Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/3_100_t.lzh/3_162.TXT

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a very learned man, Nicolaus Abram °; according to
Bishop Usher {p}, this was Darius Hy.staspis, who cer-
tainly was a friend to the Jewish nation; but he is ra-
ther the Artaxerxes of Ezra and Nehemiah; and so
says the Midrash {q}. Dr. Prideaux{r} thinks Ahasuerus
was Artaxerxes Longimanus, which is the sense of
Josephus {s}, and who is thought. by many to be the Ar-
taxerxes in the foresaid books. Capellust is of opi-
nion, that Darius Ochus is meant, to which Bishop
ratrick inclines; but I rather think, with Vitringa{u}
and others{w}, that Xerxes is the Ahasuerus that was
the husband of Esther here spoken of; so the Arabic
writers {x}; and as he was the son and successor of Da-
rius Hystaspis, if he is meant by Artaxerxes in the
preceding books, the history of which is carried to the
32d year of his reign, Neh. xiii. 6. and who reigned
but four years more; this book of Esther stands in
right order of time to carry on the history of the
Jewish affairs in the Persian monarchy; and Mr.
Broughton{y} owns, that the name of Xerxes, in Greek,
agrees with Achasuerus in Hebrew; and in ch. x. 1.
his name is Achashresh, which, with the Greeks, is
Axeres or Xerxes {z}: this is Ahasuerus, which reigned
am India even unto Ethiopia; properly so called; the
thiopians had been subdued by Cambyses the son
and successor of Cyrus{a}, and the Indians by Darius
Hystaspis the father of Xerxes {b}; and both, with other
great nations, were retained in subjection to him {c}; and
many of both, as well as of other nations, were with
him in his expedition into Greece {d}: over lo-7 pro-
vinces; there were now seven provinces more under
his jurisdiction than were in the times of Darius the
Mede, Dan. vi. 1.
Ver. 2. That in those days, when the King Ahasuerus
sat on the throne of his kingdom, &c.] Not only was
placed u.pon it, but settled in it; after Xerxes had
subdued Egypt, in the second year of his reign{e}, and
enjoyed great peace. and tranquillily: which was in
Shushan the palace; that is, the throne of his kingdom
was in Shushan, the royal city of the kings of Persia;
of which see the notes on Neh. i. 1. and Dan. viii. 0-.
Ver. 3. In the third year of his reign he made a feast
unto all his princes, and his servants, &c.] The nobles
and officers in his court; on what account this was
cannot be said with certainty, whether the first day of
it was his birth-day, or the day of his coming to the
throne, on which day Xerxes used to make a feast an-
nually, as Herodotus relates {f}: the power of Persia and
Media; the mighty men therein, the potentates there-
of; or the army, the principal officers of it: the no-
bles and princes of the provinces being with him. T he first
word Aben Ezra declares his ignorance of, whether it is
Hebrew or Persic; Jarchi interprets it governors; and
the persons intended by both seem to be the deputy-go-.
vernors of the 10-7 provinces who were present at this
feast. Xerxes, having reduced Egypt, meditated a
war with Greece, to which he was pressed by Mardo-
nius, a relation of his; upon which he summoned the
chief men of his kingdom, to have their advice about
it{g}, which perhaps was taken at this time; for it was
in the third year of his reign he resolved upon the war,
and began to make preparations for it; and it was
usual, at banquets and feasts, that tlae Persians debated
their most important affairs h.
Ver. 4. When he shewed the riches of his glorious
kingdom, &c.] Xerxes was the fourth king of the
Persian monarchy, and was .far richer than all that
went betbre him, all their riches coming into his-hands,
Dan. xi. 2. and now that prophecy began to be ful
filled, that by his strength, through his riches, he should
stir up all against the realm of Grecia ; which he began
to do in the third year of his reign, aud for which
these Iris nobles might be called together, as to have
their advice, so to animate them to come in the more
readily into the expedition, by skewing them the
riches he was possessed of; for to none of the kings of
Persia does this largeness of riches better belong than
to Xerxes: and the honour of his excellent majesty;
the grandeur he lived in, the pomp and splendour of
his court; he was the most grand and magnificent of
all the kings of the Medes and Persians {i}: and this he
did many days, even 180 days; to which seven more
being added, as in the following verse, it made 187,
the space of full six months; though some think the
feast did not last so long, only seven days, and that
the 180 days were spent in preparing for it; but the
Persian feasts were very long, large, and sumptuous.
Dr. Frye {k} says, this custom of keeping an annual feast
1S0 daysstill continues.in Persia. Cheus{l},a Chinese
emperor, used frequently to make a feast which lasted
120 days; though it cannot be well thought that the
same individual persous here were feasted so long, but,
when one company was sufficiently treated, they re-
moved and made way for another; and so it continued
successively such a number of days as here related,
which was six months, or half a year; a year then in
use consisting of 360 days, as was common with the
Jews, and other nations, and so the Persians{m}
Ver. 5. And when these days were ended, &c.] The
180, in which the nobles, princes, and great men ofthe
kingdom were feasted: the king made a feast
unto all the people that were present in Shushaa the
palace, both unto great and small; of every age, rank,
state and condition of life; these were the common
people, whether inhabitants of the city or country-
people there on business, whether natives or fo-

{o} Pharus Vet. Test. l. 11. c. 12. p. 305.
{p} Annal. Vet. Test. p. 160. so Broughton, Works, p. 38, 259, 581.
{q} Midrash Esther, fol. 86. 2.
{r} Connection, &c. par. 1. B. 4. p. 252, &c.
{s} Antiqu. l. 11. c. 6. sect. 1. and so Suidas in voce \~esyhr\~.
{t} Chronolog. Sacr. p. 294.
{u} Hypotypos. Hist. Sacr. p. 110.
{w} Schichart. de Festo Purim. Rainold. Praelect. 144. p. 231. Alsted.
Chronolog. p. 126, 181.
{x} In Abulpharag. Hist. Dynast. p. 87.
{y} Ut supra.
{z} Vid. Hiller. Arcan. Keri & Ketib, p. 87. & Onomastic. Sacr. p. 639.
{a} Herodot. Thalia, sive, l. 3. c. 97.
{b} lb. Melpomene, sive, l. 4. c. 44.
{c} lb. Polymnia, sive, l. 7. c. 9.
{d} lb. c. 65, 69, 70.
{e} Herodot. ib. c. 7.
{f} lb. Calliope, sive, l. 9. c. l09.
{g} Ib. l. 7. c. 8.
{h} lb. Clio, sive, l. 1. c. 133.
{i} Pausan. Laconica, sive, l. 3. p. 165.
{k} Travels, p. 348. apud Patrick in loc.
{l} In Martin. Sinic. Hist. l. 3. p. 78.
{m} Prideaux's Connect. par. 1. p. 197.