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In Esther, King Ahasuerus promises Esther anything up to half his kingdom, and she uses the moment to save her people. In Mark, Herod offers the same oath at his banquet, but it traps him into having John the Baptist beheaded.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
LXX Esther 5:3
Septuagint
3 Then the king said, “What do you want, Esther? What is your petition? Even up to half my kingdom, and it will be yours.” 4 And Esther said, “Today is my significant day. If therefore it seems good to the king, let both he and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare today.” 5 And the king said, “Hasten, Haman, that we may do Esther’s request.” And both arrived for the banquet that Esther requested. 6 And during the drinking party, the king said to Esther, “What is it, Queen Esther? And it will be as much as you ask.”
Mark 6:23
New Testament
22 When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you want and I will give it to you.” 23 He swore to her, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.” 24 So she went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” Her mother said, “The head of John the baptizer.”
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Notes and References
... Most significantly, there is verbatim agreement between the Alpha-text and the Markan episode in the promise of 'even half of my kingdom' (Esther Alpha-text 5:3, 6 [7:2]: ἕως ἡμίσους τῆς βασιλείας μου; Mark 6:23: ἕως ἡμίσους τῆς βασιλείας μου), with both omitting the genitive article found in the Septuagint Esther 5:3; 7:2. Given these repeated and conspicuous formal and verbal similarities, it appears the author of Mark 6:21-22 drew upon the execution of Haman in Esther 7:1-10, as well as details elsewhere in Esther (2:9; 5:3, 6), using a text resembling the Alpha-text. The author thereby composed a banquet scene in which a king offers half of his kingdom to a young girl who instead requests the death of one man. ...
Vette, Nathanael
Writing with Scripture: Scripturalized Narrative in the Gospel of Mark
(pp. 148-150) T&T Clark, 2022
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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