Finale

Esther 9:1–19

¹Now in the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king’s command and edict were about to be carried out, on the very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, the reverse occurred: the Jews gained mastery over those who hated them. ² The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could stand against them, for the fear of them had fallen on all peoples. ³ All the officials of the provinces and the satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the Jews, for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. ⁴ For Mordecai was great in the king’s house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful. ⁵ The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and did as they pleased to those who hated them. ⁶ In Susa the citadel itself the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men, ⁷ and also killed Parshandatha and Dalphon and Aspatha ⁸ and Poratha and Adalia and Aridatha ⁹ and Parmashta and Arisai and Aridai and Vaizatha, ¹⁰ the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they laid no hand on the plunder. ¹¹ That very day the number of those killed in Susa the citadel was reported to the king. ¹² And the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed 500 men and also the ten sons of Haman. What then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces! Now what is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what further is your request? It shall be fulfilled.” ¹³ And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this day’s edict. And let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.” ¹⁴ So the king commanded this to be done. A decree was issued in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged. ¹⁵ The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and they killed 300 men in Susa, but they laid no hands on the plunder. ¹⁶ Now the rest of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also gathered to defend their lives, and got relief from their enemies and killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they laid no hands on the plunder. ¹⁷ This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth day they rested and made that a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁸ But the Jews who were in Susa gathered on the thirteenth day and on the fourteenth, and rested on the fifteenth day, making that a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁹ Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the rural towns, hold the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a day for gladness and feasting, as a holiday, and as a day on which they send gifts of food to one another.

The ending to the story of Queen Esther and the Jews is one of victory and violence. God’s people are recused from those who hate them and the Persians who subjected them to persecution were destroyed. We stand appalled at the number of those killed and the text itself doesn’t make any judgments. It is merely a reporting of the facts.

(Side note – the number reported as killed is 75,000. That’s huge. There is some disagreement among commentators about that number. Some state that the actual number should be 7,500. While that is still a great number of dead bodies, it is 10% of how modern translations read. Regardless of the number, the point is made. God’s people are saved.)

What remains clear in this story is that on the appointed day, there was a mini civil war in Persia. Those who bought into the hatred spouted by Haman thought they were going to have the chance to kill the Jews even though no offense had been made other than being of a different ethnic background. When the Jews are allowed to defend themselves, they also go on the offensive. To their credit, the Jews refrain from taking plunder from their vanquished enemies and this helps the readers understand that they were not seeking to rise above those who hated them, merely to defend themselves and continue their lives peacefully. While I believe that it is possible 75,000 men were killed, I suspect the number is far closer to the 7,500. We also do not see any reports of women and children being slaughtered. The Jews seemed to be tempered in their response even though the king’s edict gave them fully authority to do as they pleased. Haman’s hatred fueled this fight but it did not win the day.

We are living through days where bitter and hate-filled words seem to be the norm. Civility is lost and Haman stands as a prime example of what can happen when hate is allowed to spread. It’s like the flu – it’s pernicious. We would do well to examine this story and ask the hard questions of our own lives. Do we spread bigoted hatred or are we willing to live in peace, even with those who do not agree with us? Haman’s hatred was unprovoked and yet instigated nothing but death.

Jesus came to bring an end to the power of sin in the world. His atoning work on the cross has secured our forgiveness and as believers we are expected to share that forgiveness with our world. I find this story troubling because we are certainly not always acting in accordance with that example. As always, I am forced to allow the Word to search my heart and make the necessary changes.