The title that I’ve chosen for this volume—From Persia with Love—is intended to reflect the core theme that underlies and unifies Salmon’s reading and interpretation of the book of Esther. As regards his reading of the book: it is ultimately a record of divine love set within a Persian venue—a venue to which God had exiled His people Israel as an expression of loving chastisement, and in which He continued to chastise them as an ongoing expression of His undiminished love, at the same time ensuring, in the vein of His unconditional promise in Jeremiah 31:35–36 (which Salmon cites in his comment on 3:6), that they would never vanish from the world, come what may. And as regards his interpretation of the book: it is ultimately an expression of Salmon’s own love for the community of Israel—Karaites, ʿAnanites, and Rabbanites—intended with a view to the unification of that community and their messianically-incipient expression of true piety as “one people,” in the vein of Ezekiel 37:22 (which he cites in his comment on 9:27).
It with great delight that I dedicate this volume to my grandparents
Among the many individuals to whom I am indebted for their assistance and input at various points on the long journey—begun over twenty years ago when gathering manuscript material for my doctoral dissertation—leading to the publication of this volume are: my Doktorvater Norman Golb
My very deep gratitude goes to my wife, Lydia—my better half by far—for her unfailing patience and support, and for the many sacrifices that she made to allow me the time to work on this volume.
More than all, my greatest debt of gratitude is owed to the One who has privileged me with the ability and opportunity to undertake this work, and who has sustained me through its completion.
Chicago
September 2024