Esther  ## Highlights - Jews and Protestants share a version of the book that is based on the Masoretic Text (MT), a Hebrew version that has been passed down by the rabbis and is regarded as canonical by both faith communities. Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians, on the other hand, include a different version of Esther in their canons. It is based on the Greek Septuagint (LXX), a translation of a Hebrew original that differs from the MT in some respects. Most of these differences are relatively minor. There is, however, one major discrepancy where the book of Esther is concerned: The Septuagint includes six passages that are not in the MT (107 verses in all). ([Location 196](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07GL4SLNG&location=196)) - Tags: aqua - Many educated guesses have been made as to the genre of the book of Esther. Some of the chief proposals are: wisdom tale, historical novella/romance, literary carnival tale, short story, and Diaspora novel. (For these and others, see Fox, 141–52.) What all of these suggestions have in common is a certain basic element of fictionality. ([Location 249](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07GL4SLNG&location=249)) - Tags: aqua - “According to the law,” he asks, “what is to be done to Queen Vashti because she has not performed the command of King Ahasuerus conveyed by the eunuchs?” It seems odd that he does not know the laws of his own empire well enough to negotiate this fairly straightforward infraction. ([Location 631](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07GL4SLNG&location=631)) - Tags: aqua - the date is set a full twelve months in the future, thus giving the Jews time to prepare and the plot of the story time to unfold. ([Location 911](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07GL4SLNG&location=911)) - Tags: aqua