Shaashgaz

Biblical Record

Shaashgaz appears only once in Scripture, in Esther 2:14. When King Ahasuerus gathered many virgins to Shushan the palace in order to choose a new queen, the young women went in to the king one after another. A woman who went to the king in the evening was moved the next morning to the "second house of the women," where she came under the authority of Shaashgaz: "In the evening she went, and on the morrow she returned into the second house of the women, to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's chamberlain, which kept the concubines" (Esther 2:14). The concubines were the king's secondary wives, and the chamberlain, or eunuch, was an official who served in the royal court. The text adds that such a woman "came in unto the king no more, except the king delighted in her, and that she were called by name." Nothing further is recorded about his life or activities.

Significance Within the Bible

The Book of Esther distinguishes between Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the virgins before they went in to the king (Esther 2:3, 2:8, 2:15), and Shaashgaz, who had charge of the women afterward. This distinction shows how the harem of the Persian court was administered. A woman who entered the second house of the women had to remain there for the rest of her life unless the king summoned her. Because Esther won the king's favor and became queen (Esther 2:17), she escaped this fate. Shaashgaz is not mentioned in the New Testament.

Interpretation and Debate

The Hebrew word translated "eunuch" or "chamberlain" can denote a castrated court official, but it can also refer more generally to a high-ranking official. Scholars are therefore divided over which sense should be understood here. The name is thought to be of Persian origin, but its meaning is uncertain.

In Korean Churches

In Korean Protestant churches, sermons and Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Shaashgaz are rare. He is usually mentioned only briefly, as a background figure, when expositions of Esther 2 explain the system of the royal court.