of our weakness, and a desire that we should strive to overcome it, that led the apostle to write, "Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.
Additional lessons: We have here an instance of
1. A just punishment. The king"s vanity, inflamed by wine, brought uponhim a severe retribution. Nebuchadnezzar"s madness, and David"s grief under the pestilence, were heavy punishments of a vain presumption. But to such a man as Ahasuerus the rebellion of his queen, with all its attendant circumstances, was about as weighty an infliction as was possible. It was peculiarly fitting to the case.
2. A sandy foundation. No miracle was needed to bring down intohumiliating collapse the edifice of vain-glory which the king had been laboriously rearing for himself throughout the festival. Many a showy fabric thus unexpectedly tumbles about the head of its builder. A little thing will destroy a false grandeur, an unprincipled reputation, or a selfish happiness. A building to stand must have a good foundation. There is only one foundation that of God"s truth and love in Jesus Christ on which character, reputation, life-influence, happiness, and hope may safely build. Build there, and when all the storms of life have done their worst, you and your life-work will still abide. The kingdom of Christ is an everlasting kingdom. "They that trust in the Lord shall never be put to shame. D.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 at the word of the king that had been…
at the word of the king that had been brought to her by the officials
This can be stated in active form. AT: "when the king's officials told her about his command" (See: Active or Passive)
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at the word
"at the command"
his rage burned within him
The intensity of the king's anger is spoken of as if it was a fire that burned inside him. AT: "his rage was as intense as a fire inside him" (See: Metaphor)
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 1:12 she refused to come: The queen’s refusal is…
1:12 she refused to come: The queen’s refusal is not explained. Perhaps she feared the drunken king would humiliate her in some way. • This made the king furious: The king’s anger was probably heightened by his drunken state and by his humiliation before his male friends.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.