Esther 1:7-9

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Esther 1:7 tn Heb “to cause to drink” (Hiphil infinitive construct of שָׁקָה, shaqah). As the etymology of the Hebrew word for “banquet” (מִשְׁתֶּה, mishteh, from שָׁתָה, shatah, “to drink”) hints, drinking was a prominent feature of ancient Near Eastern banquets.
2. Esther 1:8 tn Heb “the drinking was according to law; there was no one compelling.”
3. Esther 1:8 tn Heb “every chief of his house”; KJV “all the officers of his house”; NLT “his staff.”
4. Esther 1:8 tn Heb “according to the desire of man and man.”
5. Esther 1:9 sn Vashti is the name of Xerxes’ queen according to the Book of Esther. But in the Greek histories of this period the queen’s name is given as Amestris (e.g., Herodotus, Histories 9.108-13). The name Vashti does not seem to occur in the nonbiblical records from this period. Apparently the two women are not to be confused, but not enough is known about this period to reconcile completely the biblical and extrabiblical accounts.