PREFACE
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah
have dealt with the remnant of
Israel who returned to the land
when the Persian king had given
them permission for this. But
there were still many Jews who
chose to remain in Persia. If
they had faith, it was so weak
that there was no energy to get
back to God's appointed place
for them. The book of Esther
then shows the way in which God
dealt with these Jews in spite
of their lack of faith. But it
has been often observed that
God's name is never mentioned in
the book. Why not? Because
Israel had not submitted to
God's authority and were in such
a condition that God did not
publicly own them as His people,
consistently with what He had
said in Hosea 1:9, -- not My
people."
Yet this book of Esther makes
very clear that God Himself was
working in miraculous ways on
behalf of the Jews, but working behind
the scenes. In this present
day, the same fact is
true. Israel has rejected their
Messiah, and is in a state of
being virtually disowned by God
publicly; but He is still
working among the Jews in
obscure ways, preserving them
through centuries of persecution
and trouble, so that, though
scattered among many nations,
they have still retained their
identity as Jews, and will in
the future have their great
sorrow and trouble turned into
vibrant joy and gladness, such
as is symbolized in their
celebration of victory in Esther
9:18-19.
Esther's name means "I will be
hidden," just as her identity
was obscure even after becoming
the wife of Ahasuerus; and just
as God is hidden from view in
the book of Esther. Mordecai,
who was finally exalted as ruler
in Persia, is at least a faint
type of Christ when eventually
exalted among the nations. Yet
it is not known who wrote the
book of Esther, but we know that
God is its Author.
CHAPTER 1
THE FIRST FEAST OF THE KING
(vv. 1-4)
Ahasuerus was a name given to
the chief king of Persia. The
Ahasuerus of verse 1 is recorded
in history as Xerxes 1. His
empire extended over a very
large area, including 127
provinces from India to
Ethiopia. The capital of his
empire was Shushan, a beautiful
city surrounded by mountains and
rich in vegetation. It is here
called a citadel, for it was a
fortress, a castle built not
only for residence, but for
military defense (v. 2).
It was in the third year of his
reign that he entertained all of
his officials and servants
including representatives of the
many provinces, with a great
feast that lasted for 180 days!
(v. 4). What was his object?
He wanted to impress them with
the splendor of his own glory!
The wealth expended on this
celebration must have been
enormous. No doubt he had many
things to show to these visitors
make them marvel that he was so
greatly increased in riches.
THE FEAST FOR ALL THE PEOPLE
(vv. 5-8)
Possibly not all were able to be
present for the full time, but
the king desired a grand
conclusion to this event by
inviting all the people to a
feast lasting seven days,
provided in the court of the
garden of the king's palace (v.
5). The description of the
luxurious circumstances of this
is given in verses 6-7, which
shows how the religious world
likes to adopt for itself
principles they recognize to be
beautiful, but become only a
show without reality. For in
reality white and blue linen
speak of the purity (white) and
heavenly character (blue) of
God's testimony among His
people. Purple speaks of royal
character and the silver rods
speak of redemption; all of
these being of vital value to
those who are redeemed by the
blood of Christ. When in the
hands of merely religious
formalists, however, it is
really only imitation, adopted
because attractive.
Marble pillars are imposing, and
speak of God's sustaining power,
while couches of gold and silver
speak of resting places where
God's glory (gold) is present
and redemption (silver) is
known. But formal religion,
though it often speaks of giving
glory to God, does not even know
whereof it speaks: it indulges
merely in lip service.
Redemption (silver) is unknown
to the Persians, though they may
imitate it because it seems so
nice.
Drinks were served in golden
vessels, all being different
from the others. All of this
lavish provision was "according
to the generosity of the king"
(v. 7). If a Persian king was
able to make such a feast as
this for all his subjects, how
much more able is our great God
to provide in glory a feast of
unending wonder for those who
know Him as revealed in His
beloved Son, the Lord Jesus!
Because Ahasuerus had wealth for
it, he could show a most
magnanimous spirit in this great
provision and at the same time
fully indulge the people's
desire as to whether or not they
wanted to drink. This is a
striking imitation of the grace
of God, who provides every
necessity with no legal bondage,
encouraging each believer to act
on his own faith. But even in
Christendom, ungodly men turn
the grace of God into lewdness
(Jude 4), just as the king was
thinking merely of his own
gratification.
THE QUEEN'S FEAST AND HER
DEFIANCE (vv. 9-12)
A feast also was made at the
same time for the women, by
Queen Vashti. Thus the
celebration of the splendor of
the kingdom was complete.
On the last day of the feast,
Ahasuerus had no doubt consumed
too much wine, and commanded
seven eunuchs to go and bring
Vashti back with them with the
object of displaying her beauty
before all the people (vv.
10-11). Why did he need to do
this? Simply because it was to
his credit that he had such a
beautiful wife, just as all the
glory of the kingdom was to his
credit. Such is the pride of the
natural man.
However, one jarring note marred
this celebration. Vashti refused
to come (v.12). What reason she
had we are not told. The king
had not expected any such
refusal, and he became
furious. His authority had been
challenged by one from whom he
would expect fullest
cooperation.
VASHTI DEPOSED (vv. 13-22)
The king then consulted with
seven prominent princes of
Persia as to what action should
be taken in regard to Vashti's
defiance of his order (vv.
13-15). The Medes and Persians
prided themselves on having just
laws which could not be changed
(Dan. 6:12), and the king's
question therefore was, what
should be done according
to law. Nebuchadnezzar
would not have required such
consultation: he was an
absolute dictator: "whomever he
wished, he executed; whomever he
wished he kept alive; whomever
he wished he set up; and
whomever he wished, he put down"
(Dan. 5:19).
One of the princes, Memucan,
took the lead in suggesting what
should be done. He said that
Vashti had not only wronged the
king, but also all the princes
and all the people who were in
all the provinces of King
Ahasuerus (v. 16). No doubt it
was true that Vashti's behavior
would become well known to all
women, so that they would feel
free to despise the authority of
their husbands unless drastic
action was promptly taken (vv.
17-18). Memucan therefore made
the suggestion that if the king
agreed, a royal decree would be
proclaimed and recorded in the
laws of the Persians and Medes,
therefore unchangeable, that
Vashti be banished and her royal
position given to another woman
better than she (v. 19).
The Annotated Bible by A.C.
Gabelein records that "Jewish
tradition gives several reasons
why Memucan was so hostile to
Vashti. One is that his own
wife had not been invited to
Vashti's feast, and another,
because he wanted his own
daughter promoted and become the
Queen" ("The Book of Esther,
page 86).
Memucan then appealed, not only
to the matter of the king's
authority in his own house, but
his authority also over the
kingdom, for prompt action in
this case would have the
beneficial effect of moving
wives to honor their husbands
(v. 20). Those who advocate
"Women's Lib" today would not be
agreeable, but the king and the
princes considered such action
was necessary to preserve the
kingdom from internal corruption
and disintegration. Of course
the Christian viewpoint differs
from this and from the "Women's
Lib" viewpoint, but a heathen
nation does not act on Christian
principles, and neither does
"Women's Lib."
The king and the princes were
all favorable to Memucan's
solution to the problem (v. 21),
and letters were sent to all the
provinces under the king's rule
to the effect that every man
should be master in his own
house. Thus the letter
practically agreed with the
Christian principle that the
husband is head of the wife
(Eph. 5:23), but it failed to
agree with the instructions
given to husbands in this same
chapter, "Husbands, love your
wives" and "husbands ought to
love their own wives as their
own bodies" (Eph. 5:25,28).
CHAPTER 2
ESTHER CHOSEN AS QUEEN (vv.
1-18)
We read nothing more as to
Vashti, whether she was simply
banished from the king's court
or killed. But it was four
years before the king married a
queen to take Vashti's place
(cf. ch. 1:3 and ch. 2:16). For
this marriage there was much
preparation. The king's
servants advised the king to
appoint officers throughout all
his kingdom to pick out
beautiful virgins and send them
to Shushan, to be under the
custody of Hegai, the king's
eunuch, who would supervise
their being provided with every
artificial means of enhancing
their beauty (vv. 2-3). In due
time the king would interview
these women individually and
decide which of them he wanted
(v. 4). The king was glad to
put this plan into action.
Now we are introduced to a
certain Jew, Mordecai, who lived
in the city of Shushan. We may
wonder why, if he loved his
nation, he had not returned to
Jerusalem when the Persian king
had given his permission for any
Jews to return. But evidently
there was a very large number of
Jews who preferred to remain in
Persia. Mordecai's grandfather
had been carried captive by the
Babylonians, but since that was
over 70 years previously,
Mordecai was no doubt born in
Persia, as were the great
majority of Jews who lived
during that captivity.
Mordecai had brought up his
cousin Hadasseh, or Esther,
since she was an orphan. Since
neither of her parents were
living, it was not hard to
conceal the fact that she was
Jewish, though she had been
adopted by Mordecai, a Jew. If
people generally were aware of
the fact that she was Jewish,
there would have been strong
objection to her being allowed
to be an applicant for the the
place of Queen in Persia. We
are told that the young woman
was "lovely and beautiful" (v.
7).
When the king's decree became
known, many young women gathered
at the castle, Esther being
among them, and she was one
chosen to be taken to the king's
palace in care of Hegai, the
custodian of the women. Hegai
was pleased with her, so that he
provided everything necessary
for the purpose of enhancing her
beauty, giving her also seven
maidens who would help her
prepare for an audience with the
king. In fact, Hegai was so
impressed with her that he gave
her the best place in the house
of the women (v. 9).
At the advice of Mordecai,
Esther had not revealed her
nationality (v. 10). Some have
thought this was deception, but
without taking sides in this
matter, we know that God used
the whole circumstance to work
for great blessing to the Jews,
in spite of not allowing His
name to be identified with all
that was done. In fact, we may
rightly question whether a
Jewish woman should think of
being married to a Persian,
whether king or not, and whether
Mordecai should encourage such a
union. But the Jews were in
such a state that they had
virtually forgotten what was
becoming to Jewish
character. Mordecai walked every
day before the court of the
women's quarters, anxious to
hear any news of Esther's
progress (v. 11). He was not
content that the Jews should be
despised in this foreign land,
but had aspirations for his
adopted daughter, who might be a
means by which the Jews would
receive more honor. Certainly
this is not to be the Christian
attitude, and we cannot say that
God ordered Mordecai to engage
in this project, for the honor
of God was not Mordecai's
object, but the blessing of the
Jews. On the other hand, God was
concerned about the Jews too,
though He could not associate
His name with them at the time.
All of the women applicants were
given 12 months of preparation!
(v. 12). Thus, the unbelieving
world thinks it can improve on
the beauty of those whom God has
created, by various artificial
means. Very likely the king
would have been just as
impressed with Esther if there
had not been this long delay,
for Hegai at the beginning gave
her the best place among the
women.
Each young woman in turn was
interviewed by the king as
though they were applying for
employment. They were given
anything they desired to take
with them, whether make up,
perfumes, delicate clothing,
flowers or anything they might
consider helpful in appealing to
the king (v. 13). To a believer,
what are all these surface
things compared to the moral and
spiritual beauty he sees in a
prospective wife? Compare 1
Peter 3:4.
What was involved in the
interview we are not told,
except that each woman went for
this in the evening and returned
in the morning to the custody of
Shaashgaz, a eunuch who was in
charge of the king's concubines
(v. 14). We might ask, where
did she sleep? -- but we have no
answer.
When Esther's turn came, she
asked for nothing extra, very
likely because her faith was in
God, however weak that faith may
have been (v. 15). Another
note is added here, that all who
saw her were favorable toward
her. She was taken to the king
in the tenth month of the
seventh year of the king's
reign, four years after Vashti
was deposed (v. 16).
Though the king had a large
number of women to choose from,
he loved Esther more than any of
the others (v. 17), so he set
the royal crown on her
head. This was a plain step in
the working of God behind the
scenes on behalf of the Jews.
The king made a great feast for
Esther, inviting all his
officials and servants,
proclaiming a holiday on this
occasion (v. 18).
MORDECAI'S WARNING TO THE KING
(vv. 19-23)
We read that "Mordecai sat
within the king's gate."
Apparently this was allowed to
any citizen and Mordecai took
advantage of it so as to be as
near to Esther as he could,
though Esther had not revealed
her nationality, in obedience to
Mordecai's instructions to her
(vv. 19-20). It seems strange
that the king had not inquired
into Esther's background, but
oftentimes it is clearly the
case that "truth is stranger
than fiction." Also these
circumstances are a part of
God's working behind the scenes.
While Mordecai was sitting in
the gate, a place of discussion
of many matters, specially
concerning the kingdom, he
learned that two of the king's
servants who were doorkeepers
were embittered against the king
and plotted his overthrow (v.
21). He was able to tell this to
Esther, who informed the king in
Mordecai's name (v. 22). The
king had this matter
investigated, and when the
warning of Mordecai was
confirmed, the two conspirators
were hanged, and the incident
was recorded in the book of the
chronicles of the king of
Persia.
CHAPTER 3
HAMAN'S ADVANCEMENT AND
CONSPIRACY (vv. 1-15)
After this (though we are not
told how long after) King
Ahasuerus promoted Haman, an
Agagite, to a position above all
the princes (v. 1). Agag had
been the king of the
Amalekites (1 Sam. 15:8), who
were bitter enemies of Israel
from the time Israel came out of
Egypt (Ex. 17:8-16) concerning
whom God said He would utterly
blot out the remembrance of them
from under heaven (Ex.
17:8-14). King Saul had later
spared Agag when destroying the
Amalekites, but "Samuel hewed
Agag in pieces before the Lord"
(1 Sam. 15:32-33). We may wonder
how this man Haman came into the
favor of a Persian king, but
this is not explained.
Ahasuerus gave command that all
the servants who were in the
gate should bow in allegiance to
Haman, but Mordecai would not
bow to him. The king's servants
saw this and asked why he
disobeyed the king's commandment
(v. 3). He told them he was a
Jew, no doubt inferring that it
would be wrong for him to bow to
Haman. Eventually the servants
brought the matter to Haman's
attention, including the fact
that Mordecai was a Jew. Of
course Haman, every time he
passed the gate, would
particularly observe Mordecai
and his not bowing to Haman, so
that the man was filled with
anger (vv. 4-5). Haman was a
shrewd man who bitterly hated
all Jews, so that he conceived a
plan of not only getting rid of
Mordecai, but all the Jews in
the realm of King Ahasuerus (vv.
5-6). But Haman was a religious
man of the superstitious
sort. He with others (perhaps
his relatives) cast lots to
determine the best day on which
to approach the king with the
project of getting rid of the
Jews (v. 7). His confidence was
really in Satan, and just as is
often the case at
first, this cunning
approach worked.
In petitioning the king, Haman
did not even mention that he was
speaking of the Jews, but told
Ahasuerus that there was "a
certain people scattered and
dispersed among the people in
all the provinces of our
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" (v. 8). He
asked therefore that a decree
should be written that these
people should be destroyed; but
he immediately added that he
himself would pay 10,000 talents
of silver "into the hands of
those who do the work, to bring
it into the king's treasury" (v.
9).
Surely the king ought to have
realized that Haman had a
personal axe to grind since he
would personally pay this great
amount to have this people
destroyed. But the king
evidently had a great deal of
confidence in this conniving
Amalakite who had far more
concern for his own reputation
than he had for the Persian
kingdom. The king therefore
agreed, and gave Haman liberty
to do just as he desired (vv.
10-11). It seems strange that
the king would consult with the
princes as to what to do about
Vashti (ch. 1:13-15), but in
this far more serious case that
he would act as though he were a
dictator!
The king's scribes were then
called to write a decree
"according to all that Haman
commanded," addressed to all the
officials of the kingdom in
every province, sealed with the
king's signet (v. 12). These
letters were then sent by
couriers to all the king's
provinces, with instructions to
the people to kill and
annihilate all the Jews, young
and old, women and children on
one appropriate day, and to take
all their possessions as
plunder. Haman had taken
fullest advantage of the king's
permission, having copies of the
document sent everywhere (v.
14), declaring this slaughter as
law, which law could not be
changed, for the Medes and
Persians prided themselves on
having unchangeable laws (Dan.
6:8).
CHAPTER 4
ESTHER AGREES TO INTERCEDE (vv.
1-17)
Mordecai of course very soon
learned of this satanic plot of
Haman against Israel and he tore
his clothes and put on sackcloth
and ashes in token of
humiliation and
repentance. Whether he prayed to
God we are not told, but he
cried out bitterly in the midst
of the city, coming to the
outside of the king's gate,
though forbidden to come into
the gate clothed in sackcloth
(vv. 1-2).
At the same time, everywhere the
decree of Haman had been sent,
the Jews fasted with weeping and
wailing, many clothed in
sackcloth. Again, nothing is
said of whether they prayed to
God (v. 3). No doubt God makes
this purposely obscure because
of Israel's unfaithfulness to
Him.
Esther soon received the news of
Mordecai through her maids and
the eunuchs of the king's
court. It naturally distressed
her to think that Mordecai was
clothed in sackcloth, but she
did not know the reason. She
sent clothing to him to replace
the sackcloth, but he refused it
(v. 4). Therefore she sent
Hatach, a eunuch of the king, to
ask Mordecai the reason for his
condition (v. 5). Even Hatach
had not heard of the evil plot
of Haman, and Mordecai told him
what had happened and how Haman
had promised to pay a large sum
of money for the destruction of
the Jews (vv. 6-7).
Mordecai gave to Hatach a copy
of the king's decree to show to
Esther with a full explanation
of Haman's plot, and with
instructions for her to
supplicate the king for the
preservation of her people, the
Jews (v. 8). On hearing this,
Esther sent a reply to Mordecai,
telling him that it was well
known that anyone who dared to
enter the inner court of the
king without an invitation would
be put to death unless the king
held out his scepter toward the
individual. Esther herself had
not been called into the king's
presence for 30 days (vv. 9-11).
Then Mordecai sent an urgent
response to Esther, "Do not
think in your heart that you
will escape in the king's palace
any more than will the other
Jews. For if you remain
completely silent at this time,
relief and deliverance will
arise for the Jews from another
place, but you and your father's
house will perish" (vv. 13-14).
It may be that Mordecai had
confidence that God would
intervene on behalf of the Jews,
though again he does not even
mention the Lord. He also asked
her a very pertinent question as
to whether Esther had come to
her present position for the
very purpose of meeting this
serious attack of the
enemy. Certainly this proved to
be true.
Esther therefore sent word to
Mordecai to gather all the Jews
in Shushan to fast on Esther's
behalf, not to eat or drink for
three days, saying that she and
her maids would do likewise,
then she would go in to the
king. She added, "If I perish, I
perish!" (v. 16). Fasting is
negative, symbolizing
self-judgment, but what of the
more important positive action
of prayer to God? There is no
mention made of this. We should
think they would pray,
but God omits any mention of
prayer because of the Jews'
unprofitable spiritual
condition.
Mordecai did as Esther asked, so
that all the Jews in Shushan
were drawn together in a common
cause, and all would be informed
now that the Queen was Jewish.
CHAPTER 5
ESTHER'S BANQUET (vv. 1-8)
After the three days of fasting,
Esther's courage enabled her to
enter the inner court of the
king's palace, clothed in her
royal robes. The king was
sitting on his throne, and there
is no doubt that God disposed
his heart to hold out his golden
scepter toward Esther. We can
imagine the relief of her heart
when he did this! Esther then
approached and touched the top
of the scepter. The kings's
words to her were most
magnanimous, offering her
whatever she wanted, to the half
of his kingdom! King Herod
later made such a foolish
promise to the daughter of
Herodias because her dancing
pleased him (Mk. 6:22-23). But
Esther did not take criminal
advantage of the king as did the
daughter of Herodias. She asked
that the king and Haman would
come that day to a banquet she
had prepared (v. 4).
At the banquet, however, Esther
did not divulge the purpose of
her plans. The king asked her
again what she desired, but she
only asked for the presence of
the king and Haman at a second
banquet the next day, when she
would make her request. Why did
she do this? So that the pride
of Haman would be built up to
such a level that his fall would
be that much greater.
HAMAN PLOTS THE MURDER OF
MORDECAI (vv. 9-14)
Haman was sitting on cloud 9!
He left the banquet with a
joyful heart. Yet there was one
matter that greatly annoyed him.
Mordecai was in the kings' gate,
evidently having changed from
his sackcloth, but he gave Haman
no recognition whatever (v. 9).
So Haman's joy was spoiled by
intense anger. He did not even
comfort himself by the
anticipation that Mordecai would
be destroyed with all the Jews
quite soon.
Returning home, Haman called for
his friends as well as his wife
to boast of how much wealth he
had gotten, the children he had
and his promotion to a place
above all the princes of the
kingdom. Besides this, he adds,
"Queen Esther invited no one but
me to come in with the king to
the banquet that she had
prepared, and tomorrow I am
again invited by her, along with
the king" (v. 12). Certainly
the balloon was being over
inflated, but Haman did not
realize it was ready to burst!
Haman as picture of the
antichrist
"Yet" he says, "all this avails
me nothing so long as I see
Mordecai the Jew sitting in the
king's gate" (v.
13). Symbolically, Haman is a
very striking picture of the
coming antichrist, determined to
destroy the people of Israel.
Who is it who stands in his way?
Certainly it is the true Christ,
the Son of God, though Mordecai
is but a faint type of the Lord
Jesus, as will be seen very soon
in this book.
Haman's wife and friends had a
ready solution to his problem.
Let him have a gallows made, 75
feet high! and ask the king to
have Mordecai hanged on it. Thus
he could have Mordecai killed
before the rest of the Jews.
This pleased Haman, so he had
the gallows made (v. 14). Now he
could anticipate having the deep
pleasure of seeing his
particular enemy suffer and die
in the sight of all the people
of Shushan! Thus everything was
going to be to the advantage of
this proud and wicked enemy of
God!
CHAPTER 6
The same night that Haman had
had a gallows made on which to
hang Mordecai, the Lord
intervened in a most amazing
way, causing the king to be
unable to sleep and moving him
to have the book of records of
the kingdom brought to him
(v.1). When some of the records
were read to him, one of these
awakened his attention, for it
told that Mordecai had virtually
saved the king's life when he
informed him of the plot against
him by two of his doorkeepers.
In asking about this he found
that Mordecai had been given no
recognition at all for this very
real kindness.
God's working behind the scenes
is further evident when the king
asked who happened to be in the
court. Haman had just entered
with the intention of asking
permission to hang Mordecai (v.
4), so the king had him brought
in, asking him what he thought
should be done to the man whom
the king delighted to honor (v.
6). Haman's pride was such that
he considered himself the man
the king referred to. What a
blunder! But he wanted the
popular acclaim of all the
people, so suggested that the
man to be honored should be
clothed in a royal robe which
the king himself had worn, and
placed on a horse that the king
had ridden, which had a royal
crest on its forehead, then led
by one of the king's most noble
princes through the city square
with a proclamation to the
effect that this was done to the
man whom the king delighted to
honor (vv. 7-9).
What a shock it must have been
to Haman to have the king tell
him to take the robe and horse
and do all that he had suggested
to Mordecai the Jew! (v. 10). It
seems that up to this time the
king did not realize that the
people whose destruction he had
approved were Jews. Haman had
not told him this, though the
letters sent by the couriers
throughout all the land had
stated it in no uncertain terms
(ch. 3:13), for the king had
told Haman to do as he pleased
about that matter, so there was
no need for the king to ever
read the proclamation.
What could Haman do? His hands
were tied. He could only obey
the word of the king in spite of
his bitter hatred against
Mordecai. In parading Mordecai
through the city square, it must
have been extremely galling to
Haman to have to proclaim before
him, "Thus shall it be done to
the man whom the king delights
to honor" (v. 11).
After this Haman could hardly
ask the king's permission to
hang Mordecai! He returned to
his house in grief, utterly
humiliated. But he found no
consolation from his friends or
his wife. They knew that since
Mordecai was a Jew and exalted
by the king to great honor, this
presaged worse trouble yet for
Haman, who had plotted the
destruction of all Jews.
But this day was that on which
Esther had planned a banquet for
the king and Haman. He must go
immediately to the
banquet. Likely he would go
with some ray of hope that
Esther's invitation would prove
helpful in resolving the matter
of his serious problem as
regards Mordecai, for he did not
know that Esther was a Jewess
and also related to Mordecai.
CHAPTER 7
HAMAN HANGED ON HIS OWN GALLOWS
(vv. 1-10)
At Esther's second banquet the
king asked her to make whatever
petition she desired, with the
promise that he would grant it
to her. What a surprise it would
be to both the king and Haman
that she asked that she and her
people might be spared from
total destruction! (v.
3). "For," she said, "we have
been sold, my people and I, to
be destroyed, to be killed, and
to be annihilated. Had we been
sold as male and female slaves,
I would have held my tongue,
although the enemy could never
compensate for the king's loss"
(v. 4). What astonishing words
these would be to the
king! Haman however would
realize (with astonishment too)
that Esther must be a Jewess,
whose nation he plotted to
destroy.
The king, not yet connecting
Haman's recent edict with the
Jewish nation, asked
indignantly, "Who is he, and
where is he, who would dare
presume in his heart to do such
a thing?" Esther's response was
brief, but like a lightning
bolt, "The adversary and enemy
is this wicked Haman!" (v. 6).
The king was wise enough not to
erupt in an outburst of anger
toward Haman at the moment, but
taking time to think in
quietness, he went into the
palace garden. Haman remained
with Esther, pleading for his
life, for he knew the king would
not pass by an evil so great as
he was guilty of (v. 7). When
the king was composed
sufficiently to return, he found
Haman fallen across the couch
where Esther was. Though he was
no doubt mistaken in thinking
that Haman intended to assault
the queen, yet this appeared to
him to be the case, and when he
so spoke, the servants covered
Haman's face (v. 8), for
Haman had forfeited all title to
see the light.
The situation was so electric
that at that moment the king
would be ready to act without
hesitation, and immediately one
servant took the opportunity to
announce to the king that Haman
had made a gallows on which he
planned to hang Mordecai. This
would increase the tension, and
The king did not hesitate to
command, "Hang him on it!" (v.
9). Thus the evil that Haman
planned came back violently on
his own head, as Ecclesiastes
10:8 warns, "He who digs a pit
will fall into it."
CHAPTER 8
A SECOND EDICT CONCERNING THE
JEWS (vv. 1-17)
In all of the history we have
considered, we cannot but
discern the working of God as
will be the case in the Great
Tribulation period. Mordecai is
a type of Christ, the chief
object of the enemy's hatred,
yet eventually
triumphant. Esther is a faint
picture of the intercessory work
of Christ on behalf of
Israel. Haman pictures the
antichrist, exalting himself to
the highest position possible,
but finally abased, destroyed by
the brightness of the coming of
the Lord.
King Ahasuerus immediately gave
Esther all the possessions of
Haman. The enemy being spoiled
left great spoil for God's
chosen one. Esther also revealed
her relationship with Mordecai
to the king, and the king gave
to Mordecai the signet ring he
had previously given to Haman,
thus virtually appointing
Mordecai a prime minister of
Persia (v. 2). Esther then
committed to Mordecai the
responsibility for the house of
Haman. Thus, when the Jewish
remnant is honored by the
authorities of this world, they
will transfer this honor
willingly to the Lord Jesus.
However, the edict of Haman,
sealed with the king's signet,
could not be revoked, for the
laws of the Medes and Persians
were considered to be divinely
ordered, and therefore
unchangeable. What could be done
about such a situation? Esther
again ventured her life in
coming before the king, but no
doubt without the fear she had
before, for he had proven his
love for her. When the king held
out his scepter to her, she
implored him with tears to
counteract the evil of Haman's
scheme to destroy the
Jews. "For," she says, "How can
I endure to see the evil that
will come to my people?" (v. 6).
Certainly the heart of the king
could not fail to be moved by
his beloved wife pleading in
this way. Therefore he spoke to
both Esther and Mordecai,
reminding them that he had given
the house of Haman to Esther,
and telling them to write a
decree as they saw fit that
would be for the protection of
the Jews from harm (vv. 7-8).
They could not revoke the
previous decree, but they found
a way to preserve the Jews in
spite of it. This second decree
was sent as widely as the first,
throughout all the lands of the
Persian empire, from India to
Ethiopia, to every people in
their own language. The message
was written in the name of King
Ahasuerus, sealed with the
king's signet ring, and sent by
couriers on horseback, using
thoroughbred horses chosen for
their swiftness (vv. 9-10).
These letters authorized the
Jews in all these places to
gather together to protect their
own lives, thus having
permission to destroy, kill and
annihilate any people who
assaulted them on the 13th day
of the 12th month, the day that
the first decree had authorized
the killing of the Jews (vv.
11-12). Thus, though the laws of
the Medes and Persians could not
be changed, the first edict was
really rendered ineffective by
the second, and done so legally.
This is a very striking picture
of the way Israel will be
preserved and blessed through
the Tribulation. Her sins
against God have by law merited
the solemn sentence of
death. But God in great mercy
will intervene to give life
instead of death. It is the same
as regards all mankind today.
The law of God has passed the
sentence of death upon all
men. But by sending His own Son
to bear sin's penalty on
Calvary, God has intervened for
the blessing of all who will
receive His Son as Savior and
Lord.
The first decree would at least
serve the purpose of exposing
who were the enemies of the
Jews, and when they took
advantage of the that decree to
attack the Jews, then the Jews
would take advantage of the
second decree to defend
themselves and to kill their
enemies. Though God's name is
not mentioned, yet the Jews
could depend on God to fight for
them also. The couriers, in
bearing their message, were
impressed with the urgency of
the matter, so that the Jews
would be fully prepared for the
crucial day (v. 14).
The king had Mordecai clothed in
royal apparel of blue and white
with a great crown of gold and a
garment of fine linen and purple
(v. 15). Though Persia was no
doubt ignorant of the
significance of these things in
God's eyes, yet scripture
considers blue as the heavenly
color and white as the purity of
moral character. Therefore
Mordecai is seen by scripture as
a type of the Lord Jesus, the
Man from heaven in whom is moral
perfection. The crown of gold
reminds us that Christ is far
more than man, for gold speaks
of the glory of God. Among the
nations the practice of a king
wearing a gold crown is common,
but it is only an imitation of
the glory that really belongs to
God. The only man entitled to
such glory is the Lord Jesus,
for He is God. The garment of
fine linen and purple symbolizes
the fact that kingly glory (the
purple) belongs to Christ, but
united with the grace of perfect
purity (the fine linen). The
rich man of Luke 16:19 was
clothed in purple and fine
linen, but this was an empty
show. Christ on earth was
clothed in the garments of the
poor, but He will soon have His
rightful place, with garments of
glory and beauty.
Consistently with Mordecai's
exaltation, "the Jews had light
and gladness, joy and honor" (v.
16), and this will be
wonderfully true when Christ is
recognized by Israel at the
beginning of the millennium. The
blessing of this was spread
throughout all the land by the
reception of the decree of the
king, and the Jews were so
greatly blessed that they called
a holiday for celebration, and
many of the Gentiles became
proselytes, taking their place
with Israel. While this may not
be the case in the millennium,
yet the rejoicing of the
Gentiles over the blessing of
Israel will be remarkably seen,
such as is pictured in the
rejoicing of the Queen of Sheba
for Israel's sake when she came
to visit Solomon (1 Kings
10:6-9).
CHAPTER 9
THE JEWS VICTORIOUS (vv. 1-17)
On the day prescribed in both
decrees, when the enemies of the
Jews expected to destroy all the
Jews in the Persian empire, the
tables were turned completely,
for besides having the king's
permission to fight for their
lives, the Jews were given power
from God to defeat and destroy
all their enemies (v. 1). As it
was permitted them, the Jews
gathered together to make a
united stand against the many
who sought their destruction,
and their energy was such that
no one could withstand them (v.
2). In fact, all the officials
of government helped the Jews
because Mordecai's position of
prominence influenced them
greatly (v.3). In a coming day
too the greatness of the Lord
Jesus will have wonderful effect
in turning Gentiles to seek the
true blessing of Israel.
At this time Mordecai's
greatness increased tremendously
throughout all the kingdom of
Persia (v. 4). Though Christ
today is still despised and
rejected of men, yet God knows
how to change that fact
amazingly, as He will when
Israel bows to His
authority. Then not only Israel
will be blessed, but the nations
of the world will give
allegiance to Him who is "King
of kings and Lord of lords."
Thus the victory of the Jews was
complete. We read of no Jews
being killed, but the number of
their enemies killed was
great. In Shushan alone on that
day 500 were killed. Ten men are
mentioned by name who were
evidently leaders, as well as
the ten sons of
Haman. Interestingly, the Jews
did not take any plunder from
their enemies (v. 10), which
shows they were not moved by
lust for gain, a picture of the
pure justice that will
characterize the establishment
of the kingdom of the Lord
Jesus.
When information was given to
the king as to the number killed
in Shushan, the king spoke of
this to Esther and asked her if
she had any further petition
(vv. 11-12). She asked that
another day be given in order to
rid Shushan of the Jews'
enemies, and also to have
Haman's ten sons hanged (v.
13). Of course, this was after
they had been killed, therefore
intended to impress the populace
with the enormity of Haman's
guilt. The king gave his consent
to this. Haman's sons were
hanged, and the Jews gathered
together the next day, killing
300 enemies of the Jews. It must
have been that those 300 had
before shown themselves to be
the Jews' enemies. Again, the
Jews did not take any plunder.
Only at Shushan did the second
day's slaughter take place. The
Jews throughout the rest of the
land in gathering together,
killed 75,000 of their enemies
in the one day, the 13th day of
the month Adar, and they also
took no plunder (v. 16). On the
14th day they rested and made
the day one of feasting and
gladness (v. 17). God had made
their victory complete, though
even then His name is not
mentioned.
THE FEAST OF PURIM INSTITUTED
(vv. 18-32)
The Jews at Shushan, however,
having engaged for two days in
destroying their enemies, rested
on the 15th day of the month,
making it a day of feasting and
gladness (v. 18). Since those
in the surrounding villages had
done this on the 14th day of the
month (v. 19), Mordecai wrote
letters to all the Jews that
both the 14th and 15th days of
that month were to be considered
holidays for the Jews from that
time every year, a time for
giving gifts to one another and
to the poor (vv. 20-22). The
Jews accepted this as a yearly
feast because they considered
that the memory of this whole
occasion should not be allowed
to fade from their minds. Thus,
verses 24-25 recount briefly the
history of the plot of Haman the
Agagite to annihilate the Jews,
casting Pur, that is, the lot,
which in the case of Haman, was
identified with the consultation
of evil spirits. But though his
scheme at first seemed to be
successful, by the intervention
of Esther whom the king not only
respected, but loved, there was
a complete exposure of the whole
plot, with the result that the
wickedness of Haman recoiled on
his own head, he and his sons
being hanged on the gallows he
had erected for Mordecai.
We are not told who wrote this
book of Esther, but whoever it
was was conversant with the
Jewish captivity in Persia and
knew this history well. It
seems he would not deliberately
avoid using God's name in the
book; but the book is a vital
part of God's word, who would
not publicly link His name with
Israel, though working for them
behind the scenes.
The feast of two days at this
time established by the Jews was
called Purim, referring to Pur,
the lot cast by Haman with the
object of destroying the
Jews. Very likely the Jews were
conversant with Solomon's
proverb, "The lot is cast into
the lap, but its every decision
is from the Lord" (Proverbs
16:33). Haman had expected demon
power to be exerted in backing
him up; but no doubt the Jews
recognized that the Lord had
intervened with His own clear
decision. Yet, while the Jews
surely did recognize the Lord's
hand in this, still, God did not
allow His name to be even
mentioned publicly.
The feast of Purim was thus
established and imposed by the
Jews upon themselves and their
descendants with the urgent
responsibility of celebrating
these days every year, and
continued in every family of the
Jews, wherever they were, that
the memory of this great
occasion should not be allowed
to fade from their minds (vv.
26-28).
We may be sure that news of this
occasion reached the returned
remnant of Judah in
Jerusalem with little
delay. Though they had shown
devoted faithfulness to the Lord
in returning to the land, they
would surely not have hard
feelings toward those who had
not returned, rather would be
concerned as to how their
brethren fared in the foreign
country. Out of love for their
brethren, no doubt they would
gladly adopt the celebration of
the feast of Purim. Indeed,
through all the centuries this
feast has continued among the
Jews.
In all of these instructions it
seems strange that God is not
mentioned, though it is plainly
evident that it was God's hand
of protecting care that had been
over the Jews to deliver them
from their enemies. Very likely
the Jews did include God's name
in their celebration, but
scripture says nothing of this
because the condition of the
Jews at that time was really
lacking in any evidence of
obedience to God. He was
virtually disowning them
publicly though caring for them
behind the scenes.
Thus, the history here speaks of
Purim as a feast of the Jews,
not a "feast of the Lord."
Leviticus 23:1 speaks of "The
Feasts of the the Lord," but in
John 2:13, the Passover is
called "the Passover of the
Jews," and another feast of the
Lord was called "the Jews' Feast
of Tabernacles" (Jn.
7:2). Why? Because it was not
primarily the Lord's honor that
the Jews sought, but their own
enjoyment. What sad disrespect
for the Lord's feasts!
Mordecai sent letters to all the
Jews in the 127 provinces of the
kingdom of Persia with the
object of confirming the yearly
observance of the Feast of Purim
at the appointed time. Esther
also was identified with this
decree. From that time the
observance of the Feast of Purim
has been continued in Israel,
observed even where Jews are
scattered in other lands.
CHAPTER 10
THE GREATNESS OF AHASUERUS AND
MORDECAI
This remarkable book closes with
the announcement of the
greatness of the Persian Empire
as ruled over by King Ahasuerus. As
with every other kingdom of the
nations however, this
magnificence was only fleeting,
for Alexander the Great, being
very swiftly exalted to the
place of head of the Grecian
Empire, overcame and displaced
the Persian Empire, as the Lord
had prophesied through His
servant Daniel (Dan.8:4-7;
8:20-21). But for a brief time
Ahasuerus accomplished great
things, and specially because he
had advanced Mordecai the Jew to
a position of great
prominence. Mordecai is typical
of the Lord Jesus in His being
given His place of great power
in the millennium. It is always
true that when this blessed Son
of God is given His true place,
whether in a nation or in the
history of an individual, the
result is great blessing.
King Ahasuerus in this case
serves as a very faint type of
God the Father, for whose glory
the Lord Jesus will eventually
reign. But all types must pass
away, that Christ may take His
place as Lord of all. The
believer longs for the
accomplishment of this great
end, not simply that this may
mean great blessing for us, but
rather that Christ will be
supremely glorified, in perfect
unity with the Father.
No mention is made of Mordecai's
death, since he is a type of
Christ whose kingdom will have
no end. Having once died as a
sacrifice for sin, now in
resurrection He "dieth no
more." Mordecai then continued
being well received by the Jews,
seeking the good of his people
and speaking peace to all his
countrymen, a lovely picture of
the peace of the kingdom of the
Lord Jesus.
The post-captivity books, Ezra,
Nehemiah, Haggai, Zechariah,
Malachi, etc. maintain a
continuity of the history of
Israel that goes on into the New
Testament; but the history in
Esther is not part of that
continuity, for the Jews in
Esther were outside their land.
The book then is significant in
showing something of the Jews'
condition for the many centuries
they have continued away from
the land of promise, being
called by God, "not my people,"
yet still watched over for good,
and eventually to be restored
to the Lord Jesus, and blessed
as never before. What a
celebration then!
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