Esther 2:21–4:3

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Let’s take our Bibles together and turn to the Book of Esther. When we left off last week, there was a bit of a rags to riches story involving a young, Jewish girl named Hadassa and her wily uncle Mordecai. Impossibly it would seem, Hadassa defied the odds and became the newest queen in the wicked and pagan nation of Persia. The Persians didn’t know her as Hadassa, and they didn’t know her as a Jew. They knew her simply by the name Esther. And we will refer to her by that name in this message. 

And what we see in the book that bears Esther’s name is God working incognito behind the scenes. God is working even with the questionable, yea dubious, behavior of Esther and her uncle. So far, all things being equal, things are looking up for Esther and for the Jewish people in Persia. 

But if our passage today, Esther 2:21–4:3 was a “Star Wars movie,” it wouldn’t be “A New Hope.” And it wouldn’t be “Return of the Jedi.” It would be “Empire Strikes Back.” Think Han Solo frozen and sold to a bounty hunter and Luke Skywalker having his hand cut off by Darth Vader. That’s our passage today. 

If our passage today was a psalm, it’d be a lament. If our passage were a song, it’d be a dirge sung in a minor key. Things are about to get really dicey for Esther and Mordecai and the Jewish diaspora in the nation of Persia.   

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Let’s start in 2:21, where we find an Ace in the Hole. I’ll give you four movements in our story today. And the first movement, I’m calling… 

1) An Ace in the Hole (2:21–24) 

Actually let’s go back just a bit to 2:19, because this is where the story goes in a different direction. If you remember, Esther has just been chosen as the new queen. King Ahasuerus is in love with her (2:17). And the king was so enamored with her that he actually granted a remission of taxes to the provinces. The king is happy. The king is smitten by Esther. The king is having a bounce back moment after being humiliated by Queen Vashti and being humiliated by the Greeks on the battlefield. But the king doesn’t know that he is in grave danger. 

19 Now when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 

20 Esther had not made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had commanded her, for Esther obeyed Mordecai just as when she was brought up by him. 

Now notice three things here. First, the time reference here is when the virgins were gathered a second time. So this is a flashback to the period of time when Esther was competing and being assessed as a potential queen. 

Secondly notice that Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. This intimates that Mordecai had some kind of official role in the kingdom of Persia. The gate of Darius was a prominent place of palace administration in ancient Persia. The gate was a large structure that housed administrative buildings. Mordecai was well-connected if he was “sitting at that gate.” And we should view Mordecai as a politically savvy person. He was privy to court information. That gave him a leg up when it came to grooming Esther as a queen. And it also kept him in the know for political scuttlebutt that was circulating in the kingdom. 

Thirdly notice that Mordecai again (2:10) has commanded Esther to not reveal her ethnic identity. This may have been a matter of political expediency in the court. Or it may have been a matter of survival. Antisemitism was common in both the ancient and the modern world. So Mordecai told Esther to stay mum on the topic. 

And here’s where the grave danger to the king is revealed. Look at verse 21. 

21 In those days, as Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. 

So these two eunuchs “became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus.” What’s that mean? They want to kill the king. 

By the way, don’t think that eunuchs are always passive and compliant because they’ve had their testicles removed. That’s not true historically. There were actually several revolts initiated by eunuchs in the ancient near east. 

But here’s where God’s providence is at work. Look at verse 22. 

22 And this [This plot to kill the king!] came to the knowledge of Mordecai, 

Somehow Mordecai uncovers their plot.

and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in the name of Mordecai. 

23 When the affair was investigated and found to be so, the men [Bigthan and Teresh] were both hanged on the gallows. And it was recorded in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king. 

That right there is an amazing turn of events. Mordecai and Esther saved the king’s life! It’s a good thing this guy married Queen Esther, and it’s a good thing that the Persian king has Mordecai watching his back. It’s almost as if, those who are favorable to the Jews, are favorably honored by the Lord (see Gen 22:18)! 

So just a quick review thus far—this king’s life is saved. This event was recorded in the king’s “book of the chronicles.” Mordecai and Esther worked together to save the king’s life. And everything, thus far, is turning up roses for Esther and Mordecai. 

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But look at chapter 3. Here’s what’s surprising in this narrative. Here’s what’s cruelly ironic. The kingdom moves on like nothing ever happened. The king, as far as we can tell, doesn’t even thank Mordecai. 

And notice what happens instead. The king promotes someone… but it’s not Mordecai. 

1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the Agagite, 

You might say, “Haman the Agagite? Who’s that? We haven’t even heard of this guy yet. Why isn’t he promoting Mordecai? Mordecai just saved his life!” I don’t know why. Mordecai did a great thing. He did the right thing. He saved the king’s life. And as a reward he gets immediately forgotten.

Can I just pause for a moment and give you some encouragement to do the right thing even when nobody notices? Do you know what integrity is? Integrity is doing the right thing even when nobody notices and you don’t get rewarded for it. Integrity involves doing what pleases God, even when the world doesn’t notice or even if they do notice and think less of you for doing it.

Just for the sake of this story, make a note of what Mordecai did, and the fact that the author said it was written down in the chronicles in the presence of the king. That is what we call foreshadowing. That’ll come up again in this narrative. But there are plenty of times in this world when we do the right thing and it doesn’t get noticed or rewarded. 

And we can rest assured that even if the world doesn’t notice, God will notice and reward us accordingly (either in this world or in the world to come). 

Now back to the story. Look at verse 1 again.

1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him.

Later we see that this was the twelfth year of Ahasuerus’s reign. So this is five years after Esther has been chosen as queen. And the king is promoting Haman the Agagite.

Some of you might say, “Who’s this Haman the Agagite? Who’s this character?” Well, let’s talk about Haman. When you hear this guy’s name in this book, I want you to hear the imperial march soundtrack. This guy is the villain. Every great story needs a villain. And this guy is the antagonist to Mordecai, the protagonist. And you expected in this verse, especially after the end of chapter 2, that Mordecai would get this great promotion. Nope. It’s this other guy Haman. 

And Haman has an interesting ancestry. Haman was an Agagite. Agag was the ancient king of the Amalekites. The Amalekites were the first people to attack the Israelites after leaving Egypt. So there’s an ancient animosity between the Jewish people and the Amalekites (Haman’s people).

Also in the book of 1 Samuel, God gave an Israelite king the task of putting to death King Agag and all of the Amalekites. That king failed to follow through with that task. And so, Samuel, the prophet rebuked this king and slayed King Agag in front of the king. What was that king’s name? Saul. And Saul is described as “the son of Kish” and a Benjamite. Do you know who else was a “son of Kish” and a Benjamite? Mordecai (2:5).

So just to be clear, we’ve got a real Hatfields and McCoys situation here. And that’s going to be integral to our story. We’ve got Mordechai, the Jew, and Haman, the Agagite, Amalekite. And we’ve got some ancient bad blood that is emerging in the distant locale of Persia.

Write this down as #2 in your notes. Here’s the second movement of this text.

2) A Shot across the Bow (3:1–6)

So Ahasuerus appoints this guy Haman as his top official. This guy is his top dog diplomat in Persia. We don’t know who this guy is. We don’t know anything about him, other than the fact that he’s an Agagite. And now he’s the most powerful man in the world other than Ahasuerus. 

Look at verse 2. Like most men of power, he wants to show that power off.

2 And all the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, for the king had so commanded concerning him. 

You might say, “It’s not Haman’s fault that they are bowing before him. The king ordered it.” True. And that’s key for what is said next. Look at the end of verse 2.

But Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage.

Mordecai, this Jewish man who saved the king’s life is now openly defying the man that the king appointed as his top man. Does Mordecai have a death wish or something? Is Mordecai right to deny this guy homage? Maybe so. Is Mordecai being pious, or is he being proud? Probably some combination of the two.

Maybe he’s trying to be another Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Persian kingdom? Or maybe he’s too proud to pay obeisance to someone that he views as inferior to himself? Or maybe he thought he could do this and get away without being noticed? The truth of the matter is that he wasn’t noticed by Haman… not at first. But he was noticed by others. 

Look at verse 3. 

3 Then the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?” 

Notice, it’s not Haman’s command. It’s the king’s command. Mordecai is openly defying the king!

4 And when they [the king’s servants] spoke to [Mordecai] day after day 

So this happened repeatedly. Why do you transgress the king’s command, Mordecai? Why do you transgress the king’s command, Mordecai? Why do you transgress the king’s command?

and he would not listen to them, they told Haman, in order to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand, for he had told them that he was a Jew. 

So Mordecai would not listen to them, but he did tell them, finally, that he was a Jew. Okay, so now it comes out. Here’s the reason why. Jews don’t bow down before rulers. Jews don’t honor foreign rulers. 

Now here’s where we have to read behind the scenes a little bit. Was Mordecai right in not bowing before Haman? Was he? There’s a little ambiguity concerning this. Because it was not a violation of Jewish law to bow before a king. Jews would do that for both Jewish and Gentile kings in the OT. The issue with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego wasn’t that they wouldn’t bow before Nebuchadnezzar. Their issue is that they wouldn’t bow before a golden image. That was a violation of the second commandment. That would be a tacit acknowledgement of graven images. It’s probable that they did bow before Nebuchadnezzar himself!

So what’s the issue with Mordecai? Well, he won’t bow before Haman, because first of all he’s not a king. Secondly, he’s an Agagite. Thirdly, Mordecai is the queen’s uncle. And fourthly, Mordecai had saved the king’s life. With all of that stuffed in his pocket, why would he humiliate himself before this upstart Agagite who had leapfrogged past him for a place of honor before the king? 

 So here’s Mordecai. Every day at the gate of the city, the servants of the king bow down to Haman the Agagite. But Mordecai, with arms folded and mind made up, refuses to bow. What’s Haman going to say when he finds out about this? Is he going to say, “No worries. Mordecai’s a good guy. He doesn’t have to honor me?” 

Look at verse 5. Now let me set this up for you. Here’s the situation at the OK Corral with this standoff. Let’s read the text of verse 4 closely. It says, “[the king’s servants] told Haman, in order to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand.” In other words, we’ve got a little tittle-tattle here. They told Haman in order to dare Mordecai. It’s as if they are goading him: “Are you going to bow now?”

So here’s the moment of truth in verse 5. 

5 And when Haman saw 

Not heard, but saw. The servants tattled on him. So now Haman’s looking out for this.

5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage to him, Haman was filled with fury.

The Hebrew word for “fury” here is חֵמָה, which means “heat.” When Haman saw Mordecai’s defiance, he was hot. He was filled with fury. Mordecai had been warned by the servants. He had been tattled on by those servants. And now, in open defiance of the king and the king’s appointee, Haman, Mordecai refuses to pay homage. 

Look at verse 6.   

6 But [Haman] disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone. So, as they had made known to him the people of Mordecai, Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus. 

Okay, timeout. Let’s assess this situation before we move forward. First of all Haman doesn’t address the situation immediately, instead he seethes. He doesn’t accuse Mordecai or even kill Mordecai. That would have been a prudent and quick way to deal with this situation. 

Instead he devises a plot. And the response is absolutely incommensurate with the offense. Because of one person’s non-compliance, now Haman wants to destroy the entire population of Jews in Persia. Does that sound proportionate? Does that sound reasonable? 

I think what we have here is insight into the mind of a maniacal psychopath, who has an ancient axe to grind against the Jewish people. And Haman is going to use this one instance of insubordination to unleash his pent-up, genocidal fury. 

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So, this is where this passage gets really dark. Write this down as #3. Here’s the third scene, and it involves…

3) A Shady Backroom Deal (3:7–15)

Look at verse 7. 

7 In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, they cast lots) before Haman day after day; and they cast it month after month till the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. 

So here’s the situation. Haman is stewing over Mordecai, but he’s going to bide his time till the opportune moment materializes. And verse 7 shows us here that they would cast lots on behalf of the king. Probably what this indicates is that they would cast lots over the officials, and whoever the lots fell favorably on, that person would be able to gain an audience with the king. 

The important thing to know here is that Haman had to wait twelve months for this opportunity. They started casting lots in the first month (the month of Nisan). And they did that for twelve months until the month of Adar. So Haman has been stewing and biding his time for twelve months. 

And now he’s going to take his shot. Look at verse 8.

8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not to the king’s profit to tolerate them. 

9 If it please the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay 10,000 talents of silver into the hands of those who have charge of the king’s business, that they may put it into the king’s treasuries.”

Haman takes his shot, and he doesn’t waste it. He’s going all in on his dastardly plan to initiate a pogrom against the Jews. And in fact, he sweetens the deal with Ahasuerus. He says, “I’ll even front the money to pay for this. I’ll give you 10,000 talents to make this happen!” 

Now this was an absolute fortune. This is a ton of money—10,000 talents. And we know from history, that Ahasuerus was cash poor after his Greek campaigns. Therefore Haman’s offer of 10,000 talents would have replenished his war chest. So this is an offer that is too good to be true! 

Haman wants to remove a troublesome and rebellious people group from the Empire, and he’s going to pay Ahasuerus to make this happen. Why wouldn’t the king do this? The reality is that this king doesn’t have the scruples and he doesn’t have the wits to question this matter or the plan that Haman has put together. You’d think that a king would at least ask, “Why do you want to do this?” or “What’s the people group you want to annihilate?” Or something to that effect. The king doesn’t seem to care.

And look what he does instead. Look at verse 10.

10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. 

11 And the king said to Haman, “The money is given to you, the people also, to do with them as it seems good to you.”

In other words, the king gives him carte blanche. “Here’s the money. Here’s the people. The money is at your disposal. My authority as king is at your disposal. Do what seems right to you, and I won’t say boo. Do what you want to!” 

By the way, the signet ring was a sign of royal authority. Ahasuerus delegated his royal authority to Haman. And Haman wastes no time taking advantage of this. 

Look at verse 12.

12 Then the king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, 

By the way, the thirteenth day of the first month (Nisan) is the day before Passover. The original readers of this book would have noticed that in this text. So there’s a cruel irony here in this edict. Haman, on behalf of the king, has put forth a decree to destroy Jews on the night before Passover!

and an edict, according to all that Haman commanded, was written to the king’s satraps and to the governors over all the provinces and to the officials of all the peoples, to every province in its own script and every people in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king’s signet ring. 

Remember how vast and impressive the empire was described as in chapter 1? There were 127 provinces from India to Egypt (1:1)! Now every person and every language in this vast kingdom is getting an edict from the king. This is no small undertaking. And this is no small request. This is the king! And what is the king requesting?

Look at verse 13.

13 Letters were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with instruction to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all Jews, young and old, women and children, in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their goods. 

14 A copy of the document was to be issued as a decree in every province by proclamation to all the peoples to be ready for that day. 15 The couriers went out hurriedly by order of the king, and the decree was issued in Susa the citadel. 

In other words, the full power and expediency of the Persian Empire was given to Haman to fulfill this order. The most powerful nation in the world, at this time, has declared war on its own Jewish people. It wasn’t the first or the last time that this happened to the Jewish people. And the wicked desires of a psychopath are enacted by a clueless king over a foreign nation. 

And notice how this chapter comes to an end. Look at the end of verse 15. This is adding insult to injury.

And the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was thrown into confusion.

By the way, Ahasuerus (Xerxes) was known as a ruthless king who liked to drink. He had massive appetites for sex, drink, women, and war. It makes you wonder why Mordecai would ever have presented Esther as a potential queen. It makes you wonder what Esther thought of being married to a man like this. Why would her uncle encourage her to take this position? I can’t answer that question.

And notice too, that the weirdness of the situation and this edict of the king was so bizarre, that the city of Susa was thrown into confusion. I can just imagine the people of the city saying, “Why are we doing this? What’s the point of this? Why would we kill innocent people in our kingdom?” The king doesn’t care. He’s getting inebriated with his top man, Haman the Agagite. And Haman’s thinking, “Let’s eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow the Jews die!” Haman’s great plan comes off without a hitch.

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And what is confusion for the city of Susa, is absolute tragedy for Mordecai and the Jews. Because look at what transpires in chapter 4, verse 1.

1 When Mordecai learned all that had been done, Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and he cried out with a loud and bitter cry. 

Write this down as #4. Here’s the final scene in this passage.

4) A Dark Day for God’s People (4:1–3)

Mordecai’s response in verse 1 is understandable. He’s responsible for this. His unwillingness to bow before Haman is going to result in the loss of thousands of Jewish lives.

2 He went up to the entrance of the king’s gate, for no one was allowed to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth. 

There he is at the entrance of the king’s gate. There he is at the place where he learned about the plan to assassinate the king. There he is at the place where he curated insider information to help Esther become queen. This is the place where he served the king faithfully. And that’s the place where his actions led to a great attack on his people. 

And verse 3 let’s us know how widespread this edict is.

3 And in every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and many of them lay in sackcloth and ashes. 

One Esther commentator called 4:3 the lowest point of the book of Esther. This is actually one of the lowest points in the entire OT. And the tragedy is commemorated in typical Jewish fashion with the donning of sackcloth and the sprinkling of ashes. 

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So let’s step back and theologize just a bit as we finish up this passage. I want to give you as we close two positive glimmers of hope in this situation involving Esther. And then I want to give you a glimmer of hope that God gives you in whatever tragic situation you find yourself in.

But first let’s talk about Mordecai and Esther. Even before all of these tragic things emerged in Esther, God was working incognito behind the scenes. And there are two historical realities that have already been revealed that will negotiate against this plan to exterminate the Jews. The first is the fact that Haman’s hated enemies, the Jews, have one of their own established as the queen of Persia. And nobody knows about it! That’s the saving grace in all of this. And that gives us just enough hope to believe that something great is about to happen, despite the sadness at the end of this passage. 

One of the encouraging things about Esther 4:1–3 is that this is not the end of the book. If it was, that’d be really depressing. But you look in your Bible and realize that we’re not even halfway done yet in this book, and you think, “Hmmm, maybe God isn’t done yet with Mordecai and the Jewish people in Persia.” Let’s keep reading!

The second glimmer of hope has to do with Mordecai. For some unknown reason, Mordecai’s gesture in saving the king was forgotten. But it’s still recorded in the chronicles of the king! That’s what people in the movie industry call a MacGuffin. That’s not a wasted bit of information in this story. In fact, that’s a little clue, that maybe, just maybe, God is working behind the scenes to protect his people from harm. That’s all I want to say about that now. If I say anymore than that, I’ll be giving away too much that follows in the story. 

So even though it’s a sad situation in chapter 4, verse 3, there’s hope. And here’s how we theologize in our lives. Can I give you some advice. Don’t be surprised when deep darkness and vindictive treachery are revealed in this world. Don’t be surprised when psychos and maniacs wield power in our world. 

The reality is that we live in a broken world full of antagonism, compromise, and shady backroom deals that lead to devastating human consequences. Grief and sadness are real. And wicked kings and wicked counselors sometimes wreak havoc on our world. Yet in the midst of tragedy, God is working to redeem every situation for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. Let me say it this way—God does not abandon his people.

And God uses tragedy to accomplish his triumph. What’s the greatest example of that? The greatest example of that is God’s work of atonement that was likewise brought about by a shady backroom deal. It was redemption via tragedy. The sinful Jews in Persia were threatened with wrongful execution, including Mordechai. But the perfect, sinless King of the Jews was more than just threatened with wrongful execution; he was crucified by sinful people in payment for the sin of Jewish and Gentile sinners. 

Taught by Tony Caffey

Senior Pastor of Verse By Verse Fellowship

Esther