Topical Bible: Mordecai

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Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

Mordecai

contrition; bitter; bruising

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Mordecai

(little man , or worshipper or Mars), the deliverer, under divine Providence, of the Jews from the destruction plotted against them by Haman the chief minister of Xerxes; the institutor of the feast of Purim. The incidents of his history are too well known to need to be dwelt upon. [ESTHER, BOOK OF] Three things are predicated of Mordecai in the book of Esther: (1) That he lived in Shushan; (2) That his name was Mordecai, son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish the Benjamite who was taken captive with Jehoiachin; (3) That he brought up Esther.

ATS Bible Dictionary

Mordecai

The uncle of Esther, who rose to dignity and honor in the court of Ahasuerus. See the book of Esther.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

The son of Jair, of the tribe of Benjamin. It has been alleged that he was carried into captivity with Jeconiah, and hence that he must have been at least one hundred and twenty-nine years old in the twelfth year of Ahasuerus (Xerxes). But the words of Esther do not necessarily lead to this conclusion. It was probably Kish of whom it is said (ver. 6) that he "had been carried away with the captivity."

He resided at Susa, the metropolis of Persia. He adopted his cousin Hadassah (Esther), an orphan child, whom he tenderly brought up as his own daughter. When she was brought into the king's harem and made queen in the room of the deposed queen Vashti, he was promoted to some office in the court of Ahasuerus, and was one of those who "sat in the king's gate" (Esther 2:21). While holding this office, he discovered a plot of the eunuchs to put the king to death, which, by his vigilance, was defeated. His services to the king in this matter were duly recorded in the royal chronicles.

Haman (q.v.) the Agagite had been raised to the highest position at court. Mordecai refused to bow down before him; and Haman, being stung to the quick by the conduct of Mordecai, resolved to accomplish his death in a wholesale destruction of the Jewish exiles throughout the Persian empire (Esther 3:8-15). Tidings of this cruel scheme soon reached the ears of Mordecai, who communicated with Queen Esther regarding it, and by her wise and bold intervention the scheme was frustrated. The Jews were delivered from destruction, Mordecai was raised to a high rank, and Haman was executed on the gallows he had by anticipation erected for Mordecai (6:2-7:10). In memory of the signal deliverance thus wrought for them, the Jews to this day celebrate the feast (9:26-32) of Purim (q.v.).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

MORDECAI

mor'-de-ki, mor-de-ka'-i (mordekhay; Mardochaios): An Israelite of the tribe of Benjamin, whose fate it has been to occupy a distinguished place in the annals of his people. His great-grandfather, Kish, had been carried to Babylon along with Jeconiah, king of Judah (Esther 2:5-6). For nearly 60 years before the scenes narrated in Esther, in which Mordecai was greatly concerned, took place, the way to Palestine had been open to the Israelites; but neither his father, Jair, nor afterward himself chose to return to the ancient heritage. This seems to have been the case also with the rest of his house, as it was with the vast majority of the Israelite people; for his uncle died in Persia leaving his motherless daughter, Hadassah, to the care of Mordecai. Employed in the royal palace at Susa, he attracted, through the timely discovery of a plot to assassinate the king, the favorable notice of Xerxes, and in a short time became the grand vizier of the Persian empire. He has been believed by many to have been the author of the Book of Esther; and in the earliest known notice of the Feast of Purim, outside of the book just mentioned, that festival is closely associated with his name. It is called "the day of Mordecai" (2 Maccabees 15:36). The apocryphal additions to Esther expatiate upon his greatness, and are eloquent of the deep impression which his personality and power had made upon the Jewish people. Lord Arthur Hervey has suggested the identification of Mordecai with Matacas, or Natacas, the powerful favorite and minister of Xerxes who is spoken of by Ctesias, the Greek historian. Few have done more to earn a nation's lasting gratitude than Mordecai, to whom, under God, the Jewish people owe their preservation.

John Urquhart

Strong's Hebrew

4782. Mordekay -- a companion of Zerubbabel, also a cousin of ...
... a companion of Zerubbabel, also a cousin of Esther. Transliteration: Mordekay Phonetic
Spelling: (mor-dek-ah'-ee) Short Definition: Mordecai. ... Mordecai. ...
/hebrew/4782.htm - 6k

Library

Mordecai and Esther
... THE BOOK OF ESTHER MORDECAI AND ESTHER. ... The verse which I have selected for my text
is spoken by Mordecai to Esther, when urging her to her perilous patriotism. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/mordecai and esther.htm

Concerning Esther and Mordecai and Haman; and How in the Reign of ...
... CHAPTER 6. Concerning Esther And Mordecai And Haman; And How In The Reign Of Artaxerxes
The Whole Nation Of The Jews Was In Danger Of Perishing. ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 6 concerning esther and.htm

Hebrew Captives; Or, Mordecai and Esther.
... HEBREW CAPTIVES; OR, MORDECAI AND ESTHER. The next pictured scene is in the Court
of Persia. ... Among these was Hadassah, the adopted daughter of Mordecai. ...
/.../headley/half hours in bible lands volume 2/hebrew captives or mordecai and.htm

The Net Spread
... But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.3. Then the king's servants which
were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/the net spread.htm

The Wall Rebuilt.
... Thus the young Benjamite orphan, Esther, whom her kinsman, Mordecai, had tenderly
trained in the right way, was taken away, never to see his face again, but to ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/yonge/the chosen people/lesson xiv the wall rebuilt.htm

Esther
... Presently the whole Jewish race is imperilled by an act of Mordecai, the
foster-father of Esther, who refuses to do obeisance to Haman, a powerful and ...
//christianbookshelf.org/mcfadyen/introduction to the old testament/esther.htm

Esther Before the King.
... ESTHER BEFORE THE KING. Ahasuerus reigned over the vast empire of Persia, and
Esther, the adopted daughter of a Jew named Mordecai, was Queen. ...
/.../anonymous/mother stories from the old testament/esther before the king.htm

Esther's Venture
... THE BOOK OF ESTHER ESTHER'S VENTURE. 'Again Esther spake unto Hatach, and gave him
commandment unto Mordecai: 11. ... And they told to Mordecai Esther's words.13. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/esthers venture.htm

Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther.
... While Esther stands out as the principal character, the whole story turns on the
refusal of Mordecai to bow down to Haman, which would have been to show him ...
/.../the way of salvation in the lutheran church/chapter xi ezra nehemiah and.htm

In the Days of Queen Esther
... Haman cherished bitter malice against Mordecai, a Jew. Mordecai had done Haman no
harm, but had simply refused to show him worshipful reverence. ...
/.../white/the story of prophets and kings/chapter 49 in the days.htm

Thesaurus

Mordecai (52 Occurrences)
...Mordecai refused to bow down before him; and Haman, being stung to the quick by
the conduct of Mordecai, resolved to accomplish his death in a wholesale ...
/m/mordecai.htm - 28k

Mordecai's (6 Occurrences)
...Mordecai's (6 Occurrences). ... Esther 2:22 This thing became known to Mordecai, who
informed Esther the queen; and Esther informed the king in Mordecai's name. ...
/m/mordecai's.htm - 8k

Mor'decai (51 Occurrences)
... Mordecai, Mor'decai. Mordecai's . ... Ezra 2:2 who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua,
Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, Baanah. ...
/m/mor'decai.htm - 20k

Pur (3 Occurrences)
... qv; compare 1 Samuel 15:8, 32), who had been made prime minister by King Ahasuerus
(Xerxes), bitterly hated the Jews, some of whom, as Mordecai, were rising to ...
/p/pur.htm - 15k

Ahasu-e'rus (30 Occurrences)
... Esther 2:21 in those days, while Mordecai sat in the king's gate, two of the king's
chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those that kept the door, were wroth ...
/a/ahasu-e'rus.htm - 15k

Purim (5 Occurrences)
... qv; compare 1 Samuel 15:8, 32), who had been made prime minister by King Ahasuerus
(Xerxes), bitterly hated the Jews, some of whom, as Mordecai, were rising to ...
/p/purim.htm - 16k

Xerxes (24 Occurrences)
... Esther 2:21 In those days, while Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, two of
the king's eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, who were doorkeepers, were angry, and ...
/x/xerxes.htm - 14k

Gallows (8 Occurrences)
... Zeresh his wife and all his friends said to him, "Let a gallows be made fifty cubits
high, and in the morning speak to the king about hanging Mordecai on it. ...
/g/gallows.htm - 10k

Eunuchs (33 Occurrences)
... Esther 2:21 In those days, while Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, two of
the king's eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, who were doorkeepers, were angry, and ...
/e/eunuchs.htm - 17k

Chamberlains (17 Occurrences)
... Esther 2:21 In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king's gate, two of the king's
chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth ...
/c/chamberlains.htm - 12k

Resources

Who was Mordecai in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Who was Esther in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Who was Haman the Agagite? | GotQuestions.org

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus

Concordance

Mordecai (52 Occurrences)

Ezra 2:2
who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Nehemiah 7:7
who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:5
There was a certain Jew in the citadel of Susa, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:7
He brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle's daughter; for she had neither father nor mother. The maiden was fair and beautiful; and when her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her for his own daughter.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:10
Esther had not made known her people nor her relatives, because Mordecai had instructed her that she should not make it known.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:11
Mordecai walked every day in front of the court of the women's house, to find out how Esther did, and what would become of her.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS)

Esther 2:15
Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, came to go in to the king, she required nothing but what Hegai the king's eunuch, the keeper of the women, advised. Esther obtained favor in the sight of all those who looked at her.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:19
When the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:20
Esther had not yet made known her relatives nor her people, as Mordecai had commanded her; for Esther obeyed Mordecai, like she did when she was brought up by him.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:21
In those days, while Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, two of the king's eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, who were doorkeepers, were angry, and sought to lay hands on the King Ahasuerus.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 2:22
This thing became known to Mordecai, who informed Esther the queen; and Esther informed the king in Mordecai's name.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 3:2
All the king's servants who were in the king's gate bowed down, and paid homage to Haman; for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai didn't bow down or pay him homage.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 3:3
Then the king's servants, who were in the king's gate, said to Mordecai, "Why do you disobey the king's commandment?"
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 3:4
Now it came to pass, when they spoke daily to him, and he didn't listen to them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai's reason would stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 3:5
When Haman saw that Mordecai didn't bow down, nor pay him homage, Haman was full of wrath.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 3:6
But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai's people. Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the Mordecai's people.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:1
Now when Mordecai found out all that was done, Mordecai tore his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and wailed loudly and a bitterly.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:4
Esther's maidens and her eunuchs came and told her this, and the queen was exceedingly grieved. She sent clothing to Mordecai, to replace his sackcloth; but he didn't receive it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:5
Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king's eunuchs, whom he had appointed to attend her, and commanded him to go to Mordecai, to find out what this was, and why it was.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:6
So Hathach went out to Mordecai, to city square which was before the king's gate.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:7
Mordecai told him of all that had happened to him, and the exact sum of the money that Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasuries for the destruction of the Jews.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:9
Hathach came and told Esther the words of Mordecai.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:10
Then Esther spoke to Hathach, and gave him a message to Mordecai:
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:12
They told to Mordecai Esther's words.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:13
Then Mordecai asked them return answer to Esther, "Don't think to yourself that you will escape in the king's house any more than all the Jews.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS)

Esther 4:15
Then Esther asked them to answer Mordecai,
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 4:17
So Mordecai went his way, and did according to all that Esther had commanded him.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 5:9
Then Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart, but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate, that he didn't stand up nor move for him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 5:13
Yet all this avails me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 5:14
Then Zeresh his wife and all his friends said to him, "Let a gallows be made fifty cubits high, and in the morning speak to the king about hanging Mordecai on it. Then go in merrily with the king to the banquet." This pleased Haman, so he had the gallows made.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:2
It was found written that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs, who were doorkeepers, who had tried to lay hands on the King Ahasuerus.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:3
The king said, "What honor and dignity has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?" Then the king's servants who attended him said, "Nothing has been done for him."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:4
The king said, "Who is in the court?" Now Haman had come into the outer court of the king's house, to speak to the king about hanging Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:10
Then the king said to Haman, "Hurry and take the clothing and the horse, as you have said, and do this for Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king's gate. Let nothing fail of all that you have spoken."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:11
Then Haman took the clothing and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and had him ride through the city square, and proclaimed before him, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor!"
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:12
Mordecai came back to the king's gate, but Haman hurried to his house, mourning and having his head covered.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 6:13
Haman recounted to Zeresh his wife and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and Zeresh his wife said to him, "If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of Jewish descent, you will not prevail against him, but you will surely fall before him."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 7:9
Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs who were with the king said, "Behold, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman has made for Mordecai, who spoke good for the king, is standing at Haman's house." The king said, "Hang him on it!"
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 7:10
So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king's wrath pacified.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 8:1
On that day, King Ahasuerus gave the house of Haman, the Jews' enemy, to Esther the queen. Mordecai came before the king; for Esther had told what he was to her.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 8:2
The king took off his ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 8:7
Then King Ahasuerus said to Esther the queen and to Mordecai the Jew, "See, I have given Esther the house of Haman, and him they have hanged on the gallows, because he laid his hand on the Jews.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 8:9
Then the king's scribes were called at that time, in the third month Sivan, on the twenty-third day of the month; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded to the Jews, and to the satraps, and the governors and princes of the provinces which are from India to Ethiopia, one hundred twenty-seven provinces, to every province according to its writing, and to every people in their language, and to the Jews in their writing, and in their language.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 8:15
Mordecai went out of the presence of the king in royal clothing of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a robe of fine linen and purple; and the city of Susa shouted and was glad.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:3
All the princes of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and those who did the king's business helped the Jews, because the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:4
For Mordecai was great in the king's house, and his fame went out throughout all the provinces; for the man Mordecai grew greater and greater.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:20
Mordecai wrote these things, and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both near and far,
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:23
The Jews accepted the custom that they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them;
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:29
Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, wrote with all authority to confirm this second letter of Purim.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 9:31
to confirm these days of Purim in their appointed times, as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had decreed, and as they had imposed upon themselves and their descendants, in the matter of the fastings and their cry.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 10:2
All the acts of his power and of his might, and the full account of the greatness of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Esther 10:3
For Mordecai the Jew was next to King Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted by the multitude of his brothers, seeking the good of his people, and speaking peace to all his descendants.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS NIV)

Subtopics

Mordecai

Mordecai: A Jewish Captive in Persia

Mordecai: Foster Father of Esther

Mordecai: Informs Ahasuerus of a Conspiracy Against his Life and is Rewarded

Mordecai: Intercedes With Ahasuerus for the Jews

Mordecai: Promoted in Haman's Place

Related Terms

Mordecai's (6 Occurrences)

Mor'decai (51 Occurrences)

Pur (3 Occurrences)

Ahasu-e'rus (30 Occurrences)