· Esther 3:1: In this story there is an intensely wicked man, an enemy of the Jews, named Haman. How is it that he is so hateful? He is very much a “Hitler” sort of man, especially since he shared Hitler’s desire to get rid of the Jews. Jewish tradition says, and it is quite possible, that it came from his being an “Agagite.” What is that, you ask? First, read Num. 24:7 where it says the king of Israel will be higher than the king of Agag. Then, read 1 Sam. 15, the story of King Saul who was ordered by God to destroy the Amalekites and their leader King Agag. You can read more than that if you want more background. God’s instructions to Saul were based on what the Amalekites had tried to do to Israel with they first came out of Egypt (Ex. 17:8-16). They tried to destroy Israel before they even reached Mt. Sinai. God promised at that time to “blot out the remembrance of Amalek under heaven.” They were descendents of Esau through his son Eliphaz. All this tells you how much they hated Israel, God’s chosen people. And Jewish tradition ties Haman to this people. The argument is pretty convincing, and it explains Haman’s desire to not just kill Mordecai but to kill all the Jews.
· Esther 3:4: Mordecai had been public about the fact that he was a Jew. We noted that some have taken exception with the fact Mordecai told Esther not to tell anyone of her lineage. My reasons for rejecting that interpretation is in this passage. It is more consistent to say that Mordecai saw some wisdom in instructing Esther, and his own openness about being a Jew indicates he was not living in fear. In the end, both choices were significant parts of the story.
· Esther 3:6: What do you suppose Haman’s advisors told him about “the people of Mordecai?” Did they tell him that they were a stubborn and rebellious people? That was God’s estimation of His people (Ex. 32:9). It probably makes more sense that the people of Mordecai were just like him and were not going to bow before the king. Perhaps the “legend” of the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace was still known, even though it had happened under Nebuchadnezzar. That is a good reputation to have. If I can make a brief application, Jesus intended that we Christians have a reputation based on our love for each other. Instead, often, we have reputations based our differences (those “Baptists” or “Pentecostals” or whatever). Maybe it’s because the world just doesn’t know us. Maybe it’s because we don’t love each other. Just saying!
· Esther 3:15: This is typical. The leadership celebrates the plan to get rid of the Jews while the citizenry is perplexed. They know what the Jewish people are really like. They make great contributions to society lend a helping hand, are moral people, keep their yards clean and usually aren’t committing crimes. The OT makes a distinction between “the workers of iniquity” and the rest of the people. The WOI stir up trouble. They are the ones who speak peace but have evil in their hearts (Ps. 28:3). They take advantage of people (Ps. 14:4) and are those who devise evil plans in secret (Ps. 64:2) and so forth.
o Remember that this is the nature of government in a sinful world. God’s intention was that government would be His tool for maintaining “law and order” (Rom. 13:1-6; 1 Tim. 2:1-4). Yet what we find is that, given the opportunity, government becomes oppressive. Solomon noted this in Eccl. 5:8-9. The prosperity of the land is intended to be a blessing to everyone; but instead, prosperity leads to bigger government and all those extra people need to get paid. This happened in Israel. The “shepherds” who were supposed to take care of the sheep, instead became fat off the sheep (Ezek. 34:1-6). Don’t trust in kings. Trust in God (Ps. 146:3-7)!
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