What Does Esther 5:2 Mean?
And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she was lifted up in favor before his eyes. And the king stretched out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the head of the scepter.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre.THE KEY
The sceptre turns favor from a judgment in the king’s gaze into an opening Esther can physically approach.
THE MEANING
Favor is more than being seen kindly: it can become an opening that lets you draw near. The verse holds welcome and approach together, so nearness appears as something made possible and then physically received.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that favor can remain only a private judgment. Here it becomes an outward gesture that changes whether Esther can come near.
THE ROOT
חֵן
ḥēn
GROWS FROM
חנן
ḥ-n-n
Show favor; act graciously.
“was lifted up in favor before his eyes” in this verse is ḥēn. The root family links favor with the act of showing favor and the quality of being gracious. In this verse, favor takes visible form in the king’s gesture, opening a way for Esther to draw near.
ALSO GROWS
ḥānan: Show favor; act graciously.
חָנַן
This verb gives the noun “favor” an action-shaped sibling: favor is something shown, not only an abstract status.
ḥannûn: Gracious; characterized by favor.
חַנּוּן
This word describes one who shows favor, echoing how the king’s regard becomes a gesture of welcome.
וַתִּקְרַב
wattiqrav
GROWS FROM
קרב
q-r-b
Approach; come near.
“drew near” in this verse is wattiqrav. The same root describes nearness and the act of approaching. Esther does not remain a favorable sight at a distance: the offered sign makes her movement toward the king possible.
ALSO GROWS
qorbān: A drawing-near offering.
קָרְבָּן
This word for an offering comes from the same root, placing Esther’s approach within a word family built around coming near.
qārōv: Near; close, including a close relative.
קָרוֹב
This branch names closeness itself, showing how the root moves between being near and moving toward nearness.
THE PATTERN
Access opens when a gesture of welcome makes nearness possible.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with a clamor of praise; lift your hands to him, and bless his nature.Let us therefore draw near, with open speech, to the throne of favor, that we may receive compassion, and find favor to help in the right moment.THE THREAD
But for me, drawing near to God is good; I have set my shelter in the Lord LORD, to recount all your works.Esther’s word for drawing near belongs to קרב (q-r-b), meaning to approach or come near; the Psalm uses the same root for drawing near to God. Esther approaches a sceptre extended in welcome, while the Psalm calls nearness to God good, opening the court scene into a wider language of closeness.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us