Verse 2

petition . . . request. See note on Esther 5:6.

kingdom. See note on Esther 5:3.

Verse 3

my life = my soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13. Life put before petition, and her People put before her request.

Verse 4

are = have been.

sold. Implying that a bargain had been made.

destroyed . . . slain . . . perish. Note the Figure of speech Synonymia (App-6), to emphasize the urgency of her petition. Compare Esther 3:13.

perish. See note on Esther 3:13.

countervail = make good, or compensate.

Verse 5

answered and said. Note the idiom = threatened and said. See note on Deuteronomy 1:41.

WHO IS HE, AND WHERE IS HE . . . ? This is the fifth Acrostic, which gives (not Jehovah but) the Divine Name "I AM" of Exodus 3:14. See App-60.

HE. Note the emphatic repetition of this pronoun.

Verse 7

life = soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13.

THAT THERE WAS EVIL DETERMINED AGAINST HIM. This is the fourth, and last, of the four acrostics exhibiting the name Jehovah in this book. See App-60.

the king. Note the Figure of speech Epanadiplosis, the verse beginning and ending with the same word, marking and emphasizing its importance.

Verse 8

bed = couch.

Will he force . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis.

Verse 9

gallows. See note on Esther 5:14.

Verse 10

they hanged Hainan. See note on "Benjamite" (Esther 2:5).