ESTHER

The book of Esther tells the story of a great danger that befalls the Jews during the time of King Ahasuerus of Medo-Persia (Greek name: Xerxes I, 484-464 BC) and how that danger is averted.
Some Jews had returned to Judah earlier under Zerubbabel’s leadership (536 BC), but many have remained and live spread out in the various cities of the Medo-Persian empire, not least in Susa, where King Ahasuerus’ court is.
The book of Esther starts with the king giving a lavish banquet to display his wealth and power to the leaders and military officials (Est 1:1-9). The year is 483 BC and we know from Persian and Greek sources that the occasion for the banquet is Ahasuerus’s plan to attack Greece, for which he needs the consensus of the leaders. During the banquet an un-hoped for event happens: The drunk king wants to display queen Vashti’s beauty to the officials, but she refuses to appear. Ahasuerus is very angry and accepts the advice of his sages to depose her in order to ensure wives’ subordination to husbands in the empire (Est 1:19-22).
From 483-480 BC Ahasuerus is away on his ill-fated Greek military endeavor, which is not described in the book of Esther. The king is defeated by the Greeks in the sea battle at Salamis. Historian Herodotus comments that after this humiliating defeat Ahasuerus consoled himself with his harem.
Here Esther’s story picks up again (479 BC). When the King is remorseful about what he did to Vashti, his advisers recommend looking for beautiful virgins for the king, from which he can select a new queen to his liking (Est 2:1-4). Ahasuerus agrees and girls are rounded up in Susa for twelve months of beauty treatments and then one night with the king. A young Jewish orphan girl named Esther is also taken. Esther had been adopted by her cousin Mordecai, who works at the palace gates. She is not only beautiful, but modest and of a good attitude. She wins everybody’s favor, including that of the king and is made queen of Medo-Persia in 478 BC (Est 2:17-18). At one time Mordecai and Esther prevent an assassination attempt against the king (Est 2:19-23).
Sometime later Ahasuerus promotes a man named Haman to highest office. Haman is called an ‘Agagite’, which could refer to him being a descendant of the Amalekite king Agag, but it could also be a reference to his home district. Mordecai is not willing to suck up to Haman, either for his Amalekite ancestry or simply because he doesn’t like Haman’s character. When people point this out to Haman, his pride is stung. He is furious and starts plotting not only against Mordecai, but against his people, that he learned are the Jews. He makes an unwitting king Ahasuerus agree to his agenda and issues an empire-wide decree for a greed-motivated day of slaughter against the Jewish race (Est 3:1-15).
The Jews all over the empire are crest-fallen. Mordecai informs Esther of the decree and challenges her to reveal her Jewish identity to the king and intercede for her people: “If you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter, but you and your father’s family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this”. Though there is high risk involved and no guarantee for success, Esther agrees and comes before the king un-summoned (Est 4). She invites him and Haman for a banquet, at which she invites them for a second banquet for the next day (Est 5:1-8).
Haman is happy about his good fortunes but – still annoyed at Mordecai – has a gallows of twenty-two meters put up for his execution (Est 5:9-14). God’s providence becomes more and more visible: The King has a sleepless night, is reminded that he didn’t honor Mordecai for the uncovering of the assassination plot, decides to do that through a crest-fallen Haman (Est 6). At the second banquet later that day, Esther reveals her Jewish identity. The king is furious, realizing how Haman has used him for his own purposes. He commands Haman’s execution on the gallows and exalts Mordecai to Haman’s position (Est 7).
Mordecai and Esther issue a second decree, allowing Jews to defend themselves on the day of slaughter. The fear of the Jews falls on everybody and the day turns into a victory (Est 8-9). To commemorate this great deliverance Esther and Mordecai institute the yearly feast of Purim.

Historical Context

The book of Esther tells the story of a great danger that befalls the Jews during the time of King Ahasuerus of Medo-Persia (Greek name: Xerxes I, 484-464 BC) and how that danger is averted. It covers about ten years of Ahasuerus’s reign, from 483 to 473 BC.
Some of the exiled Jews had returned to Judah earlier in 536 BC under Zerubbabel’s leadership, but many remained and live spread out in the various cities of the Medo-Persian empire, not least in Susa, where King Ahasuerus’ court is.
The book of Esther starts with King Ahasuerus giving a lavish six month banquet to display his wealth and power to the leaders, ministers and military officials (Est 1:1-9). The year is 483 BC and it is known from Persian and Greek sources that the occasion for the banquet is Ahasuerus’s plan to attack Greece, for which he needs the consensus of the leaders. His father, the great Darius I of Medo-Persia, had attacked the Greeks earlier and had been defeated. Maybe Ahasuerus wanted to avenge or outdo his father or prove his strength as the newly crowned king.
During the banquet an un-hoped for event happens: The drunk king wants to display queen Vashti’s beauty to the officials, but she refuses to appear. Ahasuerus is very angry and accepts the advice of his leading sages to depose her in order to ensure wives’ subordination to husbands in the empire (Est 1:19-22).
From 483-480 BC Ahasuerus is away on his Greek campaign, which is not described in the book of Esther. He leads a huge army across the Hellespont and attacks Greece from the North. He initially wins the battles of Thermopylae and Athens, but is ultimately defeated by the Greeks in a sea battle at Salamis.
Historian Herodotus comments that after this humiliating defeat Ahasuerus returned to his home and consoled himself with women.

Esther becomes queen

Here Esther’s story picks up again (479 BC). When the King is remorseful about what he did to Vashti, his advisers recommend looking for beautiful virgins for the King, from which he can select a new queen to his liking (Est 2:1-4). It’s an advice for self-indulgence, and not surprisingly Ahasuerus agrees.
Girls are rounded up all throughout the empire, whether forcefully or willingly the text does not say. They are subjected to twelve months of beauty treatments and then have one night with the king, which decides their future fate. It is easy to imagine the atmosphere in a harem like that, with jealousy, competition, utter self-focus, self-advancement and intrigues. Every girl could ask for any jewelry and adornment she wanted when going in to the king. Again it is easy to imagine the excesses, trying to grab the king’s attention by any means.
In this crazed environment Esther stands out, not only for her beauty, but also for her modesty, her cool head and her willingness to listen to advice. She wins everybody’s favor, including that of the King. In 478 BC he makes her the new queen of Medo-Persia (Est 2:17-18). At one time Mordecai and Esther prevent an assassination attempt against the king’s life (Est 2:19-23).

Haman rises to power

Some four years later, in 474 BC, Ahasuerus promotes a man named Haman to highest office. Haman is called an ‘Agagite’, which could refer to him being a descendant of the Amalekite King Agag (1 Sam 15:32). But it could also be a reference to his home district, as there is a reference by Assyrian King Sargon to an area called Agag. Haman’s father’s name is Hammedatha, which is a Persian name.
Mordecai is not willing to suck up to the new man in favor, either because Haman is of Amalekite ancestry or simply because Modecai doesn’t like Haman’s character and behavior. Mordecai may be somewhat stubborn, but he surely is courageous, doing this at clear risk to himself and for no other reason than personal integrity. He is no opportunist, he will not please the mighty nor flatter evil people.
Mordecai doesn’t express his unwillingness to honor Haman very publicly, though, for Haman only notices it when other people point it out to him (Est 3:4). But once it is pointed out to Haman, his pride is stung and his anger kindled. Though he is positioned far above Mordecai, he chooses to take offense. He starts plotting not only against Mordecai, but against Modecai’s entire people group, the Jews, as he as finds out upon inquiry.

The decree

Haman approaches the King and gives him vague information about a ‘people that doesn’t obey the king’s laws’. He suggests to fix a day of annihilation where anyone can attack, kill and destroy the Jews as well as loot their goods. Haman promises to pay the King a substantial sum of money to make this deal more attractive.
Ahasuerus is so trusting that he make no inquiries as to what people this is nor exactly how they break the law. Though Medo-Persia is generally tolerant of minorities, the king agrees to Haman’s decree, not realizing that Haman uses him for a personal vendetta (Est 3:1-15).
This empire-wide decree is especially evil as it is not a permission to attack, but actually a command to attack. It intentionally creates conflict and bloodshed where there was relatively peaceful co-existence before. Haman motivates both the King and the attackers by greed (promising financial gain), for otherwise there would have been little incentive or reason to attack peaceful neighbors. The day of the attack is determined by throwing lots (Persian ‘pur’) and falls on a day about eleven months later (473 BC). The decree is issued and is translated into all languages of the empire and sent to all one hundred twenty-seven provinces of Medo-Persia. The effective Persian administration here becomes a fearful tool in the hand of a violent man and a careless king (Est 3:7-15).

Lament and confusion

The Jews all over the empire are crest-fallen. They lament and fast, not least Mordecai (Est 4:1-3). Probably He realizes that his behavior has triggered this decree, though he could not have foreseen something as evil as this. He thought he was taking a personal risk, now it turns out to be a national disaster.

Esther’s response

Mordecai immediately informs Esther of the decree (Est 4:4-8). He tells her to reveal her Jewish identity to the king and to intercede for her people. He sorely challenges her, but he also treats her as a person who can face this challenge and carry this burden. Though Mordecai was always protective and caring towards Esther (Est 2:7,11) he realizes he can’t and shouldn’t advise her to hide now. He says to her: ‘If you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter, but you and your father’s family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this’.
This statement reveals Mordecai’s strong faith in God and his power to deliver, through whomever. Yet he doesn’t see God’s sovereign ability to deliver as a contrast to the need for humans to act. God’s sovereignty and power in history is never an excuse for humans to abdicate responsibility, rather the opposite. Human actions matter. Everybody’s contribution counts. Esther does find herself (through no design of her own) in a position to maybe influence things, and therefore she has the responsibility to do so.
And Esther rises to the challenge: Though there is high risk involved and no guarantee for success, she courageously attempts to do what she knows is the right thing to do. She appears before the king un-summoned and is granted initial favor (Est 5:2). She invites the King and Haman for a banquet, but – by God’s guidance or providence – doesn’t reveal her request yet, but rather invites them for a second banquet on the next day (Est 5:1-8).

God’s providence at work

Haman is elated at the private banquet with Esther and his good fortunes. But upon seeing Mordecai again, he is enraged and has a gallows of twenty-two meters put up for Mordecai’s execution (Est 5:9-14). This ridiculously high gallows shows Haman’s excessive anger and vengeful attitude, a public statement of his soon-to-be victory.
But then, when all things look lost for the Jews, the story pivots. God’s providence becomes more and more visible: The king happens to have a sleepless night. He happens to call for somebody to read the chronicles of his reign to him. It just so happens that the story of Mordecai foiling an assassination plot against the king is read. Ahasuerus realizes that Mordecai was never honored for what he had done.
The king gets up in the morning and asks Haman how a man could be honored. Haman in his pride presumes that he is the one to be honored and names a few grand designs. The King then commands him to do exactly that for Mordecai. Haman is crest-fallen and spends a miserable day publicly honoring the man he disdains most (Est 6:1-11). He surely must have gotten some comments of people who knew their prior history and saw the irony.
Interestingly his own family are also expressing a superstitious fear as to what this bad omen might mean (Est 6:12-13).

Haman unmasked

Before there is time to think further, Haman is hurried off to Esther’s second banquet. The king asks Esther again what she requests of him, and she responds by pleading for her life and for that of her people. The King is shocked to find his queen’s life threatened without his knowledge and asks who would dare to do so. Esther points to Haman.
The king is furious, partially because he cares for Esther and partially because he realizes how ignorant he had been. The king’s anger upon understanding just how much Haman used him for his own purposes is enough to seal Haman’s fate. The King gets up in rage from the meal. Haman, realizing that the King’s mind is decided against him throws himself on the couch Esther is reclining to plead for mercy.
The King comes back and chooses to misunderstand Haman’s approach of his wife: ‘Will he even assault the queen in my presence?’ He gives the command to execute Haman. When a perceptive attendant points out the gallows Haman made for Mordecai, the king commands to hang Haman on that (Est 7).

Mordecai elevated

The king proceeds to elevate Mordecai, whom he now perceives to be loyal and supportive, to Haman’s position. He gives Mordecai and Esther authority over Haman’s house, and also the permission to issue a counter-decree as they seem fit (Est 8:1-8).

The counter-decree

But the damage inflicted by Haman is not easily undone. According to the law of the Medo-Persians an edict sealed by the king cannot be revoked even by the king (Est 8:8). Mordecai and Esther only have one option left: to issue a decree that allows the Jews to defend themselves on the planned day of slaughter.
They word the decree carefully to ensure that only if someone is attacking them, the Jews are allowed to defend themselves. They are allowed to retaliate in the same measure as in Haman’s decree: kill, destroy, annihilate, plunder (Est 3:13, 8:11). This is a wise move, for it discourages violence altogether (for the non-Jewish and the Jewish side) and makes sure peaceful non-Jews would not be affected. It makes anyone think twice about attacking. Also the violence is limited to one day (and in Susa two days), not beyond.
When the day comes in 473 BC the Jews successfully defend themselves against their attackers (Est 9:2,9-10,15,16). It is noteworthy that though the Jews are allowed to loot the goods of their attackers according to the decree, the Jews do not actually do that. Three times the text mentions that they did not lay hands on the plunder. Maybe Mordecai instructed them to desist, so that the motive of greed would be taken out of the equation.

The Purim feast

To commemorate this great deliverance Esther and Mordecai institute the yearly feast of Purim (from the Persian word ‘pur’, meaning lot). They issue another empire-wide communication to the Jews, instructing them when and how to hold the feast. Esther and Mordecai ensure that future generations will know and remember what God did. They most likely together write the book of Esther at this time, with the purpose of ensuring remembrance and gratefulness.

The book of Esther

To this day the Jews fervently celebrate Purim. During the feast the book of Esther is read aloud. During the second world war the book of Esther gained new actuality with Hitler (a second Haman) and his efforts to annihilate the Jews. Esther was always a favorite with the Jews, though not with the Christians. The church fathers barely quoted it, and there wasn’t a Christian commentary for the book of Esther till the 7th century AD.
Maybe this was due to the fact that there is not a single quote or allusion to Esther in the New Testament; or maybe this was due to its nationalist tone. Typical Biblical themes like the law, prayer, sacrifices, temple, priests, Levites or prophets are not mentioned at all in Esther. Another peculiar feature of the book of Esther is that it doesn’t mention the name of God even once. But maybe that is precisely part of the literary design or strategy: In this excellently told story – with its drama, airtight timing and multiple ironic reversals – the author wants the reader to watch out for the hand of God. The God who works behind the scenes, but is intimately and powerfully involved with his people is the invisible hero of the story.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Who wrote?

• Author doesn’t identify himself … probably Esther & Mordecai, who are the true insiders, establishers of Purim feast
• The author has intimate knowledge of Persian court (Est 1:6-7), knows Persian names (Est 2:7), government details (which eunuch does what), but is strongly Jewish nationalist.
• Jewish parallelisms in the speeches indicate a Jewish author and Jewish readership (Est 5:3, 5:6, 5:8, 7:2, 7:3, 8:5)
• Some suggest Ezra (not yet in Jerusalem, somewhat similar themes, he has a relationship with Xerxes’s son Artaxerxes (Ezr 7:12). But Ezra comes up from Babylon, not Susa and why would he not mention God, law, worship?
• Some suggest Nehemiah, himself a official (cup bearer) at the Medo-Persian court of Xerxes’ son Artaxerxes (Neh 1), but this is some 30 years later.
• What lengths we go to just to conclude that this is not a female writer!

When written? Timeline of the story?

539 BC   Medo-Persia becomes world power when conquering Babylon in one night
538 BC   Edict of Cyrus to return to own place / rebuild temple
536 BC   first group of Jews return under Zerubbabel, temple started > foundation > then threatened > stopped
520 BC   temple restarted … Haggai & Zechariah as prophets
516 BC   temple completed
486 BC   Xerxes (Greek) / Ahasveros (Persian) starts to reign
483 BC   3rd year feast / Vashti deposed . Meeting to consider military expedition against Greece > dis-playing power and wealth. Xerxes deposes Vashti before war, takes Amestris with him to Greece
480 BC   Xerxes’ unsuccessful attempt to conquer Greece (as Darius I before him) … originally successful at Thermopylae and Athens, later defeated at sea in Salamis … a disillusioned king returns and consoles himself with members of his harem (Herodotus comments)
479 BC   7th y girl search / Esther picked up / 12 m beauty treatment
478 BC   8th y Esther made queen
474 BC   12th y Haman’s plot against the Jews / 11 m later killing day / Esther’s intercession
473 BC   13th y Jews victorious on the day / Purim instituted

• Esther was written probably shortly after 473 BC.
• Some say Est 9:32 could mean some time passed, therefore the need to explain, record and remember the story behind the feast. But it could also simply be part of the instituting and giving importance to the Purim feast.
• Esther thus happens between the 1st return (Zerubbabel) and the 2nd (Ezra), between Ezra ch 6 and 7, Ezra is still in Babylon, Nehemiah is still in Susa.

Written to whom?

• Jewish nationalist writing, anchoring a very Jewish deliverance feast, using Jewish parallelism > written to Jews
• Chapter 9-10 sound like an elaborate explanation > maybe written to a 2nd generation, definitely to future generations
• Maybe the readers were not that familiar with Persian (Est 9:26, Pur translated) > returned Jews in Jerusalem (?)
• Why is God not mentioned? > maybe protecting Jews under Persian rule from offensiveness? But then again the Jews came out strong, also the nationalistic tone would be more offensive than mentioning God, Persia is generous concerning religious freedom, decree of Cyrus mentions ‘the God at Jerusalem’ freely. Rather: excellent story, sending us seeking out the hand that moves the figures.
• > Jews throughout the Medo-Persian empire, probably especially those returned to Jerusalem

From where?

• If Esther / Mordecai then definitely Susa, the center of the empire and the location of the court

Significance

• showing God’s power and faithfulness to deliver the Jewish minority sprinkled througout a powerful vast empire at the point of gravest danger (annihilation)
• giving the story behind and institution of the Feast of Purim

Main figures

• do this later as character studies Ahasuerus, Esther, Mordecai, Haman

Surrounding nations – Medo-Persia

• 127 provinces, from Ethiopia to India, the world power, extremely wealthy
• excellent administration, communication, courier-system … clear oraganogram kind > presidents > satrap > province governor > local princes … accommodation for differences, languages, scripts
• law of the Medo-Persians, that cannot be changed > some accountability, some limitation to royal power
• respect of different nationalities, ethnicity, religion, languages
• Susa, one capital besides Babylon, Ecbatana and Persepolis. King’s highway: direct road to Sardes (King’s highway). Susa is winter capital (extremely hot in summer ). Excavated 1850 AD > found Hammurabi law code, throne room, harem, garden, gate house, lots (= pur).

Israel’s Spiritual Life

• These are the ‘did not return with Zerubbabel’ Jews
• Portrayed as having unity, fast, show faith, pay a high price to stick to their beliefs and high moral standards

Literary kind entirely in prose

• literal interpretation

Structure

• historical narrative, biographical

Composition

• skillful story telling building up of tension and weaving together the event (exposition > crisis > happy / bad end)
• use of contrasts and ironic reversals: Haman <=> Mordecai. Jews killed <=> enemies killed. Gallows <=> honor. Vashti refuses to appear before the king <=> Esther appears without permission.

Main Ideas

• God is powerfully, specifically and sovereignly working even in the court of the world power
• God’s providence, giving favor, raising up, arranging events, directing and orchestrating from behind the scene. He is fully effective in saving and in punishing
• Faithfulness, character, commitment, faith, courage, fear of God, integrity, taking responsibility is crucial and pays off
• Why and when and how to celebrate the Purim

Main Reasons

• So that the Jews would know and trust their powerful, providential, sovereign and caring God
• So that the Jews are encouraged in their faith, their national identity and their common culture in the Diaspora in exile
• Unifying, explaining and encouraging Purim practice
• Remind the Jews of their chosenness, calling, heritage, their active and promise-keeping God … also for the future

Special things about the book of Esther

• One of only two books in the Bible in which God’s name is not mentioned (Esther, Song of Solomon), but veiled references are there, like Est 4:14.
• Esther has no mention of prayer, worship, praise, law, covenant, only of fasting. The kings name is mentioned 150+ times.
• There are some theories that the name of God (Jehovah) can be made up of the initial letters of 4 parts of sentences in the story (Est 1:20, 5:4, 5;13, 7:7), once forward, once backward …
• But really there is no reason whatsoever for such secrecy, the Jews are victorious, Mordecai has great influence, God has sovereignly protected them, the Medo-Persian kings are friendly … and the book tries to teach to trust God even as a minority in a bigger thing, not through humans smartness, but through robust courage and faith.
• Esther is very popular and used with Jews (read out once a year at the Purim feast), though not with Christians.
• The New Testament does not quote Esther (the only book not to be quoted, as far as I know). Also the early church fathers barely ever quote it. There is no christian commentary on it till 7th century AD.
• The Septuagint gives Esther addendums (107 verses more): the dream of Mordecai & plot against the king (apocalyptic, gives the story cosmic significance), Decree of Artaxerxes, prayers of Mordecai & Esther, Esther apporaches the king, the decree of Artaxerxes (allowing the Jews self-defense), Dream interpreted.
• Septuagint > in the Vulgate: addemdums at the end of Esther > Reformation: addendums put into Apocrypha.
• Great significance to Jews
  
  • Assurance of God’s protection over his people, however severe the threat to their existence … Hitler
  • Feast of Purim – described origin and reason for the feast
• In Jewish synagogues the book of Esther is read during this feast, there are boos and shouts from the congregation when Haman’s name is mentioned. (Song of Solomon is read at the Passover, Ruth at Pentecost, Ecclesiastes at the festival of weeks / tabernacles / booths, Lamentations on the temple destruction remembrance day).
• But what does it mean for us non-Jews?

Symmetry of the Story Line

• Set around the pivotal point of turning point of Est 6:1 – the king’s sleepless night …
• skillfully told, pivotal moments, airtight timing … in this regard similar Joseph’s story (Gen 37-50) and maybe Daniel.
  
  • Ahasuerus’ splendor                                  Mordecai’s splendor
  • Mordecai & Esther save the king            Mordecai & Esther save Jews
  • Elevation of Haman                                  Elevation of Mordecai
  • plot against Jews                                       reversal of plot aginst Jews
  • Mordecai & Esther plan                           Mordecai & Esther plan
  • First banquet                                              Second banquet
  •                                         Sleepless night

Main Characters

Ahasuerus King of (Medo-)Persia

• In Greek his name is Xerxes I, in Persian Ahasuerus. He is mentioned over 150 times in the book.
• Greek historian Herodotus (born in modern day Turkey, an Ionian settlement at the time) describes him as an ambitious, bold warrior with vision and confidence, but suffering from superstitious fears, often sought advice and followed it. Was known for his expoits with women. After defeat in Greece (Salamis): concentration on harem.
• generous, luxury-loving, boasting, displaying wealth, wasteful(?)
• a bit naive in promoting and favoring and listening to counsel (like the eunuchs, then Haman’s)
• committed to Esther, not discriminating against her and her race, allowing minorities into highest positions (Mordecai)
  • arbitrary, his anger governs people’s lives, later remorse, manoevers himself into stupid situations, eye to the public
  • not very discerning (could have realized the connection of Mordecai and Esther Est 2:22).

Esther the heroine of the story

• The orphaned cousin of Mordecai, her father’s name is Abihail (Est 9:29)
• Her name in Hebrew = Hadassah (Est 2:7) means myrtle
• in Persian = Esther from Isthar (Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, sex, war, power) and Sitar (‘star’)
• The Persian name helped keep her nationality secret
• It is no evidence to support that king Artaxerxes I is Esther’s son, yet Esther may be the queen referred to in Neh 2:6
• Herodotus: Xerxes’s consort as being Amestris, the daughter of a Persian general renowned for her cruelty, who accompanied the king on the campaign to Greece. He divorced her because she attacked the mother of one of the king’s mistresses and nearly started a revolution.
• Either: Amestris = Esther (similar names) … but the son of Amestris and Xerxes (Artaxerxes I) was born before 483 BC and accompanied the king on the battle against Greece. ie. was born at least 20 years before Esther became queen
• Or Amestris = Vashti … but Amestris went to Greece AFTER the events of ch 1, when Vashti was deposed.
• Or: The king had more than one wife (very likely!) and Amestris was not described as a queen by Herodotus, rather she was a concubine currently in favour!
• Herodotus: wife of the king had to be chosen from one of the 7 noble families (see Est 1:14), the 7 princes of the Medes and Persians. Ahasuerus seemed to have quite a reputation with women, so this regulation was almost certainly ignored.
• Esther gets caught in the girl search … was that an honor? was is the play ground for pretty teenagers with ambitions? were girls / families scrambling to get in? or was it resented and feared?
• What do you think this type of setting would do to a pretty 14 year old? pride? self-focus? self-indulgence? comparison? competition? zicken-krieg? emotional craze? … kind of like a beauty peagant today. a playing field of the starlets. a forum of the young models. A total zoo.
• Esther is obedient, beautiful, respectful, gets favor with everybody. She is not only beautiful, but also humble and attractive in character.
• She only takes what Hegai recommends (they could keep the jewellery, presumably). This shows modesty, wisdom, no ‘thinking herself irresistable’, no unrealistic expectations … maybe conciously staying out of the craze, the pride, the self-indulgence … she is beautiful but not stupid enough to think everybody else ugly and unattractive.
• Esther’s relationship with Mordecai?
  
  • Esther is caring for Mordecai, trusted by him to understand the need of the hour, aware of her options and limitations.
  • She is able to (and seen by Mordecai as able to) reason, to rise to the challenge, to put herself on the line, to know what it takes, to know what to do. She has faith, courage, dependency on God, willingness to risk, to sacrifice.
  • She is lead by God it seems in delaying and doing a second banquet (no obvious reason), prudent in speech, polite, seems to really relate to the King, making her more than a concubine.

Mordecai the hero of the story

• Est 2:5 a Benjaminite, son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish. Kish who was exiled together with Jeoiachin of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar (597 BC) … Now is around 479 BC, so 118 y later, which could reasonably make the 4 generations mentioned
• Inscriptions from Persia mention a certain ‘Markukaya’ (a Babylonian name similar to Mordecai) who was a high official in the royal court of Susa during the reign of Xerxes I.
• (There is another Mordecai mentioned in Ezr 2:2 and Neh 7:7, one of the leaders of the exiles who returned with Zerubbabel in 536 BC (also mentioned in 1 Esdras 5:8) … can’t be him time-wise and also because he returns to Judah.)
• He is kind and caring to adopt his parent-less cousin Esther, keeps caring, inquiring after her being taken to the harem
• He is in some position at the court / gate, maybe involved in jurisdiction. He prevents an assassination, he is loyal to the Medo-Persian king, even when receiving no reward or acknowledgment. Not upset or at least not showing it.
• He is not fearing men, rather fearing God, committed to principle, convictions, no intrigues, no games, straightforward
• personal courage, integrity, believes Esther to be able to rise to the occasion, does not shelter her, speaks hard truth to her, his words portray strong faith (‘deliverance from another quarter’). He doesn’t hide-indulge-smother.
• He obeys her fasting command, he takes her for full, as self-acting, self-responsible, …The lesson of being faithful, even when forgotten. Mordecai clearly is committed to lawfulness, to being supportive of the current government, being a responsible citizens, even if the king is an idolator

Haman the bad guy

• Est 3:1 Haman, son of Hammedatha, the Agagite.
• Possibly a descendent of king Agag of the Amalekites, spared by Saul in disobedience to God (1 Sam 15:9). In which case, this story is a continuation of the conflict with the Amalekites started in Exo 17.
• The Jewish historian Josephus Flavius (NT times) describes Haman as an Amalekite
• Agag may also be the name of a district in the Persian empire, which is mentioned in an Assyrian inscription of Sargon.
• Haman’s name is not Jewish (Persian?), Haman’s father’s name Hammedatha (Medatha) is a Persian name.
• extremely wealthy, has 10 sons and many ‘friends’. He is willing and able to pay a lot of money for reaching his goals
• smart, politically savvy, astute, knows how to play the game and is considered able and trustworthy by Xerxes
• Est 3:7 … He is also superstitous, chosing the day of the massacre of the Jews by casting lots to find a ‘lucky day’
• end justifies means, arrogant, proud (Est 6:6 Whom would the king wish to honor more than me?), self-importance (Est 5:11-12 called for his friends / wife Zeresh … Haman recounted … all the promotions with which the king had honored him … ‘Esther let no-one but me come with the king to the banquet’ … in love with himself and power and honor
• Self-focus, self-pleasing, not generous, he can’t share or forego or release, (Est 6:13 ‘Yet all this does me no good so long as I see the Jews Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate’), not popular in the court (Est 7:9), not even his family seems too loyal (Est 6:13).

Understanding the Story

Why does Mordecai not bow to Haman?

• One common opinion: because this is a carry-over of the Israelite-Amalekite conflict. A Jew will not bow to an Amalekite.
• If that is so: Mordecai actually brings the hatred of a powerful vizier unto his people single-handedly … and an apology or humbling might have been attempted … then it’s sort of a battle of the stubborn and prideful. Most movies take this approach: Amalek vs Jew.
• Another opinion: Haman is Persian and Mordecai, who seems to see, hear and know a lot of things, is not impressed with his leadership, neither with the way he got himself so much power.
• Mordecai won’t please people for advantage, he is upright, honest, not flattering, not manipulating, not playing court-games, not doing politics, not wiggling his way out of it, not afraid, just doing what he thinks right
• He doesn’t seem to be intentionally public about it (offense in front of others), because Haman only only notices once people point Mordecai’s behavior out to him (Est 3:4)
• Once the focus is created, though, it becomes a continual offense (Est 3:5, 5:13).
• No fear of man, no ‘sucking up to the big shot’, he is quietly principled, lawful, faithful.

Why does Haman get so offended at Mordecai?

• There is no real reason, other than pride. Pride needs no other reason.
• Haman is so far above Mordecai in favor that he really doesn’t have a reason to worry about him.
• Once offense is taken, once pride bites, then everything becomes an un-escapable spiral.
• Also: Haman is annoyed with Mordecai for not bowing, before he ever knows which nation he is from (Est 3:6). The conflict (at least from Haman’s side) is not racial at all to start with, though later it turns racial.
• How easily we take offense, then everything becomes ‘personal’, ‘a matter of pride’, a ‘matter of not losing face’, having to ‘win’. Proverbs: overlook an offense.

Why does the King not inquire into what the reason behind Haman’s plot is? Why does he go for this deal?

• Haman tries to really get back, at Mordecai, even at his people … he does his homework:
• Est 3:8 Haman: “a certain people is scattered & separated among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom, their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not appropriate for the king to tolerate them. … I will pay 10’000 talents of silver into the … king’s treasuries…. edict to annihilate and plunder their goods.”
• The king has been manoevered himself stupid situations before, and made grand decisions that he later regretted (Vashti’s deposal, war with Greece)
• The king has been pleased before and agreed to self-indulgent proposals before (the girl search) … so a lucrative offer (10’000 talents of silver & looting for a thing that doesn’t bother me) may be considerable
• But maybe the argument is important: Medo-Persia is the accommodating empire, allowing much freedom but requiring a certain co-operation …
• ‘they are scattered everywhere’ … of course, that’s what Assyria & Babylon left behind
• they are different from every other people … yes, but that could be said of most, and Medo-Persia prides itself in the variety of languages and culture
• ‘they do not keep the kings law’ … that would be a claim needing investigation.
• The problem is, the king doesn’t inquire and investigate further, why?
• He really trusts Haman, he just advanced him beyond anyone else … he is known for liberal pleasing, generous agreements … and only later thinking.
• Maybe the casting lots for the day also influences Ahasuerus, who was known to be superstitious

Why does Haman’s family think that he is lost?

• upon hearing that Mordecai is a Jew or honored? Especially after hearing him say he is a Jew in Est 5:13 the day before?
• Either they just didn’t pay attention to any details, celebrating the advancement to even greater glory, and their own increase of consequence as relatives and friends of a person as powerful as Haman
• Or they are afraid that Haman’s politics are becoming contra-productive, Mordecai is playing politics better, so to make him the enemy is dangerous. Haman has outed himself against a possibly very powerful man (but Mordecai doesn’t know about the gallows yet)?
• Maybe they are annoyed at Haman’s self-pleasing attitude and want to scare him a bit, though they don’t believe what they are saying?
• or they are superstitious > afraid because of the incredible reversal brought about in a few hours, seeing it as an omen.

Why is the King so angry, when he actually agreed with Haman to do this?

• In a sense, there is nothing new revealed, except that Esther happens to be a possible victim … but everything else was known to the king and agreed upon before.
• Is the King just emotionally protective of Esther? Maybe. But it is equally likely that he will think that Esther not giving her identity but rising to this position was a form of conspiracy by this people that don’t obey the king, against him.
• Does he for the first time doubt Haman? recognizes him for a shrewd power schemer with personal agendas?
• Is he most of all annoyed at his own stupidity of letting himself be manouvered into this? to be fooled into being intolerant when Medo-Persia is actually not? of letting himself be so harnessed to another man’s vendetta? seeing Haman as power schemer for the first time?
• It’s very embarrassing to realize how stupid you were. It makes you angry at that person, and also angry at yourself, which is harder and so often turns into more anger over that person.

Chapter 8-9                 Decree and Counter-decree

• Est 3:13   Haman’s decree is a permission for anyone to kill, destroy and annihilate the Jews (men, women, children) and plunder their goods. No prosecution. No consequences.
  Haman artificially creates enmity that likely didn’t exist before by giving massive financial gain as incentive. Otherwise why would people engage in a bloodbath they have no or little reason for?
• Est 8:8    Medo-Persian Law: once a royal decree is issued, it cannot be revoked. See also Dan 6. They have law.
• Est 8:11   ‘permission to assemble and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill and to annihilate any amed force that might attack them, with their womena dn children, and to plunder their goods’.
  Since the decree can’t be abolished, Mordecai and Esther have no other choice than to issue a counter-decree allowing self-defense. Basically it is a permission to reciprocate on exactly the same terms as they are attacked.
• Est 9:2    The Jews gathered to lay hands on those who had sought their ruin, and no one could withstand them. … ?
• Est 9:10  Susa … Jews kill ten sons of Haman, kill about 500 people but they did not touch the plunder…?
• Est 9:15  Susa 2nd day … kill about 300 people, but did not touch the plunder
• Est 9:16  Province … Jews gathered to defend their lives, and gained relief from their enemies, and killed sevent-five thousand of those who hated them; but they laid no hands on the plunder. Here defense aspect is clear.
• It is amazing to see the consistent ‘no plunder’ though counter-plundering was clearly allowed. Did Mordecai instruct in this way? It sure seems so. He is trying not to create any other motivation in the Jews.
  We don’t like this, but it is quite fair. It would have had the effect of making everybody think twice before attacking the Jews in the first place.

Themes or the Theology of the book Esther

God’s providence, sovereignty, power, hand behind the scenes

• veiled but very much at work, efficiently, accurately, dramatically … airtight timing & great drama
• elevating a Jewish girl in advance so she will be where she needs to be some 4-5 y later
• making the ‘random’ request of 2 banquets
  
  • Est 6:1 the king not being able to sleep
  • Est 6:2 the reading of exactly the Mordecai passage
• Haman having to honor Mordecai just when he wanted to put him to the gallows
• the gallows for Mordecai is used for Haman

God’s sovereignty versus human responsibility

• Esther’s dilamma or challenge: trusting God while doing all you can … relying on him while not letting yourself off the hook … active, courageous faith … no abdicating of responsibility (can’t do anything) … feeling of fear, distress and powerlessness does not excuse me from doing what is right, from taking risks or from laying my life down
• Predestination versus human responsibility … no contrast, full interaction, full awareness, faith & action, fully both … everything depends on God & everything depends on my response and obedience now
• Comparison with Kings: God the sovereign, playing chess with peoples and individuals, absolute control … humans / kings … the fate and turn of nations depending on their little pride, their disobedience, their repentance … God makes all the difference and also human obedience makes all the difference …
• No true explanation of the age-old theological debate, but in the Bible the two are combined powerfully and organically and it is never presented as a contradiction
• Key Verse Est 4:13-14 … “Do not think that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quater, but you and your father’s family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for such a time as this.”
• Mordecai: Full assurance of faith > deliverance will come from somewhere else, God will do something … But at the same moment: Full responsibility > do this, even if it is a risk, not doing it is a sin, a cowardice.
• Also Mordecai is not overbearing, over wise, over interpreting nor outright manipulating … “I know this is why God put you in royal position” … rather: “Who knows? Perhaps …”
• He gives vision, perspective, sees calling, sees connections and connects the dots … but things don’t depend on that superior knowledge … whether or not you are sure, you must do the deed at hand, in spite of the risk, without guarantees
• The forever combination of God’s absolute sovereignty and human’s real responsibility. Predestination vs Human choice.
• Kings: God playing chess yet jumping at every repentance. We can’t totally understand, but we need to hold both truths.
• You are the captain of your ship. You decide where it goes. In the end you will also have nobody to blame.
• Continuum: in the beginning of our lives, all is circumstances, nothing is our choice. By the end of our lives: nothing is circumstance any more, all is due to our choices.

Costly obedience even when no assurance of success

• Full knowledge or assurance is not required for obedience and should not be demanded at all costs … do obey even on partial knowledge! Do the right thing even if no guarantee, without full assurance
• Lord of the Rings … to every one creature at many times it feels like doing or not doing the right thing, obeying or not obeying, giving up and not giving up will lead to the exact same result: doom, for there is no hope, nothing can be done, powerlessness, nothing I’ll do (good or bad) makes any difference
• This is theologically a sin, and mentally a stupidity, you don’t know the future, so you can’t be sure it won’t work. Hopelessness is a sin theologically, it is unreasonable mentally
• Powerlessness versus responsibility … the mindset of ‘I can’t do anything’ is one that God always combats. There is always one right thing to do right before you. It is completely possible, just to ask forgiveness, just to admit something, just to pray for somebody, just let go of this one thing … Do not covet connection … don’t worry about this that and the other person or circumstance but you do this now.
• Not escaping the present … remorse about the past, fear about the future paralyzes our ability to see what we can do now. God’s focus is always on you and on now.
• God’s long hand behind the scenes … it’s so hard to see this in crisis … we need God’s thinking and perspective on our lives, the happening in our surroundings or the world events. We need Mordecais who love us but sorely challenge us.
• Example: financial melt-down
• Example: scary world turn overs or breakdown have alsways happened … but though unshakable empires and nations may have disappeared, history continues, new starts happen, God keeps working.
• No giving into debilitating fear, no false security either, trusting in God in the middle of it all.