The Meaning of Esther 2:20 Explained

Esther 2:20

KJV: Esther had not yet shewed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her: for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when she was brought up with him.

YLT: Esther is not declaring her kindred and her people, as Mordecai hath laid a charge upon her, and the saying of Mordecai Esther is doing as when she was truly with him.

Darby: (Esther, as Mordecai had charged her, had not yet made known her birth nor her people; for Esther did what Mordecai told her, like as when she was brought up with him.)

ASV: Esther had not yet made known her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her: for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when she was brought up with him.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Esther  had not [yet] shewed  her kindred  nor her people;  as Mordecai  had charged  her: for Esther  did  the commandment  of Mordecai,  like as when she was brought up  with him. 

What does Esther 2:20 Mean?

Context Summary

Esther 2:1-23 - The Service Of A Foreigner
Esther's Hebrew name meant Myrtle. It could not have been easy for her to retain her sweet simplicity amid the corruptions of her time, but her Persian name means "a star," as though she were a garden enclosed, encircled by the atmosphere of the divine purity and protection. We must not judge Esther by our own standards, but by the custom of her time. Each of these young girls was considered to be married to the king, was kept under his roof, and was his wife of a lower rank. How great is the influence of Christianity in raising our standards and pervading the world with a loftier morality! She was not bidden to deny her parentage, but only advised not to proclaim it, Esther 2:10. When, afterwards, she was raised to power, she showed no flinching from identification with her race. So she attained the highest position in the world to which a woman could aspire. God lifted her there to serve a high and noble purpose. Her relative, Mordecai, discovered a plot against the king, and told it to his ward, the queen, and she to her royal spouse. The deed was unrewarded; in this, however, the faithful doorkeeper felt no disappointment. He acted not for reward, but from a sense of duty. But the act was registered both in heaven and on earth, and it bore fruit. It is enough for us to do our duty, and please God. [source]

Chapter Summary: Esther 2

1  Out of the choice of virgins a queen is to be chosen
5  Mordecai the nursing father of Esther
8  Esther preferred before the rest
12  The manner of purification, and going in to the king
15  Esther, best pleasing the king, is made queen
21  Mordecai, discovering a treason, is recorded in the chronicles

What do the individual words in Esther 2:20 mean?

[Now] not Esther had revealed her family and her people just as had charged her Mordecai for the command of Mordecai Esther obeyed as when she was in guardianship under him -
אֵ֣ין אֶסְתֵּ֗ר מַגֶּ֤דֶת מֽוֹלַדְתָּהּ֙ וְאֶת־ עַמָּ֔הּ כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה עָלֶ֖יהָ מָרְדֳּכָ֑י וְאֶת־ מַאֲמַ֤ר מָרְדֳּכַי֙ אֶסְתֵּ֣ר עֹשָׂ֔ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר הָיְתָ֥ה בְאָמְנָ֖ה אִתּֽוֹ ס

אֵ֣ין  [Now]  not 
Parse: Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
אֶסְתֵּ֗ר  Esther 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶסְתֵּר  
Sense: the queen of Persia, heroine of the book of Esther—daughter of Abihail, cousin and adopted daughter of Mordecai, of the tribe of Benjamin, made queen by king Ahasuerus to replace divorced queen, Vashti.
מַגֶּ֤דֶת  had  revealed 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Participle, feminine singular
Root: נָגַד  
Sense: to be conspicuous, tell, make known.
מֽוֹלַדְתָּהּ֙  her  family 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: מֹולֶדֶת  
Sense: kindred, birth, offspring, relatives.
עַמָּ֔הּ  her  people 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: עַם 
Sense: nation, people.
כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר  just  as 
Parse: Preposition-k, Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
צִוָּ֥ה  had  charged 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צָוָה  
Sense: to command, charge, give orders, lay charge, give charge to, order.
עָלֶ֖יהָ  her 
Parse: Preposition, third person feminine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
מָרְדֳּכָ֑י  Mordecai 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מָרְדֳּכַי  
Sense: cousin and adoptive father of queen Esther; son of Jair of the tribe of Benjamin; deliverer under Divine providence of the children of Israel from the destruction plotted by Haman the chief minister of Ahasuerus; institutor of the feast of Purim.
מַאֲמַ֤ר  the  command 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מַאֲמָר  
Sense: word, command.
מָרְדֳּכַי֙  of  Mordecai 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מָרְדֳּכַי  
Sense: cousin and adoptive father of queen Esther; son of Jair of the tribe of Benjamin; deliverer under Divine providence of the children of Israel from the destruction plotted by Haman the chief minister of Ahasuerus; institutor of the feast of Purim.
אֶסְתֵּ֣ר  Esther 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶסְתֵּר  
Sense: the queen of Persia, heroine of the book of Esther—daughter of Abihail, cousin and adopted daughter of Mordecai, of the tribe of Benjamin, made queen by king Ahasuerus to replace divorced queen, Vashti.
עֹשָׂ֔ה  obeyed 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, feminine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר  as  when 
Parse: Preposition-k, Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
הָיְתָ֥ה  she  was 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
בְאָמְנָ֖ה  in  guardianship 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אָמְנָה  
Sense: bringing up, nourishment, rearing, training, providing for (as a parent).
אִתּֽוֹ  under  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֵת 
Sense: with, near, together with.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation

What are the major concepts related to Esther 2:20?

Loading Information...