Esther Chapter 7

“So the king and Haman came to banquet with Esther the queen.] Or, “to drink with her” f155, that is, wine; for in the next verse it is called a banquet of wine; so they did according to the invitation the queen had given them, (<170508>Esther 5:8).”

“ESTHER PLEADS FOR HER OWN LIFE AND THE LIFE OF HER PEOPLE. (Est 7:1-6) we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed--that is, by the cruel and perfidious scheme of that man, who offered an immense sum of money to purchase our extermination. Esther dwelt on his contemplated atrocity, in a variety of expressions, which both evinced the depth of her own emotions, and were intended to awaken similar feelings in the king's breast. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue--Though a great calamity to the Jews, the enslavement of that people might have enriched the national treasury; and,…”

“The king now learned, perhaps for the first time, that his favorite was a Jewess. Although the enemy ... - i. e. “although the enemy (Haman) would not (even in that case) compensate (by his payment to the treasury) for the king’s loss of so many subjects.” return to 'Top of Page'”

“My life - It is my only request, that thou wouldst not give me up to the malice of that man who designs to take away my life. Even a stranger, a criminal, shall be permitted to petition for his life. But that a friend, a wife, a queen, should have occasion to make such a petition, was very affecting. Esther 7:4”

“7:3-4 my life and the lives of my people: The statement that someone wanted to kill the queen and her family must have surprised and shocked the king. • my people and I have been sold: Esther carefully referred to the huge price Haman had paid the king to approve the decree (3:8-11). She also used the exact terminology of Haman’s decree when she said that its purpose was to kill, slaughter, and annihilate (cp. 3:13). • If we had merely been sold as slaves, I could remain quiet: Esther humbly justifies her request as due to the severity of the attack on her and her people.”

“banquet: Heb. drink, Est 3:15, Est 5:8 Esther 7:2”

“The king and Haman came to drink (לשׁתּות), i.e., to partake of the משׁתּה, in the queen's apartment. Est 7:2-4 At this banquet of wine the king asked again on the second day, as he had done on the first ( Est 5:6): What is thy petition, Queen Esther, etc.? Esther then took courage to express her petition. After the usual introductory phrases ( Est 7:3 like Est 5:8), she replied: "Let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request." For, she adds as a justification and reason for such a petition, "we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. And if we had been sold…”