The Meaning of Esther 1:1 Explained

Esther 1:1

KJV: Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces:)

YLT: And it cometh to pass, in the days of Ahasuerus -- he is Ahasuerus who is reigning from Hodu even unto Cush, seven and twenty and a hundred provinces --

Darby: And it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus (that is, the Ahasuerus that reigned from India even to Ethiopia, over a hundred and twenty-seven provinces),

ASV: Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus (this is Ahasuerus who reigned from India even unto Ethiopia, over a hundred and seven and twenty provinces),

Discover Esther 1:1

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Esther 1:1?

MEANING: What does Esther 1:1 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Esther 1:1 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Esther 1:1?

What is the context of Esther 1:1?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this [is] Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, [over] an hundred and seven and twenty provinces: )

What does Esther 1:1 Mean?

Context Summary

Esther 1:1-22 - Vashti's Noble Refusal

The book opens with a royal festival, which lasted for six months, Esther 1:1-9. Perhaps the princes came up from their governments to partake of it in rotation. It finished with a banquet, open to all the people who dwelt in Shushan, great and small. Whenever men are overcome with wine, there is grave peril for women. Coarseness, indelicacy, and impurity troop in at the door, which has been unlocked by the excess of wine. Who can tell the anguish which has been caused to women, children, and the dumb creation through the intemperance of man! Here is given a glimpse of a noble woman, who respected herself too highly to yield to a demand, wholly foreign to the customs of the time, which forbade women to appear in public. Of course the king was incensed, all the more so because he knew that he was in the wrong. He had command over 127 provinces, but he could not rule his own spirit, and the sense of moral weakness is always irritating. He consulted his counselors, who were only too glad to fall in with and humor the royal whims; they counseled that the divorce of Vashti was a public duty, for the repression of wife-insubordination throughout the empire. Men are not always to be trusted when they legislate about women, or in respect to their own dignity. When wine is in them they may be expected to say and do very stupid things. It has been truly said that every Ahasuerus had his Memucan, a man who was sycophant and parasite, who held his influence by humoring caprice and lust. [source]

Chapter Summary: Esther 1

¹ Xerxes makes royal feasts
¹⁰ Vashti, sent for, refuses to come
¹³ Xerxes, by the counsel of Memucan, puts away Vashti, and decrees men's sovereignty

What do the individual words in Esther 1:1 mean?

And it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus he [was] the Ahasuerus who reigned over from India and to Ethiopia seven and twenty and a hundred provinces

וַיְהִ֖י בִּימֵ֣י אֲחַשְׁוֵר֑וֹשׁ ה֣וּא אֲחַשְׁוֵר֗וֹשׁ הַמֹּלֵךְ֙ מֵהֹ֣דּוּ וְעַד־ כּ֔וּשׁ שֶׁ֛בַע וְעֶשְׂרִ֥ים וּמֵאָ֖ה מְדִינָֽה

וַיְהִ֖י	And it came to pass
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: אֶהְיֶה Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
בִּימֵ֣י	in the days
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural construct Root: יׄום Sense: day, time, year.
אֲחַשְׁוֵר֑וֹשׁ	of Ahasuerus
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular Root: אֲחַשְׁוֵרֹושׁ Sense: title of the king of Persia, probably Xerxes.
ה֣וּא	he [was]
Parse: Pronoun, third person masculine singular Root: הוּא Sense: he, she, it.
אֲחַשְׁוֵר֗וֹשׁ	the Ahasuerus
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular Root: אֲחַשְׁוֵרֹושׁ Sense: title of the king of Persia, probably Xerxes.
הַמֹּלֵךְ֙	who reigned over
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: מָלַךְ Sense: to be or become king or queen, reign.
מֵהֹ֣דּוּ	from India
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular Root: הֹדּוּ Sense: the country surrounding the Indus, mentioned as the eastern border of the empire of Ahasuerus.
וְעַד־	and to
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition Root: עַד Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
כּ֔וּשׁ	Ethiopia
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular Root: כּוּשׁ Sense: a Benjamite mentioned only in the title of Ps 7.
שֶׁ֛בַע	seven
Parse: Number, feminine singular Root: שֶׁבַע Sense: seven (cardinal number).
וְעֶשְׂרִ֥ים	and twenty
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, common plural Root: עֶשְׂרִים Sense: twenty, twentieth.
וּמֵאָ֖ה	and a hundred
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, feminine singular Root: מֵאָה Sense: hundred.
מְדִינָֽה	provinces
Parse: Noun, feminine singular Root: מְדִינָה Sense: province, district.

What are the major concepts related to Esther 1:1?

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Similar Scriptures for Esther 1:1

		Daniel 9:1 [6]
		Esther 8:9 [5]
		Ezra 4:6 [4]
		Daniel 6:1 [4]
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		Isaiah 18:1 [2]
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