John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 7. They gave them drink in vessels of gold, the vessels being divers one from another , etc.] In the pattern and workmanship of them, though of the same metal, which diversity made the festival the more grand; earthen cups, with the Persians, were reckoned very mean; when a king would disgrace a man, he obliged him to use earthen cups f52 . The Targum represents these vessels to be the golden vessels of the temple at Jerusalem Nebuchadnezzar carried away; which could not be, since they had been delivered by Cyrus to Zerubbabel, ( Ezra 1:7-10), and royal wine in abundance, according to the state of the king ; such as the king was able to give, the best he had, and that in great plenty; the wine the kings of Persia used to drink, as Strabo relates, was Chalybonian wine, or wine of Helbon, as it is called, ( Ezekiel 27:18), but by the wine of the kingdom, as it may be rendered, is meant wine of the country; the wine of Schiras is reckoned the best in Persia f54 .
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-9 - The pride of Ahasuerus's heart rising with the grandeur of his kingdom he made an extravagant feast. This was vain glory. Better is a dinne of herbs with quietness, than this banquet of wine, with all the nois and tumult that must have attended it. But except grace prevails in the heart, self-exaltation and self-indulgence, in one form or another will be the ruling principle. Yet none did compel; so that if any dran to excess, it was their own fault. This caution of a heathen prince even when he would show his generosity, may shame many calle Christians, who, under pretence of sending the health round, send sin round, and death with it. There is a woe to them that do so; let the read it, and tremble, Hab 2:15, 16.
Original Hebrew והשׁקות8248 בכלי3627 זהב2091 וכלים3627 מכלים3627 שׁונים8138 ויין3196 מלכות4438 רב7227 כיד3027 המלך׃4428
