The Chamberlain Who Guarded the King
Bigtha was one of the seven chamberlains, or eunuchs, who served in the court of King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) during the time of the events recorded in the Book of Esther. These officials held positions of great trust and responsibility, serving as the king’s personal attendants and often acting as guardians of the royal harem.
His story is briefly but significantly mentioned in the first chapter of the Book of Esther, setting the stage for the dramatic events that follow.
The King’s Command and Queen’s Refusal
Bigtha’s name appears in Esther 1:10, during a great feast held by King Ahasuerus in Shushan the palace. On the seventh day of this feast, the King, in a fit of wine-induced pride and vanity, decided to display the beauty of his queen, Vashti, to his assembled nobles and people.
“On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king, to bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on.” (Esther 1:10-11, KJV)
A Servant of the Royal Order
Along with the six other chamberlains, Bigtha was tasked with the crucial mission of bringing Queen Vashti into the royal presence. As high-ranking servants who “served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king,” their duty was to execute the king’s direct orders without question.
The King’s command, however, was refused by the Queen:
“But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.” (Esther 1:12, KJV)
This refusal by Queen Vashti was a serious act of defiance in the Persian court, not only against the King but against the absolute authority he wielded. As the messengers of the decree, Bigtha and his fellow chamberlains were witnesses to the incident that led to Queen Vashti’s immediate dismissal and eventual replacement by Esther.
His Role in the Narrative
Although Bigtha plays no further active role in the subsequent events of the Book of Esther, his mention in the opening chapter is important. He is one of the initial key personnel who carried the royal decree, and his name is preserved in Scripture as a representative of the court officials who served King Ahasuerus and were privy to the tumultuous beginnings of the story that would save the Jewish people.