The biblical Book of Esther is set in the third year of Ahasuerus, a king of Persia.

The name Ahasuerus is equivalent to Xerxes, both deriving from the Persian Khshayārsha, thus Ahasuerus is usually identified as Xerxes I ( 486-465 BCE ), though Ahasuerus is identified as Artaxerxes in the later Greek version of Esther ( as well as by Josephus, the Jewish commentary Esther Rabbah, the Ethiopic translation and the Christian theologian Bar-Hebraeus who identified him more precisely as Artaxerxes II ).

She orders Mordechai to have all Jews fast for three days together with her, and on the third day she goes to Ahasuerus, who stretches out his sceptre to her which shows that she is not to be punished.

Immediately after, Ahasuerus and Haman attend Esther's second banquet, at which she reveals that she is Jewish and that Haman is planning to exterminate her people, including her.

* The Greek Book of Esther, included in the Septuagint, is a retelling of the events of the Hebrew Book of Esther rather than a translation and records additional traditions, in particular the identification of Ahasuerus with Artaxerxes and details of various letters.

The Hebrew Ahasuerus is most likely derived from Persian Khshayarsha, the origin of the Greek Xerxes.

Bar-Hebraeus identified Ahasuerus explicitly as Artaxerxes II ; however, the names are not necessarily equivalent: Hebrew has a form of the name Artaxerxes distinct from Ahasuerus, and a direct Greek rendering of Ahasuerus is used by both Josephus and the Septuagint for occurrences of the name outside the Book of Esther.

Instead, the Hebrew name Ahasuerus accords with an inscription of the time that notes that Artaxerxes II was named also Arshu, understood as a shortening of Achshiyarshu the Babylonian rendering of the Persian Khshayarsha ( Xerxes ), through which the Hebrew Achashverosh ( Ahasuerus ) is derived.

Based on the view that the Ahasuerus of the Book of Tobit is identical with that of the Book of Esther, some have also identified him as Nebuchadnezzar's ally Cyaxares ( ruled 625 – 585 BCE ).

Ahasuerus is traditionally identified with Xerxes I during the time of the Achaemenid empire.

Jonah is mentioned twice in Chapter 14 of the apocryphal Book of Tobit, the conclusion of which finds Tobit's son, Tobias, at the extreme age of one hundred and twenty seven years, rejoicing at the news of Nineveh's destruction by Nebuchadnezzar and Ahasuerus in apparent fulfillment of Jonah's prophecy against the Assyrian capital.

Between Cyrus and Darius, an exchange of letters with King Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes is described ( chapter 4, verse 7 ), the grandson of Darius I, in whose reign Ezra and Nehemiah came to Jerusalem.

The story told in the book of Esther takes place during the rule of Ahasuerus, who has been identified as the fifth-century Persian king Xerxes ( 486-465 ).

Ahasuerus asks whether anything was done for Mordecai and is told that he received no recognition for saving the king's life.

Shortly afterwards, Mordechai discovers a plot by courtiers Bigthan and Teresh to assassinate Ahasuerus.

That night, Ahasuerus suffers from insomnia, and when the court records are read to him to help him sleep, he learns of the services rendered by Mordechai in the previous plot against his life.

Just then, Haman appears, to ask the King to hang Mordechai, but before he can make this request, King Ahasuerus asks Haman what should be done for the man that the king wishes to honor.

Ahasuerus remains very powerful and continues reigning, with Mordechai assuming a prominent position in his court.

Worried all women will learn from this, Ahasuerus removes her as queen and has a royal decree sent across the empire that men should be the ruler of their households and should speak their own native tongue.

The form Xerxes has not traditionally appeared in English Bibles, but has rather appeared as Ahasuerus.

At least from the 17th century the name Ahasver has been given to the Wandering Jew, apparently adapted from Ahasuerus, the Persian king in the Book of Esther, who was not a Jew, and whose very name among medieval Jews was an exemplum of a fool.

The legend has been the subject of German poems by Schubart, Aloys Schreiber, Wilhelm Müller, Lenau, Chamisso, Schlegel, Julius Mosen ( an epic, 1838 ), and Köhler ; of novels by Franz Horn ( 1818 ), Oeklers, and Schücking ; and of tragedies by Klingemann (" Ahasuerus ", 1827 ) and Zedlitz ( 1844 ).

Esther discovers what has transpired ; she requests that all Jews of Shushan fast and pray for three days together with her, and on the third day she seeks an audience with Ahasuerus, during which she invites him to a feast in the company of Haman.

His first work, Ahasuerus, the Wandering Jew, received a medal in Munich.

The vision in first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus ( 9: 1 ) concerning seventy weeks, or seventy " sevens ", apportioned for the history of the Israelites and of Jerusalem ( 9: 24 ) This consists of a meditation on the prediction in Jeremiah that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years, a lengthy prayer by Daniel in which he pleads for God to restore Jerusalem and its temple, and an angelic explanation which focuses on a longer time period-" seventy sevens "-and a future restoration and destruction of city and temple by a coming ruler.

Ahasuerus, ruler of a massive Persian empire, holds a lavish party, initially for his court and dignitaries and afterwards for all inhabitants of the capital city Shushan.

Overcome by rage, Ahasuerus leaves the room ; meanwhile Haman stays behind and begs Esther for his life, falling upon her in desperation.

This was part of the basis for Esther's relationship with Ahasuerus.

Esther Rabba and the Vulgate present " Ahasuerus " as a different name for the king to " Artaxerxes " rather than an equivalent in different languages, and the Septuagint distinguished between the two names using a Greek transliteration of Ahasuerus for occurrences outside the Book of Esther.

Hudson's protagonist Abel, references Ahasuerus, as an archetype of someone, like himself, who prays for redemption and peace ; while condemned to walk the earth.

In this context some have suggested that Wagner's advice for Jews to ' go under ' ' like Ahasuerus ' was intended as a call for their extermination, as planned by the Nazi regime, but there is no justification for this.

Queen Esther declared a three-day fast for all the Jews prior to risking her life in visiting King Ahasuerus uninvited ( Esther ).

The Book of Esther begins with a six-month ( 180 day ) drinking feast given by King Ahasuerus, for the army of Persia and Media, for the civil servants and princes in the 127 provinces of his kingdom, at the conclusion of which a seven-day drinking feast for the inhabitants of Shushan ( Susa ), rich and poor, with a separate drinking feast for the women organised by the Queen Vashti in the pavilion of the Royal courtyard.

In fact the ' Ahasuerus ' Wagner may have had in mind was a character from a play ( ' Halle und Jerusalem ' ) by Achim von Arnim, a ' good ' Jew who voluntarily sacrifices himself saving other characters from a fire.

He follows the Hebrew Book of Esther but shows awareness of some of the additional material found in the Greek version in that he too identifies Ahasuerus as Artaxerxes and provides the text of the king's letter.

That night, Ahasuerus suffers from insomnia, and when the court's daily records are read to him to help him fall asleep, he learns of the services rendered by Mordecai in the earlier plot against his life.

Ahasuerus orders the queen Vashti to display her beauty before the guests.

Ahasuerus then orders all beautiful young girls to be presented to him, so he can choose a new queen to replace Vashti.

Ahasuerus appoints Haman as his prime minister.

He obtains Ahasuerus ' permission to execute this plan, against payment of ten thousand talents of silver ( which the King declines to accept and rather allows him to execute his plan on principle ), and he casts lots to choose the date on which to do this — the thirteenth of the month of Adar.

The Septuagint version of Esther translates the name Ahasuerus as Artaxerxes, a Greek name derived from the Persian Artakhshatra.

Jewish tradition relates that Esther was the mother of a King Darius and so some try to identify Ahasuerus with Artaxerxes I and Esther with Kosmartydene.