The Esther Series of the “Women of the Bible” Section presents another interpretation of the story of Esther.
Review of the previous post
The previous post, post number 2 of 6, presented a general overview of the story.
Preview of the post
This post, post number 3 of 6, presents a summary of the story.
- Summary of the story
The story opens with King Ahasuerus[1], King of Persia, removing his queen, Queen Vashti. He uses a subterfuge of her failing to obey him to achieve this removal. He passes a law, which cannot be abrogated (see Esther 1:19), banning her from his presence. Sometime after this, Ahasuerus decides that he needs a queen, so he conducts a search for a new queen. A man named Mordecai has an adopted daughter, Esther, whom he sends to participate in the process being conducted by Ahasuerus. Esther gets inside assistance in what to do to win the process from Hegai who is a eunuch in charge of the process and apparently knows exactly what Ahasuerus is looking for in a queen. Esther wins the “competition” and becomes queen. Mordecai’s “adopted daughter” is now queen and has direct access to the king.
The story continues with Mordecai sitting at the palace gate, which was probably administrative offices of the palace. Because he is located in such offices, and because of later events in the story, it appears as though Mordecai was a member of the king’s secret service. Mordecai uncovered a plot to kill the king, and thwarted it by telling Esther who, in turn, relayed the information to King Ahasuerus who executed the two eunuchs who were plotting to kill the king[2]. However, a plot to kill a king requires much more than two discontented eunuchs. Thus, there is more and more powerful men were probably behind this plot.
Soon after this episode, Ahasuerus promotes Haman to a position “higher than any of his fellow officials” (Esther 3:2), which probably was nearly second in command to Ahasuerus.
Haman and Mordecai immediately engage in a battle of wills. Even though other courtiers bow down to Haman, Mordecai refuses (Esther 3:2). Haman begins plotting to get rid of the Jews. He goes to Ahasuerus and denigrates the Jews and pays Ahasuerus ten thousand talents of silver (which may be the equivalent of over three hundred tons of silver – an enormous amount[3]) for the Jews. Ahasuerus then gives his signet ring to Haman and Haman issues an order “to destroy, massacre, and exterminate all Jews, young and old, children and women, on a single day…and to plunder their possessions.” (See Esther 3: 13).
In Esther 4:13, Mordecai reminds Esther of her responsibilities and reminds her that she cannot keep silent because “relief and deliverance will come to the Jews from another quarter” and she and her father’s house will perish (4:14). Esther invites Haman to a feast in which the only people who will be at the feast are Esther, Haman and Ahasuerus (see Esther 5:12). Haman builds a stake on which to impale Mordecai.
Meanwhile, Haman describes to the king how to honor a person. The process, according to Haman, will include wearing the king’s royal garb, riding the king’s horse and wearing the royal diadem in public. All of these accouterments clearly indicate that the new person has replaced the king. While Haman had himself in mind, and the King probably knew that, the king crosses up Haman by awarding these accouterments to Mordecai.
At the private banquet, Esther tells Ahasuerus in a manner which appears to be quite enigmatic and cryptic: she tells him that the Jews had been sold, to be destroyed, massacred and exterminated; she goes on to tell the king that had the Jews only been sold as bondmen and bondwomen, the adversary who did that would not have been worth the king’s trouble. Ahasuerus then makes a grand gesture of demanding to know who the adversary is, and Esther identifies Haman. King Ahasuerus leaves the room and Haman prostrates himself before Esther’s couch to plead for her intercession on his behalf. While Haman is in that position, Ahasuerus suddenly returns to the room to discover Haman “lying prostrate on the couch on which Esther reclined” (Esther 7:8). Ahasuerus is outraged and cries “Does he mean to ravish the queen in my own palace?” (Esther 7:8). Haman is immediately taken into custody and led away to be executed (Esther 7:10). Mordecai was installed in Haman’s position, including giving Mordecai the king’s signet ring.
Esther then gets Ahasuerus to agree that the order to kill the Jews should somehow be rescinded (remembering that the king’s orders cannot be directly rescinded)[4]. Mordecai and Esther write an edict in the king’s name rescinding the order, but in a way which complied with the earlier order prohibiting rescinding of the King’s orders: The king “permitted the Jews of every city to assemble and fight for their lives; if any people or province attacks them, they may destroy, massacre, and exterminate it armed force together with women and children, and plunder their possessions.” (Esther 8:11).
The edict was sent out by couriers who rode royal horses (see Esther 8:14). Many people professed to be Jews (Esther 8:17). All of the officials showed deference to the Jews, the Jews attacked and killed their enemies: “in the fortress Shushan the Jews killed a total of five hundred men.” (Esther 9:6) including the ten sons of Haman. They killed three hundred men in Shushan on the next day (Esther 9:15). The Jews killed seventy-five thousand of their foes (Esther 9:16), “But they did not lay hands on the spoil.” Esther 9:15.
Mordecai then charged the Jews to celebrate the victory on the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar every year.
King Ahasuerus then imposed tribute on the mainland and the islands (Esther 10:1) and conducted further kingly acts.
Preview of the next post
The next post, Number 4 of 6, presents notes that there are several oddities associated with the story which are not adequately explained by the common explanations and interpretations of the story.
[1] Historically, while Esther does not match any known Persian consort, King Ahasuerus has been identified with Xerxes I (486-485 B.C.E.).
[2] Esther 2:21-23. It is likely that Mordecai, who is head of the King’s Secret Service was aware of this plot before this time.
[3] See, JPS Bible Commentary – Esther by Adele Berlin ( Philadelphia, PA The Jewish Publication Society, 2001 hardback), pg 41.
[4] See the painting “Queen Esther Pleads with Her Husband Ahasuerus for the Rescue of the Jewish People” by Hans Burgkmair The Elder.