Aug 15, 2018 it is true that god is not mentioned at all in the book of esther, but then again it is. When a high school teacher is asked a question in class about jesus, her response lands her in deep trouble. Book of esther on sale now on dvd at walmart and all christian bookstores. God the god of the jews in the book of esther, our god hes not dead. Jews throughout the world, after 2,500 years, still celebrate this feast. Finally, both esther and mordecai feared god, not men. It provides a 40day journey that will challenge you to stand with god while deepening your roots to withstand the storms of life that will surely come. God s not dead 2 is a 2016 american christian drama film, directed by harold cronk, and starring melissa joan hart, jesse metcalfe, david a. By reporting this to esther, he saved the kings life. But words from god would make a good foundation for those beliefs. In the end hell punish the wrong and hell cause the right to win.
The jewish historian josephus names mordecai as author of the book. Jan 02, 2020 the book of esther may not directly mention god, yet it clearly reveals god at work. As a result, he knew the right time for esther to disclose her identity as a jew 2. Vashti being humbled for her height, esther is advanced for her humility. How god put down one that was high and mighty from her seat we read in the chapter before, and are now to be told how he exalted one of low degree, as the virgin mary observes.
Mordecai had not taken esther to live where god wanted them to live. The book of esther is one of two biblical books that never mention god. The book of esther was likely written between 460 and 350 b. The dead sea scrolls were discovered more than 60 years ago in seaside caves near an ancient settlement called qumran. His name is not written in the book, but his fingerprints, as we say, are all over it. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple. I had seen the film and read the book god s not dead, so it was great to be able to catch up with old characters and to meet new ones. Was it realy feasible for mordecai or ester to return to.
The book of esther is a book in the ketuvim writings, the third section of the jewish tanakh the hebrew bible and is part of the christian old testament. This is like a special funfact not many people notice about the book of esther. The book of esther 6 powerful life lessons from the bible. God, in fact, is not mentioned, esther is portrayed as assimilated to persian.
Like in the story of joseph, esther is a story which highlights the providence, or the invisible hand of god at work in the world, ordering and ordaining events to happen according to his divine plan. And i saw the dead, small and great, stand before god. God s not dead 2 by travis thrasher is a contemporary christian novel filled with faith that will speak straight to the readers soul. The greek septuagint remedied this situation by adding six passages which include the name of god. And yet sometimes in gods providence we dont need to wait until the end. Queen vashti deposed this is what happened during the time of xerxes, the xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from india to cush. How can a book which fails to mention not only the name of god, but also prayer, worship, the coming messiah, heaven, hell or faith, be included in the canon of the old testament.
When a statement is made by mordecai who is a symbol of the holy spirit gods name is found as the first letter of the first few words of the scripture. Shortly afterwards, mordecai discovers a plot by two courtiers, bigthan and. The 2 books of the bible that dont mention god overviewbible. The book of esther teaches us that if you have to ask where god is, you have already missed him. Esther 1 revealed a proud and powerful persian king acting in very. Unlike the many other books in the bible, throughout whole book of esther, the word god is not mentioned once. Verses 12 xerxes was king of the nation called persia and media. Esther bible study book and audio cd set this bundle includes one copy of the esther bible study book and the esther audio cd set. Now he needed not to make any further trials, or take time to deliberate. He was the son of jair, the grandson of shimei, and the greatgrandson of kish.
All of these things were written in the kings official record book. Sometimes injustice wont be punished until the judgement day. The book of esther tells a story of the deliverance of the jewish people. Using a word play with the name esther and the hebrew word for hide astir, the talmud connects the narrative of esther to the prophecy in deuteronomy. Why doesnt the book of esther directly mention god. Esther free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. Mordecai is said to be son of kish of the tribe of benjamin esther 2. Esther with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The book of esther records the institution of the feast of purim and the obligation of its perpetual observation. Jewish girl esther is chosen as the new queen consort to king xerxes of persia. The book of esther does not mention the name of god. These obviously divinely controlled restraints proved to be crucial 6. Although god is not named in the book, god is not absent from the story.
God s name is not even mentioned once in the book of esther. The coincidences, the amazing reversals, and the poetic justice that led to the deliverance of the jews in persia all proclaim the presence of god. The greek book of esther, included in the septuagint, is a retelling of the events of the hebrew book of esther rather than a translation and records additional traditions which do not appear in the traditional hebrew version, in particular the identification of ahasuerus with artaxerxes and details of various letters. The prayers of esther and mordecai are especially noteworthy. Mordecai and esther act in faith throughout the book. The book of esther, where god has not permitted his name nor any reference to prayer to appear, is not an exception to this. Esther introduction united states conference of catholic bishops.
The hidden god of esther scroll of esther from the jewish museum near the dohany synagogue in budapest, hungary. The purpose of the book of esther is to display the providence of god, especially in regard to his chosen people, israel. The law is never mentioned in the book nor are sacrifices or offerings referred to. The book of esther, also known in hebrew as the scroll megillah, is a book in the third. The new testament does not quote from the book of esther, nor have copies of it been found among the dead sea scrolls. Mordecai would not bow down and worship haman because he was a jew bound by law to give such worship to jehovah god alone esther 3. Gods not dead 2 is the sequel to the widely popular book and movie gods not dead that came out in 2014. As we consider this book, our first thought is of the beautiful jewish girl who became queen of persia and heroically pled for her peoples lives. In the celebration, jews read aloud the megillah, a scroll containing the book of esther, on purim eve and purim day. As with most of the ot writings the author of the book of esther esther meaning star is not mentioned. In esther, much like our lives today, god is not in the spotlight on the center stage, he is behind the curtain queuing the lights and prompting the lines. Mordecai is a man of integrity, and esther is a selfsacrificial heroine. The king loved esther above all the women, esther 2.
The place of the book of esther in the christian bible jstor. It seems like every aspect of the story was changed in some way so that the true account wouldnt be the same. The book of esther is the only one not found in the dead sea scrolls. Esther 2 commentary matthew henrys complete commentary on. Finally, the book of esther may not mention god because the emphasis is on god s providence. The books happy ending is the cause of the establishment of the feast of purim, which celebrates the jews deliverance from destruction. It is a sequel to the 2014 film god s not dead, continuing its themes of the christian persecution complex and twodimensional stereotypes of atheists. A story of the providence of god in a pagan land page 4 introduction to the book the book of esther is the only book in the bible that does not mention the name of god. Part of the significance of the real story, in my opinion, is the hardship that esther and her family experienced. At that time king xerxes reigned from his royal throne in the citadel of susa, and in the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his. Why is the book of esther not in the dead sea scrolls.
The book of esther vividly drama tizes the problem of the jewish people. He was raised in a small mennonite farming community outside of dodge city, kansas. Verses 120 how god put down one that was high and mighty from her seat we read in the chapter before, and are now to be told how he exalted one of low degree, as the virgin mary observes in her song lu. Stand with god devotional by robert noland broadstreet publishing stand with god is a devotional book based on gods not dead 2. But there is also another hero in this short story.
The general story is the same but so many details are changed or left out that this did not give a good account of the book of esther. Neither mordecai, esther, nor the feast of purim is mentioned. Read the book of esther, its not that long and see the. We see abraham, for example, bowing to the hittites in genesis 23. With jen lilley, linda bisesti, john clement, kass connors. Its tough being a woman bible study book by beth moore if youve ever felt inadequate, threatened, or pushed into situations that seemed overpowering, this is the bible study for you. The threat is averted by two jews, esther and mordecai. Esther 2 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Isnt it amazing how god had mordecai at that gate just at the exact time that he would overhear this terrible plan to kill the king. Esther chapter 2 verse by verse bible commentary matthew. The book of esther in hebrew is secular in nature, in that the name of god, the temple, and prayer are not mentioned. Esther 2 niv bible later when king xerxes fury had. But the name of god is not found in the book of esther though the word god is not found in esther, it is everywhere inferred. Gods not dead 2 is novelized by travis thrasher, and focuses on a high school history teacher who is put on trial for discussing the name of jesus in her classroom.
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