576. Scepters

From: Manners and Customs of the Bible By: James M. Freeman

• 1 min. read • grade level: 11

Scepters were originally nothing but simple rods cut from the branches of trees, and more or less ornamented. They were in later times more elaborately made, and sometimes, instead of wood, the material was gold (Esther 5:2²And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favor in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre. (Esther 5:2)). The opinion that the scepter originated with the shepherd’s staff; because the first kings were mostly nomad princes, though entertained by some eminent authorities, is rejected by others equally eminent. The scepter of the ancient Egyptian kings is said, by Diodorus Siculus, to have resembled, not a shepherd’s crook, but a plow. The scepter may have been originally used by kings and leaders simply because it was the most natural support and weapon; while subsequent circumstances changed its form and significance.