Meres is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Meres was one of the seven princes of Persia and Media who served as advisors to King Ahasuerus. He is mentioned by name only once in Scripture, in the first chapter of the Book of Esther, where the sacred writer lists him among the king’s closest counselors: “And the next unto him was Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, which saw the king’s face, and which sat the first in the kingdom” (Esther 1:14). These men held the highest rank in the empire, granted the rare privilege of direct access to the king’s presence and seated above all others in the realm.
The setting in which Meres appears is the third year of Ahasuerus’s reign, during a great feast he made for his nobles and officials in the citadel of Susa. When Queen Vashti refused the king’s command to appear before his guests, Ahasuerus consulted these seven princes, “which knew the times” (Esther 1:13), because it was the custom to bring such matters before those learned in law and precedent. Meres was among those who deliberated on the queen’s offense and its proper response.
Scripture records no words spoken by Meres himself; the counsel on that occasion came from Memucan, who spoke for the group. Meres thus appears as one of a company rather than as an individual actor. What Scripture says of him is simply this: he was a prince of Persia and Media, one who saw the king’s face, and one of the seven who advised the king at a pivotal moment in the story of Esther.
The Name
The name Meres is a Persian name preserved in the Hebrew text of Esther, and its meaning is not clearly recoverable. Unlike some biblical names whose Hebrew roots yield a transparent meaning, this name belongs to the Persian court vocabulary and has no established definition that scholars affirm with confidence. Suggestions have been offered connecting it to Persian words for “honored” or similar ideas, but these remain conjectural. It is better to say plainly that the meaning of this name is uncertain than to assign it a sense the text does not give.
A Closing Thought
Meres stands in Scripture as a name on a list—faithful, present, and largely unseen. He held high office and stood near the seat of power, yet the record of his deeds is silence. This is the portion of countless believers whose names are written in heaven though never in earthly histories. God does not measure us by how much of our story is told, but by where our lives are placed and whom we serve. Meres saw the king’s face; may we, in our hidden places, live as those who see the face of the King of kings.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- Esther 1:14 — And the next unto him was Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, which saw the king’s face, and which sat the first in the kingdom;)