Questions About Esther - Conclusion

 Is the book of Esther historically inaccurate? Critics  level the charge against the book. However, some scholars have noted that the writer of this book showed a remarkably detailed knowledge of Persian royalty, architecture, and customs. True, no mention of Queen Esther has been found in surviving secular documents, but Esther would hardly be the only royal personage who was erased from public records. What is more, secular records do show that a man named Morduka, a Persian equivalent of Mordecai, served as a court official in Shushan at the time described in the book. 

A Prophecy Fulfilled

In fighting for God's people, Esther and Mordecai fulfilled an ancient Bible prophecy. Over a dozen centuries earlier, Jehovah inspired the patriarch Jacob to foretell regarding one of his sons: "Benjamin will keep on tearing like a wolf. In the morning he will eat the animal seized and at evening he will divide spoil." (Genesis 49:27) In "the morning" of Israel's kingly history, Benjamin's descendants included King Saul and other mighty warriors for Jehovah's people. In the "evening" of that royal history, after the sun set on Israel's kingly line, Esther and Mordecai, both of the tribe of Benjamin, warred effectively against Jehovah's enemies. In a sense, they also divide spoil, in that Haman's vast estate went to them. 

Next time: KEEP ON THE WATCH/Artificial Intelligence-A Blessing or a Curse? -What Does the Bible Say?

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