The Book of Esther bears a strong hint of Ezra's hand as the final editor. While widely condemned for mentioning neither God nor the Law, it was clearly regarded by Jews as part of their canon, and was preserved largely as the basis for the Feast of Purim. The feast has little spiritual significance, but is more of a civil-historical celebration filled with symbolism. For example, the feast ends with the admonition that celebrants drink themselves into a stupor, celebrating their continued existence as a people long after the Medo-Persian Empire faded away, along with the drunken celebration of Xerxes that nearly ended their existence as a nation. Only the hand of God could explain the result of this tale. We have no reason to doubt it actually happened.
Esther -- Xerxes came to power in 486 BC, rising from the ranks of the Persian half of the empire. From his predecessor, Darius the Mede, he inherited a desire to spread the empire into Greece. However, he was a weaker man in many ways. There were three imperial palaces: Ecbatana was the original capital in Media, Persepolis was the newer capital farther south in modern Iran. While the old captured Babylon was used at times, the latter Medo-Persian Emperors favored Susa (or Shushan), in the old Elamite territory. It was this latter palace which Xerxes had decorated extravagantly, with jewels inlaid in the floor, gold and silver furniture, and so forth.
In his third year on the throne (483 BC), Xerxes was ready to try Greece again. He called for his officials to gather for 180 days of strategy meetings, which was climaxed by a wine party. Rather than the usual minimum requirement, everyone was permitted to drink as much or as little as they wished. As we might expect, most spent the seven days roaring drunk. Xerxes was a man more concerned with his reputation than with actual accomplishment. Already overly proud when sober, Xerxes in his inebriated state ordered his ranking consort, Vashti, to come prance before his drunken mob. Her physical perfection was legendary, and he wished to show off his trophy woman as icing on the cake. No one would ever forget his greatness, at least during his lifetime. We note as an aside his official wife was some other woman, by whom his heir would be born. Wives were a matter of law and treaty; actual pleasure was taken via any number of consorts and concubines.
The seven eunuchs reported back Vashti's refusal. Vashti was taken with the same pride as her husband, and feared losing her own reputation. It was fashionable at that time for women to push their own agenda, and the ruling noblemen and princes resented it. There were probably some partisan politics involved, but the parties can't be easily identified. Xerxes consulted his advisors, who took advantage of the situation to stroke his ego and get him to enact some social legislation. They insisted he make Vashti's retirement an imperial decree, thus permanent. This meant she would remain with the harem, but in isolation, losing the very public status she sought to preserve in refusing to parade before the drunks. It would be also be irrevocable, insuring she would not be in a position to take revenge on the advisors. Delivering the decree, throughout an empire that stretched from the Indus River to Ethiopia, was pretty efficient by a sort of pony express. It was the translation into the hundreds of languages that would take up the most time. Thus, the primary focal point of this decree was the language spoken in any home -- it must be that of the man who owned it. In a world where men took multiple wives from various national backgrounds to show off, conspiring wives might resort to their native tongue to keep their husbands out of their business.
Xerxes went off to war with Greece from 481-479 BC. While he beat the Spartans and occupied Athens, he lost a naval battle off Salamis and was driven out. It was during these bad times Xerxes began longing for the most beautiful of his harem, Vashti. This brought fear to his advisers. Not only would a restored Vashti threaten them, but any replacement normally taken from among the upper noble families would be in complete sympathy with her, seeking ways to nullify the edict which took away their social influence. They thus proposed a beauty pageant from the foreigners and lesser nobles of the empire. Once rounded up, the eunuchs proceeded making them ready. Every candidate spent a year in what amounted to a beauty spa in the harem facility. This harem was separate from the palace. The latter was a very public place, while the harem was isolated from the rest of the world.
We are introduced to Mordecai, a Benjamite of Saul's clan, Kish. This man had been employed in some capacity in the imperial court owing to his position as a nobleman of Judah (former royal family). He shrewdly sought means to influence events on behalf of his nation. He had raised a younger cousin as his own daughter, since she was orphaned. She is described as having not only a grand physical beauty, but a singular feminine grace that stole everyone's heart. The round-up had been indiscriminate of nationality, and Mordecai instructed Esther not to mention being Jewish. When her turn came to visit with Xerxes, she won his heart, and was given the place of honor vacated by Vashti. Reading between the lines, we see the wisdom of Mordecai plotting an end to the long years of harassment from the enemies of Judah. His tactics and weapons were Esther's promotion to Queen-Consort.
In order to start things off with a bang, Mordecai took advantage of his inside knowledge of the palace. The disgrace of Vashti surely stirred considerable controversy, along with the decree of household languages. Quite likely, the two doorkeepers were related in some way to Vashti, and took advantage of the parade of virgins to plot their revenge. The selection of Esther doomed any hope of Vashti's return to power. Overhearing this conspiracy to assassinate Xerxes, Mordecai passed word through the palace servants to Esther, who revealed it to her husband on Mordecai's behalf. An investigation confirmed the report and the assassins were executed in the favored method of hanging from a public gallows.
Mordecai's constant proximity to the palace set the stage for trouble. Some four years later (474 BC) a man named Haman had gained the Emperor's favor, and was promoted to Viceroy -- second in the Empire. He was even more vain than Xerxes, and a slimy manipulator, too. It was common in that part of the world for subjects to bow before their rulers. There were degrees of bowing depending on the relative position of each. Persian rulers demanded all bow to them as to a deity. It was this sort of bowing Mordecai, along with all other Jews, refused to do. It had long been tolerated, as Jews were known to be peculiar in many ways. Mordecai probably bowed to Haman as to any mortal king, which infuriated the arrogant Viceroy. Indeed, he was too arrogant to summarily execute the older man, but decided to exterminate his kind. Upon learning it was a matter of Jewish ways, he convinced Xerxes to prepare a day to massacre the whole race. It was at the beginning of their year (April). Conferring with astrologers over the best day, along with casting of lots (pur in the old Persian tongue), Haman chose a time almost a full year later. The Samaritans, Edomites, and many others in the land near Judah were salivating at the prospect. Haman lied about the extent of Jewish oddities, and promised a huge windfall from confiscation of their property, easily worth ten times the annual tribute from the empire. This was probably accurate, given the Jews' newfound love of trade and banking. While banking and finance had been learned by Solomon from the Sidonians, it was never so prevalent among Jews as it was in Babylon. They had become quite wealthy as a nation.
Xerxes seemed indifferent to the fate of these people he hardly knew about, and gave Haman his signet ring. He also offered to pay the initial expenses of expediting the messengers outside the routine imperial traffic, and preparing for the slaughter. Such a major action would be carried out mostly by mercenaries, given a warrant to execute for a cut of the plunder. These would be mustered with an initial payment and/or delivery of weapons. Their commission would require they return a set percentage of the plunder back to the throne. The rest they could keep. Most of Judah's enemies needed no such enticement, however. Plenty of them were simply envious of Jewish wealth. Meanwhile, the entire capital city was abuzz with such an unusual decree.
Throughout the Empire, Jews joined in fasting and praying, mourning in sackcloth and ashes. Mordecai managed to get a copy of the decree, plus details of the deal Haman made with Xerxes. It was forbidden to show unhappiness before the Emperor unless he wanted it that way. Thus, Mordecai could not enter the palace grounds, but stood at the gate demonstrating his distress. Esther sent Mordecai garments that would allow him to cover the sackcloth and enter the gates, probably to find out from him what was afoot, but he refused. Thus, their conversation was by way of an intermediary eunuch. Mordecai revealed the full details of the cause of his sorrow. Esther replied she would be of little help. Xerxes was not planning to see her for sometime, and simply going in to see him was forbidden by ancient custom. Everyone who came before the Emperor must be summoned first. Mordecai warned her it didn't matter; she had nothing to lose. She could risk dying by breaking the custom, or die for sure when the edict of extermination was carried out. At least with the former offered some hope of saving her people. Her final response was to request a covenant of fasting and praying with her three days for this specific issue, then she would attempt to enter the throne room.
The one exception to this rule of entering the court unbidden was if the Emperor extended his scepter in a sign of pardon for disturbing him. In this Esther succeeded. Whatever had distracted him for the past month that he had not seen her was swept aside upon sight of her. Clearly, it was the wisdom of Jehovah guiding her, as she proposed a private banquet to honor Xerxes and Haman. This was quite the opposite of Vashti, who disdained merely being seen at his official banquet. Esther, at great risk, wanted to offer him a banquet she prepared to honor him and his viceroy. He jumped at the chance to take a break, and ordered Haman to appear immediately.
At the banquet, Xerxes made an extravagant offer. Sensing she had not yet gained enough leverage, she repeated the offer of a banquet the next evening. Each time, Haman passed through the gate, with Mordecai's intransigence over bowing gnawing at him. It contrasted starkly with the Queen's signal honors. He called his wife and friends to advise him. When he recounted all his good fortune, yet incomplete with this one nagging imperfection of honor, they suggested he prepare a gallows 75 feet high (23 meters) in his own courtyard. This would be visible all over the city, even from the Imperial Palace. It could be finished overnight, and he could ask the Emperor permission to hang Mordecai on it the next day.
Suffering a sleepless night by the hand of God, Xerxes ordered his official records read to him. It appears he was afflicted with a conscience. Perhaps he had forgotten to render proper honor somewhere? Indeed, there was Mordecai, who had saved the Emperor's life by revealing an assassination plot. Finding nothing had been done to reward the man, Xerxes needed to consult an advisor, according to custom, to rectify matters. By now it was morning, and the only adviser present was the Viceroy. Haman had come quite early to request Mordecai's execution. Before he could present his request, Xerxes had a query about honoring someone. In his arrogance, Haman thought it merely a ploy to see what would make his day. So he told Xerxes what he wanted for himself, each a signal honor in itself by the standards of that day. He described these honors only to learn it was intended for his enemy, Mordecai. Worse, he had cut his own throat by suggesting this honor come at the hand of a high ranking prince. Haman was the only prince at hand to carry out his own public humiliation. It took most of the day. Mordecai resumed his place at the gate; it was Haman's turn to mourn.
Conferring afresh with his family at home, Haman was warned. If things had turned around so abruptly, it was the hand of the Jewish God. Jehovah was feared superstitiously, and was presumed to act rarely, but swiftly and completely, regardless of other gods. Before Haman could contemplate his doom, the imperial eunuchs arrived to hustle him off to Esther's banquet.
At the banquet, with the final course of wine served, Xerxes again pledged to answer any request she could make. By offering up to half his empire, we note it was all he could do. While he ruled the whole of the Medes and Persians, he couldn't obligate the Medes to just anything without consultation, only his own Persian people. Thus, he offered everything within his real power. Her response was clearly no small matter -- her entire nation had been sentenced to death. She explained it in terms of greed. In reality, this extermination would cost the Empire a great deal in economic terms. Jews were likely the most productive people in the Empire, and their economic activity spilled over to bless everyone. Simply confiscating their property -- making them slaves -- would bring the imperial treasury a great deal of wealth and preserve their productive presence. Killing them would diminish the wealth of the Empire.
Xerxes still did not connect this to his decree against the Jews. When he asked who would do such a horrible thing, she fingered Haman. It hit Xerxes all at once how Haman had been manipulating him. It seemed almost as if Haman was a member of the party supporting Vashti, using the cover of this complaint about Jewish customs and wealth to get rid of Esther and pave the way for Vashti's return. Xerxes went out into the private garden, in the cool night air, to compose himself. Meanwhile, Haman begged Esther for his life. She had remained in a relaxed pose on a couch. So animated was Haman he prostrated himself on the end of her couch, at which moment Xerxes came back into the room. In his stormy mood, he took in the scene and assumed the worst, that Haman was attempting to assault Esther in Xerxes' very presence. Whatever came next, the exclamation from Xerxes was a death warrant for Haman, so the attending servants covered his face, according to custom for condemned men. One of the servants present was a eunuch who had been sent to fetch Haman for the banquet. He pointed out how appropriate it would be to hang Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. So it was ordered.
Further justice was to allow Esther, the potential victim, to dispose of the guilty man's assets. Upon revealing Mordecai, the man recently honored, was her next of kin, Xerxes had him replace Haman in court. With yet one piece of unfinished business, Esther again went through the risky process of gaining official audience with Xerxes, and tearfully pleaded for her nation's survival. While there was no means to rescind the decree against the Jews, there was one way they might survive. Xerxes told Esther to confer with her uncle, now the Viceroy with the signet ring, and they could do as they liked. Their plan was to decree the Jews should be allowed to muster for their own defense and could legally kill their enemies. The message carried by the imperial mail riders two months after Haman's decree was a cause for celebration throughout the Empire.
When the fateful day arrived, 7 March 473 BC, things had completely reversed. Mordecai was more famous than Haman had dreamed. His influence was sufficient to find the Jews reinforced with imperial troops. Those who had harassed the Jews all this time were arrested, and many were executed. The few who dared attempt going after the Jews were slaughtered. Xerxes was pleased, and told Esther to make another request. She asked for a second day in Susa alone, since the decree could hardly be relayed across the Empire so quickly. It was granted, and the sons of Haman were killed, and many more enemies were arrested. However, the Jews were careful not to plunder the property. This was to make clear there was no intent to profit from blood, but only to obtain justice for hostile acts against them.
The aftermath was a day of celebration, and they called it Purim, the plural of the word for lots cast in fortune telling. Because the residents of Susa had a second day, there was some variance in celebration. Mordecai decreed both days would be celebrated. A few years later, he added a decree to observe the tense days before their victory with fasting and praying. It would be a long time before anyone rose to oppress the Jews again. Xerxes died in 465 BC. In just a few years, Ezra would lead another group returning to their home in Judah.
[ Return to Lesson Index ]
[ <-- Previous Lesson ]
[ --> Next Lesson ]
Ed Hurst
23 July 2005
COPYRIGHT NOTICE: People of honor need no copyright laws; they are only too happy to give credit where credit is due. Others will ignore copyright laws whenever they please. If you are of the latter, please note what Moses said about dishonorable behavior -- "be sure your sin will find you out" (Numbers 32:23)