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Agagites
Excerpt from the Lexham Bible Dictionary, the most advanced Bible dictionary.
The derogatory title the writer of Esther gives to Haman (Esth 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). Agag was the name of an Amalekite king whom Saul captured and Samuel killed (1 Sam 15:32–33). Jewish tradition seems to have aligned Haman—an enemy of Israel—with Amalek, the nation’s ancient foe (Josephus, Antiquities 11.6.5). In the Greek additions to Esther, Haman is described as a Macedonian (Esth 12:6; 16:10).
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The Lexham Bible Dictionary
Agagite
Agagite (אֲגָגִי‎, agagiy). The derogatory title the writer of Esther gives to Haman (Esth 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). Agag was the name of an Amalekite king whom Saul captured and Samuel killed (1 Sam 15:32–33). Jewish tradition seems to have aligned Haman—an enemy of Israel—with Amalek, the nation’s ancient
The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary
Agagite (Person)
AGAGITE (PERSON) [Heb ʾăgāgı̂ (אֲגָגִי)]. A gentilic name identifying HAMAN, the enemy of the Jews in the book of Esther (Esth 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). By identifying Haman as an offspring of “Agag the descendant of Amalek” (Aram ʾgg br ʿmlq), the Targums elaborate on the MT, and Josephus supports this
Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible
Agagite
Agagite. Term used to describe Haman, “the enemy of all the Jews,” in the Persian court of King Ahasuerus (Est 3:1; 9:24). Agag, an Amalekite king, had been Saul’s mortal enemy. The Amalekites probably left no descendants (1 Sm 15) so the term Agagite could simply be a derogatory expression for an enemy.
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Revised
Agagite
Agagite ā‘gag-īt [Heb. ’ag̱āg̱î—‘member of the house of Agag’]. An opprobrious adjective applied to Haman (Est. 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). Jewish tradition has always credited the adversaries of the nation with membership in the house of Amalek, the hereditary foe of Israel. The LXX has Bougaíos
Tyndale Bible Dictionary
Agagite
AGAGITE Term used to describe Haman, “the enemy of all the Jews,” in the Persian court of King Ahasuerus (Est 3:1; 9:24). Agag, an Amalekite king, had been Saul’s mortal enemy.
The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary (Revised and Updated)
Agagite
Agagite (ay´guh-git), the ancestry of Haman and his father, Hammedatha, as identified in the book of Esther (3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). The usual understanding is that the reference is to descendants of Agag, an Amalekite king defeated by Saul (1 Sam. 15:7–9). This is consistent with the role of Haman as
The Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia
Agagite
AGAGITE. Haman (q.v.), who was the first officer in command under Ahasuerus (Xerxes I), was an Agagite (Est 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24). Josephus (Ant.xi.6.5) associated this name with Amalek. It was Agag the king of the Amalekites whom Saul brought back to Israel and thus aroused the anger of Samuel (1 Sam
The New Bible Dictionary, Third Edition
Agagite
AGAGITE. An adjective applied to Haman in Est. 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24. Josephus (Ant. 11.209) makes him an Amalekite, presumably descended from *Agag, whom Saul spared (1 Sa. 15). Mordecai, who brought about Haman’s fall, was, like Saul, descended from Kish (Est. 2:5; 1 Sa. 9:1). The lxx has Bougaios
Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible
Agagite
Agagite (Heb. ʾăg̱ag̱ɩ̂)A gentilic associated with Haman, the enemy of the Jews (Esth. 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24; cf. LXX), referring either to the Amalekite king Agag, whom Saul was commanded to kill (1 Sam. 15:2–3), or to the Amalekite nation, Israel’s foe since the wilderness wanderings (Deut. 25:17–19).
Eerdmans Bible Dictionary
Agagite
Agagite [āˊgə gīt] (Heb. ˒ag̱ag̱î “descendant of Agag”). A name given to Haman, the enemy of the Jews (Esth. 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24; cf. LXX), referring either to King Agag, whom Saul was commanded to kill (1 Sam. 15:1–3), or to the Amalekite nation, Israel’s foe since the wilderness wanderings
The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary
Agagite
A´GAGITE (āʹga-gīt). Found (Esther 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24) in connection with Haman, the enemy of Mordecai. Josephus (Ant. 11.6.5) explains it as a synonym of Amalek, and so it possibly was.
Easton’s Bible Dictionary
Agagite
Agagite—a name applied to Haman and also to his father (Esther 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5). Probably it was equivalent to Amalekite.