Topical Bible: King: Decrees of, Irrevocable

◄ King: Decrees of, Irrevocable ►

Jump to: Nave's • Library • Subtopics • Terms

Topical Encyclopedia

In the ancient Near Eastern context, the decrees of a king were often considered final and irrevocable, reflecting the absolute authority and sovereign power vested in the monarch. This concept is evident in several biblical narratives, where the unchangeable nature of a king's decree plays a crucial role in the unfolding events.

One of the most illustrative examples of irrevocable decrees is found in the Book of Esther. King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) of Persia issued a decree, influenced by Haman, to annihilate all the Jews in the empire. According to Esther 3:12-13 , "On the thirteenth day of the first month, the royal scribes were summoned, and they wrote out in the script of each province and in the language of each people all of Haman’s orders to the king’s satraps, the governors of each province, and the officials of each people. It was written in the name of King Xerxes himself and sealed with his own ring. And the letters were sent by couriers to all the royal provinces with the order to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—and to plunder their possessions on a single day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar."

The irrevocability of this decree is underscored by the fact that even the king could not rescind it once it was issued. Instead, a counter-decree was made, allowing the Jews to defend themselves (Esther 8:8): "Now you may write in the king’s name as you please concerning the Jews, and seal it with the king’s signet ring. For a decree that is written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s signet ring cannot be revoked."

Similarly, in the Book of Daniel, the irrevocable nature of a king's decree is highlighted in the account of Daniel in the lions' den. King Darius was manipulated into signing a decree that for thirty days, no one could pray to any god or man except the king himself. Daniel 6:8 states, "Now, O king, establish the injunction and sign the document so that it cannot be changed, in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed." Despite his personal regard for Daniel, King Darius was bound by his own decree and was unable to revoke it, leading to Daniel's temporary placement in the lions' den.

These narratives reflect the broader cultural and legal context of the time, where the word of a king was seen as law, and the stability of the kingdom was often tied to the perceived infallibility of the monarch's edicts. The irrevocability of royal decrees served to reinforce the king's authority and the hierarchical structure of society, where the king was seen as the ultimate earthly authority, often believed to be divinely appointed or endorsed.

In the biblical context, these accounts also serve to highlight the sovereignty of God over human affairs. Despite the seemingly unchangeable nature of human decrees, God's providence and protection of His people are evident, as seen in the deliverance of the Jews in Esther and the miraculous preservation of Daniel. These accounts underscore the belief that while earthly kings may wield great power, it is ultimately God who holds supreme authority over all creation.

Nave's Topical Index

Esther 8:8
Write you also for the Jews, as it likes you, in the king's name, and seal it with the king's ring: for the writing which is written in the king's name, and sealed with the king's ring, may no man reverse.
Nave's Topical Index

Daniel 6:8,9,12-15
Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which alters not.
Nave's Topical Index

Library

The Vatican Council, 1870.
... the political aspects of the Vatican Decrees, Lond.1874 ... Italian troops, in the name
of King Victor Emanuel ... Vatican Council, as far as they go, are irrevocable. ...
/.../ 31 the vatican council.htm

Parables. (xiii, xviii-xx, xxxv. )
... is not fettered by its own previous decrees, as some ... high service Israel's destiny
is not irrevocable; nay, their ... doom would be captivity to the King of Babylon ...
//christianbookshelf.org/smith/jeremiah/2 parables xiii xviii-xx xxxv.htm

"And the Redeemer Shall Come unto Zion, and unto them that Turn,"
... prince, the Son of the greatest King, and heir of ... in the prison of God's faithful
and irrevocable sentence of ... seals of the book of God's decrees concerning his ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xiv and the redeemer.htm

The Mystery
A Key to the Apocalypse. <. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/mede/a key to the apocalypse/the mystery 2.htm

The Last Days of the Old Eastern World
... in Europe who, at first under Megabyzos, and then under Otanes, reduced them to
subjection one after another, and even obliged Amyntas I., the King of Macedonia ...
/.../chapter iithe last days of 2.htm

Examination of the Treatise
... to disagree with the truth. In the first place, because it inverts the
order of the divine decrees and acts. For the decree, by ...
/.../arminius/the works of james arminius vol 3/examination of the treatise.htm

The Treatise
... the hoof, as the Law of Moses decrees; who will ... He died, whereby this testament has
become permanent and irrevocable. ... Pray for the life of the king of Babylon ...
//christianbookshelf.org/luther/a treatise on good works/the treatise.htm

A Few Sighs from Hell;
... London: Printed by Ralph Wood, for M. Wright, at the King's Head in the Old
Bailey, 1658.[1]. ... David, before he was a king, was a shepherd. ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a few sighs from hell.htm