Esther 2

He: King Jehoiachin was exiled in 597 BC (2 Kings 24:6–16), over 100 years earlier. It was likely one of Mordecai’s ancestors who was taken into Babylonian captivity.

Hadassah is a Hebrew name meaning myrtle. Esther is a Persian name meaning star.

• provided her with beauty treatments and the special diet: Hegai knew the king’s preferences and chose the best candidates for special attention.

• Hegai assigned seven of the best assistants to Esther, showing he believed she was a top candidate for becoming queen.

Mordecai had likely faced some prejudice against Jews. Esther's Jewish heritage would later help her reveal Haman's terrible plan.

The twelve months of preparation likely included learning court customs and beauty treatments. However, the main focus was on physical beauty.

a second harem: Each woman spent one night with the king in his bedroom. After that, she lived like a widow unless the king remembered her name and called for her. The women in the second harem lived comfortably in a luxurious setting under the care of Shaashgaz, the king’s eunuch.

Hegai knew what the king liked, so he gave Esther good advice. She wisely accepted and followed it.

he placed the royal crown upon her head: Now Esther had access to the king's heart as his favored wife. She was in a position where God could use her to influence the king's thoughts and actions.

• he king held a great banquet, Esther’s banquet: The king honored his wife instead of showing her off (compare Esther 1:11).

• He proclaimed a tax holiday: The Hebrew word for “public holiday” (hanakhah) is related to the verb meaning “rest” (nukh). The book describes how the Jewish people found rest from their enemies' threats (see Esther 9:16–22).

• When the virgins were assembled a second time: Since the queen had been chosen, the rest of the woman would join the other concubines.

• Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate: Court cases and official business took place at the gate. There, Mordecai heard about the plot against the king (Esther 2:21–23).

• still had not revealed her lineage or her people: The repetition of this point (see also Esther 2:10) shows its importance to the story.

• With humility, she continued to follow Mordecai’s directions. She did not become proud or forget her people or the family that raised her.

Bigthana might be the same person as Bigtha from Esther 1:10, one of the king’s seven eunuchs. He and Teresh guarded the king’s bedroom. They could have easily carried out their plan if they had not been discovered.

• Queen Esther received the information. The fastest and safest way to inform the king was through her.

• Although Esther could have taken credit for the information to promote herself, she credited Mordecai for the report, which becomes important later in the story (Esther 6:1–3).

• hanged on the gallows: Thought this phrase has often been translated as hanged on a gallows, inscriptions from ancient Persia show that impalement was a common execution method. Xerxes’ father, Darius I, claimed he impaled 3,000 Babylonians when he conquered Babylon. Sometimes, authorities executed criminals first and then displayed them on a stake, as with the execution of Haman’s sons (Esther 9:5–14).

• This was all recorded, but Mordecai was not rewarded until much later (Esther 6:1–14).

• While various records of Xerxes’ reign have been found, the specific book mentioned here no longer exists.