Esther 3: 1 – 15
Mr. Big Shot
1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him. 2 And all the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage. 3 Then the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?” 4 Now it happened, when they spoke to him daily and he would not listen to them, that they told it to Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for Mordecai had told them that he was a Jew. 5 When Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay him homage, Haman was filled with wrath. 6 But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him of the people of Mordecai. Instead, Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus—the people of Mordecai. 7 In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, the lot), before Haman to determine the day and the month, until it fell on the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. 8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore, it is not fitting for the king to let them remain. 9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be written that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who do the work, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.” 10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 And the king said to Haman, “The money and the people are given to you, to do with them as seems good to you.” 12 Then the king’s scribes were called on the thirteenth day of the first month, and a decree was written according to all that Haman commanded—to the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province, to the officials of all people, to every province according to its script, and to every people in their language. In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written, and sealed with the king’s signet ring. 13 And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions. 14 A copy of the document was to be issued as law in every province, being published for all people, that they should be ready for that day. 15 The couriers went out, hastened by the king’s command; and the decree was proclaimed in Shushan the citadel. So, the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was perplexed.
Last week we learned about a beautiful nobody who came onto the scene and became the queen of the known entire world. This lovely and godly woman in her trust and obedience to the guidance of her god-fearing step father was picked over every gorgeous woman living at this time.
Today we are going to learn about the flip side of achievement. We are going to come across an egotistical evil man who flattered his way to importance. Underneath his smooth words lay an evil heart. When he failed to receive the adoration from a government worker he became so hateful that he not only wanted to have this servant killed but wanted to show the rest of the world how important he was that he planned to kill every man, woman, and child that was the same nationality.
Haman from Agagi is appointed as Ahasuerus’ Grand Vizier, with a requirement being made of special homage, a homage beyond the norm, which Mordecai, as a Jew, is unwilling to offer, probably because he feels that it breached the second commandment not to bow down to or worship images. This causes Haman to determine the destruction of all Jews, and he sets about discovering a date for this which would be pleasing to the gods by the casting of Pur (the sacred lot), probably in dice form Discovering such a date may well have convinced him that the gods were in favour of his actions, and may have formed part of his argument before the king. But the book will go on to show that ‘Pur’ is overruled, resulting in the celebration of ‘Purim’ before God. Cold fate is replaced by Feasting over deliverance.
Ahasuersus advances Haman the Agagite as his favourite, setting him above all his chief princes, and requiring all people, including the highest princes to make obeisance to him. This obeisance was clearly much more than the normal courtesies, which all the princes would receive, for it was a strict requirement of Ahasuerus. So even without Mordecai’s reaction we might have seen it as indicating a kind of homage that was akin to worship. And that is clearly how Mordecai saw it. This is quite feasible for we soon discover that Haman is seeking the highest glory. What then more likely that he wanted to be seen as a kind of semi-divine figure? And only this makes sense of Mordecai’s response, for he would have had no difficulty with bowing low before the king and princes, a practice which was full scriptural and would have been performed by him many times. Nor for any other reason would he have refused to obey the king’s decree. To despise Haman would be one thing. To deliberately disobey the king’s decree quite another. This would suggest that Haman had loaded the requirements with his own interpretation, making people treat him as a kind of godlike being, something which Mordecai, himself an official of some importance (otherwise he would have been more summarily dealt with), felt was contrary to God’s Law. We must remember that ‘sitting at the gate’ (performing his official duties there) he would constantly be required to bow deeply before important people. It must then have been something very special that made him so unwilling.
But why is Haman called ‘the Agagite’? There is in fact no good reason for connecting this idea that he was an Agagite with the Amalekite king Agag (Numbers 24.7; 1 Samuel 15.8 ff). That king’s descendants, if there were any, would not have been called Agagites. They would rather have been called Amalekites. And besides Agag was probably a throne name like Pharaoh and Abimelech, not a family name.
1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him.
It was quite normal for ancient kings to have favorites, and to appoint them to positions of supreme authority. And that is what Ahasuerus (Xerxes) did to Haman.
So Haman was advanced and given an exalted position above all the aristocracy of Medo-Persia. He was made second only to the king, and a decree had been put forth by the king that he should be ‘worshipped’. That this meant more than simple obeisance comes out in that it had to be established by decree. In general, obeisance before the Grand Vizier would be automatically assumed. People were required to fall on their faces before him, apart possibly from the seven nobles who ‘saw the king’s face’. But here something extra was being asked for that went beyond normal submission. Mordecai probably considered that, whilst not necessarily claiming to be a god, Haman was seeking godlike honors.
2 And all the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage.
These were the high ups of the empire who in service to the king would be ‘in the king’s gate’, available for his summons. Seemingly they would gather each day within the huge gateway of the palace to be ready for the king’s pleasure. They were to be always available. The huge gateway would provide a place of shade from the hot sun, and no doubt their needs were catered for by servants. Even these great men did reverence to Haman when he passed through, prostrating themselves before him in full homage at the king’s command. But this went beyond what Mordecai was prepared to do. He was presumably perfectly prepared to humble and prostrate himself in the normal way. He would certainly have had to do so before the king, and probably before the seven nobles. But what he was not prepared to do was offer what he saw as the equivalent of worship. Thus while he no doubt acknowledged Haman’s high position by giving him due honour, (otherwise Haman would have noticed him earlier), what he would not do was give him the equivalent of worship.
3 Then the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?”
The difference between his obeisance and that of the other king’s servants was noticeable enough for attention to be drawn to it. So as responsible officials the ‘king’s servants, challenged Mordecai as to why he was disobeying the kings direct decree. The fact that once they had done this they did not immediately have him arrested and impaled suggests that Mordecai must have been a man of enough authority to require careful handling. They were seemingly prepared to consider his feelings, and to recognize that he may well have had special permission for his behaviour. They were wary about what they did to one of the ‘king’s servants.
It is unfortunate that we do not know what his defense was. Quite possibly he pointed out that what was being required went beyond what was what should be offered to a mere man (and that it therefore went beyond what a Jew could offer on the grounds of his religion.
4 Now it happened, when they spoke to him daily and he would not listen to them, that they told it to Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for Mordecai had told them that he was a Jew.
It is apparent that the ‘king’s servants’ (high officials) went to a great deal of trouble over the matter. They reasoned with him daily seeking to persuade him to fulfil the requirements of the kings decree, rather than summarily bringing him to justice. This would again seem to indicate that he held a very important position. But he countered by explaining to them that he was a Jew, presumably arguing that as such he could not disobey the second commandment of the Jew’s covenant with God (Exodus 20.4-6), a central feature of his religion. Since cringing submission was a regular feature of life in those days, this may signify that Jews had been given special concessions, as they would be later by the Romans, and that Mordecai was depending on those concessions. (This would help to explain Haman’s reaction as he revealed his vindictiveness, not only against Mordecai, but against the whole Jewish race. And it would explain why he so disliked their laws - verse 8).
5 When Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay him homage, Haman was filled with wrath.
Haman was unaware of Mordecai’s attitude until the matter was brought to his attention by the high-level officials. This would suggest that Mordecai did fulfil what he saw as the proper courtesies, and that this was enough to make his behavior not appear to be too outlandish, otherwise he would have been spotted immediately. What he refused to do was participate in the excesses. That this was so comes out in that he lived where he did. Had he refused all submission he would simply not have survived. He would have been executed long before. They were not tolerant days.
But on learning that Mordecai refused the full submission that he required Haman was ‘furious’. Furthermore, when Mordecai’s explanation was made known to Haman, that Jews did not worship men, that fury became aimed at the Jews as a whole. He saw their attitude as a personal insult to himself.
6 But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him of the people of Mordecai. Instead, Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus—the people of Mordecai.
This possibly caused Haman to make enquiries about the Jews and what he learned clearly incensed him. What was known of them was made known to him. Here were a people who would not be willing to submit to his whims because of their strange religious laws, a people who in their captivity would nevertheless not fully bow down to their conquerors because they worshipped the living God. We know from later that he was well a megalomaniac, for he sought royal honors for himself with a view to his own exaltation (6.1 ff). So, this attitude would have appeared to him as beyond reason. How dared they hold this view? It was clear to his eyes that such people had to be exterminated. He was a good example of extreme megalomania. How he would go about destroying them will now be described.
He may well, of course, not have known just how many Jews there were in the empire, nor of their resettlement in Palestine. What he was out to remove were a people whose foolish ideas meant that they would not pay to him the obeisance that he required. That was why they had to be exterminated. Note the emphasis on ‘the people of Mordecai’. They were associated with Mordecai’s attitude.
Haman, obsessed with his idea, casts sacred lots to determine when the annihilation of the Jews would take place, possibly prior even to approaching the king. He had no doubts that he would be able to persuade the king. And the lot fell on a date in the last moon period of the year. This gave almost a whole year before the plot could be carried out. But like all the people of his day, he felt totally bound by the will of the gods and would not therefore have dared to carry out his plan sooner. In their view to have done so would have been to court disaster. It should be noted here that no indication is given by the author, of the religious sentiment that caused this approach. He excludes all reference to religion, whether Jewish or Persian. But the whole of society in those days was controlled by religious ideas, and any reader would assume them.
Haman then set about persuading the king of the rebellious nature of the Jews. This was not difficult in view of their history and the way in which they insisted on carrying out the Torah and associated traditions in the face of their neighbors, including the observance of the Sabbath. It could be represented as setting them at odds with the empire and its gods. And to the king this would appear heinous. He was constantly aware of peoples who fermented revolution against his empire. He had just had to crush the Egyptians. So, the thought of seething rebellion among a group spread throughout the empire would have been too much. And he relied on his advisers. It is apparent, however, that he had ceased to enquire carefully into such situations. H had ceased to rule on his own initiative. He too was probably not aware of quite how several people would be involved. Nor would he probably have cared. But once he had made the decree there was no going back on it.
7 In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, the lot), before Haman to determine the day and the month, until it fell on the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.
Haman probably chose the New Year as being the propitious time at which to determine a date for the massacre of the Jews. It was the time at which, at least according to the Babylonian religion, the gods also come together to fix the fate of men. And it left the whole of the coming year available for the selection of a propitious date. Accordingly, in that initial moon period he summoned before him the wise men skilled in determining portents and called on them to determine the date fixed on by the gods. This was done by the casting of ‘pur’, that is, of dice or lots, and it appears that in doing this they worked through the year day by day and moon period by moon period until they came to the twelfth moon period, which is the moon period Adar. It was only in this last that the lot gave a propitious date satisfying to the gods, the thirteenth day of the moon period Adar (verse 13). To us it might appear absurd to wait that length of time once the decree had been issued, but to the ancient oriental mind to go against the determinations of the gods would have been even more absurd. Fate (the gods) had determined the date, and to act against it would be to court disaster. Outwardly the Jews are seen as in the hands of Fate, but that is a major point of the book, that in fact they were watched over by One Who controlled ‘fate’. Pur was overruled by the God of Purim.
The statement ‘In the twelfth year of king Ahasuerus’ signifies that it is about four to five years after Esther had become queen that this happened. (2.16).
8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore, it is not fitting for the king to let them remain.
Having determined on the destruction of the people whom he recognized would be unwilling to offer him the obeisance that he required (and thus possibly encourage others to do the same), Haman now had to persuade the king. And he set about this by playing on the king’s constant fear of rebellion in the empire. It is noteworthy that he did not mention the identity of the people whom he was aiming to destroy, rather hoping that the king would not ask too many questions. At the same time he portrayed the Jews as an incipiently rebellious people. Their history had shown this to be so, while Jewish continuing insistence on obedience to the Torah and what were seen as their resulting strange ways, regularly aroused people’s opposition to them, and no doubt the anger of local authorities. History is full of examples of how this was so. Who at the commencement of the twentieth century would have dreamed that it was possible that a modern sophisticated nation would have set about the task of the annihilation of the Jews? But under Hitler it was so. It is no more unlikely that a similar megalomaniac would seek to accomplish the same at a time when annihilations were more commonplace, against a people against whom there was prejudice. And Haman cleverly played on their known peculiarities. It was not difficult to build up from this a conspiracy theory depicting an unnamed people (the Jews), who kept themselves separate from others, and had infiltrated the empire, as a people plotting against the empire.
Note how he underlines the fact that they could be found everywhere throughout the empire (‘in all the provinces’) engaged in their seditious activity. And how they had their own laws which superseded those of the king, so that they were already disobedient to the king’s laws, and thus already latently in rebellion. It was clearly not to the king’s advantage to allow such behavior to continue. These were, of course, exaggerations, but there was enough truth in them to make them feasible. Being constantly dependent on his advisers, and inherently antagonistic towards insurgents, there would be no difficulty in persuading the king that the quicker the matter was dealt with the better. But even the king should not have allowed these words to pass without enquiry.
9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be written that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who do the work, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.”
Haman added to his argument the financial benefits that would accrue to the empire. He guaranteed spoils of at least ten thousand talents of silver, a huge sum in modern terms, which would accrue to the king’s treasury, because of the destruction of this unnamed people. That the sum was to come from the spoils, and not from Haman’s own resources, is confirmed by the fact that in verse 11 the king speaks of the silver as to be ‘given to Haman’.
10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews.
It is noteworthy that the king responded to Haman without seeking to his advisers for guidance. In chapter 1, in the case of Vashti, he had sought counsel from his wise men based on the past and the will of the gods in accordance with custom (1.13). In chapter 2 he had sought counsel from his personal attendants (2.2, 4). Now he acted without enquiry based on the vague information given to him by Haman. There is a clear diminution in his sense of responsibility. He has become a tool in the hands of Haman. Thus without any examination into the matter he accepted the vague assurances of Haman and gave Haman the ring from his finger with which to seal the decree which would be issued by Haman. It was a complete abdication of responsibility. Note the description of Haman as ‘the Jew’s enemy’. The king is seen as neutral. It is Haman who is their enemy. But Haman could not have achieved his aim had Ahasuerus been more vigilant. For as 1.13 makes clear, ‘it was the king’s custom to consult with experts in matters of law and judgment’. And in this case this is what he failed to do.
‘‘And the king took his ring from his hand and gave it to Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite.’ The solemn and official nature of this act is brought out by Haman being given his full title. No other would have the right to use it except the one defined.
11 And the king said to Haman, “The money and the people are given to you, to do with them as seems good to you.”
The king revealed his total apathy by putting everything into Haman’s hands. Haman must do as seemed good to him. The king was not thereby handing over the money to Haman, but simply leaving him to deal with it properly (4.7 indicates that most of it would go into the king’s treasury). Had Haman kept all the money he would soon have experienced the king’s anger. Ahasuerus’ point was that he was trusting Haman to do the right thing, both with the errant people and with the spoils. But by this he was failing in his duty towards his people. Ahasuerus is clearly seen to be at fault.
While the first decree is sealed with the king’s seal it is the product of Haman. It requires the destruction of all Jews. This decree is then dispatched by fast couriers who take it in relays to every part of the empire, in such a way as to reach people of every tongue. The consequence of this is that the Empire begins to prepare for the slaughter of the Jews, whilst the Jews themselves go into a period of mourning and fasting. This decree will finally be remedied by the issue of a second decree demonstrating the Empire’s favor towards the Jews, a decree which results in feasting and celebration among the Jews (8.7-17).
12 Then the king’s scribes were called on the thirteenth day of the first month, and a decree was written according to all that Haman commanded—to the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province, to the officials of all people, to every province according to its script, and to every people in their language. In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written, and sealed with the king’s signet ring.
Because of the authority given to him Haman called together the king’s scribes together with a view to the writing of an edict against the Jews. This was accomplished on the thirteenth day of the first moon period, the moon period of Nisan. And in that edict was written all that Haman purposed to do against the Jews, ‘to destroy, to slay and to cause to perish all Jews’, whether men, women or children. The edict was sent as a command to the king’s ‘satraps’ (derived from a Persian word), who presided over the satrapies, and to the governors over each of the provinces, and to all the chiefs of the peoples, and to all the people, copies of it being translated into their own language.
‘In the first moon period, on the thirteenth day of it.’ No Jew could fail to recognize that at the deliverance from Egypt this was the day before the night of deliverance on the 14th of Nisan. Haman possibly chose the date because it was on the thirteenth day of the twelfth moon period that the edict would be carried out. God chose it because it was a reminder to His people of approaching deliverance.
13 And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions.
Letters were sent by relays of fast horsemen to all the king’s provinces. Their content was unequivocal. No Jew was to be spared. Men, both young and old, little children, and all Jewish women were to be annihilated. Notice the threefold description indicating intensity and certainty. They were to be ‘destroyed - slain - and caused to perish’. The work was to be done thoroughly, and their goods were to be taken as spoil on behalf of the king. The words reflect the intensity of Haman’s hatred. And this was to be done on the day chosen by lot, the thirteenth day of the twelfth moon period.
It should be noted how invidious was the position of the Jews. No doubt they would seek to defend themselves. But even by doing so they would be committing treason, thereby demonstrating the accuracy of Haman’s depiction of them and heaping even greater wrath on themselves. They would be accountable for every man they killed, especially those carrying out official duties. They could, of course, flee the empire. Haman might not have minded that, for then they would provide no opposition or insult to him. But they would have had to leave most of their wealth behind and would forever have been fugitives. Their prospects were gloomy indeed.
14 A copy of the document was to be issued as law in every province, being published for all people, that they should be ready for that day.
The letters sent out indicated that the king’s decree for the annihilation of the Jews should be given out in every province to ‘all the peoples’ so that preparations might be made for its fulfilment in each province on the propitious day. All were to be in readiness to carry out the king’s decree on that day. ‘Copy’ is very much a Persian loan word found only in Ezra and Esther.
15 The couriers went out, hastened by the king’s command; and the decree was proclaimed in Shushan the citadel. So, the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was perplexed.
The king’s postal messengers sped on their fast horses in every direction, at the king’s command, carrying the king’s decree, just as they had previously done in the case of the disgracing of Vashti (1.22). And as would be expected the decree was given out in the palace area itself.
All such messages would be carried ‘at speed’, but it may well be that Haman had hurried them on lest the king question him further about the decree. Once it was publicized the king would not be able to withdraw because he had effectively sealed the decree.
The king and Haman were totally undisturbed by what they had done. They ‘sat down to drink’. They were sublimely unconcerned. But the people of the city were not undisturbed. They were disturbed and perplexed. They could not understand why this terrible thing was going to be done.
