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ESTHER 3
page 445
Mordecai’s Loyalty to the King
21 One day as Mordecai was on duty at the king’s
gate, two of the king’s eunuchs, Bigthana* and
Teresh—who were guards at the door of the king’s
private quarters—became angry at King Xerxes
and plotted to assassinate him. 22 But Mordecai
heard about the plot and gave the information
to Queen Esther. She then told the king about it
and gave Mordecai credit for the report. 23 When
an investigation was made and Mordecai’s story
was found to be true, the two men were impaled
on a sharpened pole. This was all recorded in The
Book of the History of King Xerxes’ Reign.
Haman’s Plot against the Jews
Some time later King Xerxes promoted
Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite
over all the other nobles, making him the most
powerful official in the empire. 2 All the king’s
officials would bow down before Haman to
show him respect whenever he passed by, for so
the king had commanded. But Mordecai refused
to bow down or show him respect.
3 Then the palace officials at the king’s gate
asked Mordecai, “Why are you disobeying the
king’s command?” 4 They spoke to him day
after day, but still he refused to comply with the
order. So they spoke to Haman about this to see
if he would tolerate Mordecai’s conduct, since
Mordecai had told them he was a Jew.
5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not
bow down or show him respect, he was filled
with rage. 6 He had learned of Mordecai’s nationality, so he decided it was not enough to lay
hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he looked
for a way to destroy all the Jews throughout the
entire empire of Xerxes.
7 So in the month of April,* during the twelfth
year of King Xerxes’ reign, lots were cast in Haman’s presence (the lots were called purim) to
determine the best day and month to take action. And the day selected was March 7, nearly
a year later.*
8 Then Haman approached King Xerxes and
said, “There is a certain race of people scattered through all the provinces of your empire
who keep themselves separate from everyone
else. Their laws are different from those of any
other people, and they refuse to obey the laws
of the king. So it is not in the king’s interest
to let them live. 9 If it please the king, issue a
decree that they be destroyed, and I will give
10,000 large sacks* of silver to the government
3
2:21 Hebrew Bigthan; compare 6:2. 3:7a Hebrew in the first
month, the month of Nisan. This month of the ancient Hebrew
lunar calendar occurred within the months of April and May
474 b.c.; also see note on 2:16. 3:7b As in 3:13, which reads
the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar;
Hebrew reads in the twelfth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar
calendar. The date selected was March 7, 473 b.c.; also see
note on 2:16. 3:9 Hebrew 10,000 talents, about 375 tons or
340 metric tons in weight. 3:12 Hebrew On the thirteenth day
of the first month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This
day was April 17, 474 b.c.; also see note on 2:16.
administrators to be deposited in the royal
treasury.”
10 The king agreed, confirming his decision
by removing his signet ring from his finger and
giving it to Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 The king said,
“The money and the people are both yours to
do with as you see fit.”
12 So on April 17* the king’s secretaries were
summoned, and a decree was written exactly
as Haman dictated. It was sent to the king’s
highest officers, the governors of the respective
provinces, and the nobles of each province in
their own scripts and languages. The decree
was written in the name of King Xerxes and
sealed with the king’s signet ring. 13 Dispatches
were sent by swift messengers into all the provinces of the empire, giving the order that all
Jews—young and old, including women and
children—must be killed, slaughtered, and
• Courage
E S THE R 3:2
Mordecai’s determined courage came
from his faith in God. He did not take
a poll first to determine the safest or
most popular course of action. He
had the courage to stand alone. Doing
what is right will not always make you
popular. Those who do right are usually
in the minority, but to obey God is more
important than to obey people (Acts
5:29). We should never let any person,
institution, or government take God’s
place in our lives. When people demand
loyalties or duties of you that do not
honor God, don’t give in. Their causes will
eventually die away. But our relationship
to almighty God is forever.
• Racism & Prejudice
E S THE R 3:5-6
Haman hated one Jewish man, and
because of his hatred for this one Jew,
he was eager to murder thousands of
Jews he had never met. We read the
story of Haman and see the foolishness
of his hatred for all Jews. Yet we often
base our opinions of a single person on
what we think of other people who have
the same skin color, religion, political
views, or nationality. Haman’s story of
hatred and prejudice run wild should
serve as a warning to us.