When Esther's maidens and eunuchs came and told her about Mordecai, the queen was overcome with distress. She sent clothes for Mordecai to wear instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. Esther’s eunuchs and female attendantsIn the Persian court, eunuchs and female attendants played crucial roles, often serving as intermediaries between the queen and the outside world. The Hebrew term for eunuch, "saris," can refer to a court official, not necessarily castrated, highlighting their trusted position. Esther's reliance on them underscores her isolation within the palace and the structured hierarchy of the Persian court. came and reported this to her
The act of reporting indicates the flow of information within the royal palace. Esther, though queen, was not immediately aware of events outside her quarters, reflecting the separation between the royal family and the populace. This phrase emphasizes the importance of communication and the role of intermediaries in ancient royal settings. the queen was overcome with great anguish
Esther's emotional response reveals her deep connection to her people and her cousin Mordecai. The Hebrew word for "anguish," "chul," conveys a sense of writhing or trembling, indicating intense emotional turmoil. This reaction highlights Esther's compassion and the gravity of the situation facing the Jewish people. She sent clothes for Mordecai to wear instead of his sackcloth
Sackcloth, a coarse material, was traditionally worn as a sign of mourning or repentance. Esther's attempt to clothe Mordecai in regular garments signifies her desire to alleviate his distress and perhaps shield him from the king's wrath. This gesture reflects her initial approach to solving problems through practical means. but he refused them
Mordecai's refusal underscores his commitment to his cause and the seriousness of the threat against the Jews. His steadfastness in wearing sackcloth serves as a public protest and a call to action. This refusal also sets the stage for Esther's deeper involvement and the pivotal role she must play in the deliverance of her people. Persons / Places / Events 1. EstherThe Jewish queen of Persia, who is deeply concerned for her people. In Esther 4:4, she is informed of Mordecai's distress and takes action to understand and address the situation. 2. MordecaiEsther's cousin and guardian, who is mourning in sackcloth and ashes due to the edict against the Jews. His actions prompt Esther to intervene. 3. HathachOne of the king's eunuchs assigned to attend to Esther. He acts as a messenger between Esther and Mordecai. 4. Susa (Shushan)The capital of the Persian Empire, where the events of the Book of Esther take place. It is the setting for the unfolding drama of Esther's intervention. 5. The EdictThe decree issued by King Ahasuerus, manipulated by Haman, calling for the destruction of the Jewish people. This is the catalyst for the events in Esther 4. Teaching Points Compassionate ResponseEsther's immediate concern for Mordecai's distress teaches us the importance of being attentive and responsive to the needs of others. Intercession and AdvocacyEsther's role as an intercessor for her people highlights the power and responsibility of standing in the gap for others in prayer and action. Courage in CrisisEsther's willingness to engage with the situation, despite the risks, encourages believers to act courageously in the face of injustice or danger. Divine TimingThe unfolding events remind us of God's providence and timing, encouraging trust in His plans even when circumstances seem dire. Community and SupportThe interaction between Esther and Mordecai underscores the importance of community and mutual support in times of trial. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Esther's response to Mordecai's distress in Esther 4:4 demonstrate the importance of compassion and empathy in our relationships? 2. In what ways can we act as intercessors for others, following Esther's example, when we see injustice or suffering around us? 3. How does the concept of divine timing in the Book of Esther encourage us to trust God's plans in our own lives? 4. What practical steps can we take to support and stand with those who are mourning or in distress, as seen in Esther's actions? 5. How do the themes of courage and advocacy in Esther 4:4 inspire us to address challenges and injustices in our communities today? Connections to Other Scriptures Nehemiah 1:4Nehemiah's response to hearing about the distress of Jerusalem mirrors Mordecai's mourning, showing a biblical pattern of fasting and prayer in response to crisis. Daniel 9:3Daniel's prayer and fasting for his people parallels Mordecai's actions, emphasizing the importance of seeking God in times of national distress. Romans 12:15The call to "mourn with those who mourn" reflects Esther's compassionate response to Mordecai's grief. People Esther, Haman, Hatach, MordecaiPlaces SusaTopics Accept, Accepted, Anguish, Aside, Chamberlains, Clothe, Clothes, Clothing, Declare, Deeply, Didn't, Distress, Distressed, Esther, Esther's, Eunuchs, Exceedingly, Garments, Grief, Grieved, Haircloth, Instead, Maidens, Maids, Mordecai, Mor'decai, Pained, Queen, Raiment, Receive, Received, Remove, Replace, Robes, Sackcloth, Servants, Turn, Women, WrithedDictionary of Bible Themes Esther 4:4 6604 acceptance, human Esther 4:4-11 5309 eunuchs Library Mordecai and Esther
'For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?'--ESTHER iv. 14. All Christians are agreed in holding the principles which underlie our missionary operations. They all believe that the world is a fallen world, that without Christ the fallen world is a lost world, that the preaching …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureWatkinson -- the Transfigured Sackcloth
William L. Watkinson, Wesleyan minister, was born at Hull, 1838, was educated privately and rose to eminence as a preacher and writer. The Rev. William Durban calls him "The classic preacher of British Methodism." "He ranks," says Dr. Durban, "with Dr. Dallinger and the Rev. Thomas Gunn Selby as the three most learned and refined of living preachers in the English Methodist pulpit. Dr. Watkinson is famous for the glittering illustrations which adorn his style. These are for the most part gathered …
Grenville Kleiser—The world's great sermons, Volume 8 Appeal to the Christian Women of the South
BY A.E. GRIMKE. "Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not within thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place: but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this. And Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer:--and so will I go in unto the king, …
Angelina Emily Grimke—An Appeal to the Christian Women of the South Meditations for Household Piety.
1. If thou be called to the government of a family, thou must not hold it sufficient to serve God and live uprightly in thy own person, unless thou cause all under thy charge to do the same with thee. For the performance of this duty God was so well pleased with Abraham, that he would not hide from him his counsel: "For," saith God, "I know him that he will command his sons and his household after him that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety A Case of Conscience Resolved
WHETHER, WHERE A CHURCH OF CHRIST IS SITUATE, IT IS THE DUTY OF THE WOMEN OF THAT CONGREGATION, ORDINARILY, AND BY APPOINTMENT, TO SEPARATE THEMSELVES FROM THEIR BRETHREN, AND SO TO ASSEMBLE TOGETHER, TO PERFORM SOME PARTS OF DIVINE WORSHIP, AS PRAYER, ETC., WITHOUT THEIR MEN? AND THE ARGUMENTS MADE USE OF FOR THAT PRACTICE, EXAMINED. BY JOHN BUNYAN. EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. This exceedingly rare tract was first published in 1683, and was not reprinted, either separately, or in any edition of Bunyan's …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Prevailing Prayer.
Text.--The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.--James v. 16. THE last lecture referred principally to the confession of sin. To-night my remarks will be chiefly confined to the subject of intercession, or prayer. There are two kinds of means requisite to promote a revival; one to influence men, the other to influence God. The truth is employed to influence men, and prayer to move God. When I speak of moving God, I do not mean that God's mind is changed by prayer, or that his …
Charles Grandison Finney—Lectures on Revivals of Religion Of the Discipline of the Church, and Its Principal Use in Censures and Excommunication.
1. Of the power of the keys, or the common discipline of the Church. Necessity and very great utility of this discipline. 2. Its various degrees. 1. Private admonition. 2. Rebukes before witnesses. 3. Excommunication. 3. Different degrees of delinquency. Modes of procedure in both kinds of chastisement. 4. Delicts to be distinguished from flagitious wickedness. The last to be more severely punished. 5. Ends of this discipline. 1. That the wicked may not, by being admitted to the Lord's Table, put …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion Of the Public Fast.
A public fast is when, by the authority of the magistrate (Jonah iii. 7; 2 Chron. xx. 3; Ezra viii. 21), either the whole church within his dominion, or some special congregation, whom it concerneth, assemble themselves together, to perform the fore-mentioned duties of humiliation; either for the removing of some public calamity threatened or already inflicted upon them, as the sword, invasion, famine, pestilence, or other fearful sickness (1 Sam. vii. 5, 6; Joel ii. 15; 2 Chron. xx.; Jonah iii. …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety Of a Private Fast.
That we may rightly perform a private fast, four things are to be observed:--First, The author; Secondly, The time and occasion; Thirdly, The manner; Fourthly, The ends of private fasting. 1. Of the Author. The first that ordained fasting was God himself in paradise; and it was the first law that God made, in commanding Adam to abstain from eating the forbidden fruit. God would not pronounce nor write his law without fasting (Lev. xxiii), and in his law commands all his people to fast. So does our …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety From his Entrance on the Ministry in 1815, to his Commission to Reside in Germany in 1820
1815.--After the long season of depression through which John Yeardley passed, as described in the last chapter, the new year of 1815 dawned with brightness upon his mind. He now at length saw his spiritual bonds loosed; and the extracts which follow describe his first offerings in the ministry in a simple and affecting manner. 1 mo. 5.--The subject of the prophet's going down to the potter's house opened so clearly on my mind in meeting this morning that I thought I could almost have publicly …
John Yeardley—Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel Sign Seekers, and the Enthusiast Reproved.
(Galilee on the Same Day as the Last Section.) ^A Matt. XII. 38-45; ^C Luke XI. 24-36. ^c 29 And when the multitudes were gathering together unto him, ^a 38 Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, Teacher, we would see a sign from thee. [Having been severely rebuked by Jesus, it is likely that the scribes and Pharisees asked for a sign that they might appear to the multitude more fair-minded and open to conviction than Jesus had represented them to be. Jesus had just wrought …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Esther
The spirit of the book of Esther is anything but attractive. It is never quoted or referred to by Jesus or His apostles, and it is a satisfaction to think that in very early times, and even among Jewish scholars, its right to a place in the canon was hotly contested. Its aggressive fanaticism and fierce hatred of all that lay outside of Judaism were felt by the finer spirits to be false to the more generous instincts that lay at the heart of the Hebrew religion; but by virtue of its very intensity …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Esther 4:4 NIVEsther 4:4 NLTEsther 4:4 ESVEsther 4:4 NASBEsther 4:4 KJV
Esther 4:4 Commentaries
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