Biblical Missionaries Esther and Mordecai

Lesson #6 for August 8, 2015

Scriptures: [Esther 1-10; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23; John 4:1-26; Acts 17:26; Matthew 22:21; Romans 1:18-20][i].

1.    The story of Esther and Mordecai is a very challenging one for Bible-believing Jews and Christians. We do not know why Mordecai and Esther were in Susa, the winter capital of the Persian Empire, after the Jews had been given permission at least twice to return to Jerusalem. Instead of moving west to reestablish themselves in Jewish territory, for some reason they had moved east to the Persian capital. As an orphan, Esther was taken in by her cousin Mordecai and apparently raised as a faithful Jewess. The rest of the story raises a lot of questions! If you have not done so recently, please read the full book of Esther. It will not take very long.

2.    The events of the book of Esther occurred early in the 5th century B.C. There are many written records documenting events in the Medo-Persian government at that time. Below is a chart of how the story of Esther fits into the known history of the Medo-Persian government of that time.

3.    Historical Setting. The events of the book cover a 10-year portion (483-473 B.C.) of the reign of Xerxes I (486-465 B.C.).... The events occurred between those recorded in the sixth and seventh chapters of Ezra....

Xerxes I (ruled 485-465 B.C.) was a king of Persia and the husband of Esther, the Jewess. Ahasuerus [Xerxes I] succeeded his father, Darius Hystaspis, in 485 B.C. The Book of Esther portrays the king as (1) ruling a vast empire; (2) being very wealthy; (3) being sensual, continually giving feasts; and (4) being cruel and acutely lacking in foresight (Esther 1:13-22).... In 465 B.C. a courtier murdered Ahasuerus; his son, Artaxerxes I, Longimanus, succeeded him. (King James Version Study Bible) [Content in brackets and bold type are added.]

The chronological data supplied by the book of Esther (except B.C. dates) are as follows:

4. There is a great deal of fascinating historical information about this story available at the following address: www.theox.org. Look for “Esther - A Teacher’s Guide.” We do not know exactly why Esther participated in the beauty contest. She probably did not have any choice in the matter. Esther willingly or unwillingly broke just about every rule of traditional Jewish conduct. What does it say to us about God that He continued to lead and guide her under those circumstances? Did God help her prepare to be Xerxes wife or concubine?

5.    When Esther was chosen to be in the beauty contest as well as after the contest, Mordecai advised her at least twice to hide her identity. (See Esther 2:10,20ii.) Why do you suppose he did that? What can we learn from their experience that might be appropriate today? If revealing that you are a Christian places you in additional danger without helping in any way in the spread of the gospel, it is not necessary to reveal your identity. Consider the cases of many of the early Christians. It might be appropriate in our world today not to reveal one’s Christianity if one is trying to work as a pioneer in a Muslim country. What about working in China? Or, Russia? Or, some other communist or communist-leaning nation?

6.    Read John 4:1-26iii. In this story Jesus openly revealed to a Samaritan woman that He was the Messiah while He did not do that, as far as we can tell, to His own people. Why would He do that? Is it because Jesus recognized that if He told the Jewish people that He was to be their Messiah, they would have had a completely wrong idea of what He was going to do?

Christ was far more reserved when He spoke to them [the Jews]. That which had been withheld from the Jews, and which the disciples were afterward enjoined to keep secret, was revealed to her [the Samaritan woman]. Jesus saw that she would make use of her knowledge in bringing others to share His grace.—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 190.3. [Content in brackets and bold type are added.]

7.    Read Esther 3:1-5iv. When Haman was appointed to be vizier or prime minister to the king, Mordecai refused to bow to him when he passed. When Haman discovered who Mordecai was and why he did not bow, he was furious. Haman’s ancestors and Mordecai’s ancestors had been enemies for many generations. Early in the history of Israel, King Saul was supposed to have eliminated Haman’s ancestors completely! (1 Samuel 15[v]) Haman was a direct descendant of Agag, one of the kings of the Amalekites. No doubt, Haman thought this was a good opportunity to eliminate his old rivals.

8.    Read [Esther 3:8-13; Acts 17:26]vi. Haman attempted to picture the Jews as disloyal and a problem in the kingdom. He argued that because they were different, they should be eliminated, and he would pay a large sum of money to the treasury-stolen from the Jews?

9.    Where were most of the Jews in the days of Esther? Why do you think so many of the Jews stayed in Persia or Babylon rather than going back to Jerusalem or Canaan? Is that where God wanted them to be? Why did they get into that predicament? Was it ever God’s plan for them to remain in Babylon or Persia? How many opportunities had they had to go back to Canaan? Do you have a harder time understanding and explaining how God treats the righteous? Or, how He treats the wicked? Does the story of Esther give us any help in understanding how God feels about His children even when they do not care enough to go/come “home”? What do you think of a God who goes to such great lengths to preserve such a group? Where are Esther’s and Mordecai’s descendants today?

10.    By far the majority of the Jews remained in Mesopotamia, either in Babylonia or in Persia. We have no evidence that any Jews were ever required to go to Susa in Persia; so, it is quite likely that those who went there did so for commercial reasons or on assignment. One hundred and eighteen years before this story begins, Mordecai’s and Esther’s relatives had been carried captive along with Jehoiachin and Ezekiel in 598/597 B.C. Sixty years before this story, Zerubbabel and Joshua the High Priest had led the 50,000 Jews who were willing to go on the journey “home” to rebuild Jerusalem. Another large group of Jews were in Egypt where they had fled, taking Jeremiah and Baruch with them. (See Jeremiah 43:6vii.) Only a very small percentage of the Jews were actually in Jerusalem where God apparently wanted them to be!

11.    Sometimes, we have suggested to our children that God will not protect them if they go to places where God does not want them to be! Do their guardian angels wait until they leave such places before angels take up their protecting role again? What about the parable of the lost sheep? (Luke 15:1-7; Matthew 18:10-14)viii Or, the prodigal son? (Luke 15:11-32ix) The book of Esther should be a clear answer to such ideas. Still today, there is a large community of Jews living in Persia (Iran) although many have left in recent years. No doubt, the descendants of the main characters of this book actually became a part of the Persian culture and blended in with that nation.

12.    God never leaves His children alone, especially when they are in danger! His children may be ignoring His advice and counsel at the moment and even ignoring the persuasion of the Holy Spirit and His assistants, our guardian angels; but, that does not mean that God has abandoned them. Numerous examples could be given from Scriptures to show that God goes out of His way to reach out to help and touch us if there is any possible way that we will respond.

13.    Shouldn’t God have solved the problems in the book of Esther by means of a prophet or prophetess instead of using a beautiful, young woman who ended up “committing adultery” as one of the many “wives” of a heathen king? (Esther 2:1-18[x]) By our standards, shouldn’t Vashti have been the heroine of the book? (Esther 1:12xi) What do you think of the reason given by the counselors for deposing Vashti? (Esther 1:13-22xii) Couldn’t God have used some other person or method to solve this problem without breaking so many moral codes, even commandments, by our standards? Would you want your daughter to do what Esther did? Do you think Esther had any choice? It should not be too hard to understand why down through the ages some have questioned the inspiration of and have had problems with this book being in the Bible.

14.    Herodotus names Xerxes’ queen as “Amestris,” and describes her as infamously cruel. Suggestions have been made to identify her with either Vashti or Esther, although philological and historical arguments for either are unlikely. More likely Vashti and Esther were wives of Xerxes/Ahasuerus that Herodotus does not mention. It should be noted that although Herodotus is often called the “father of history,” he wrote primarily from interviews and with the intention to entertain and to glorify the Greeks. His work is far from faultless historically. Therefore, it is improper to pit Herodotus against the Bible, assuming the Bible to be in error where it is inconsistent with Herodotus. (Believer’s Study Bible)

15.    What was the reason Mordecai refused to bow to Haman? Was there a moral or biblical reason involved? Or, was it just a personal or national rivalry or stubbornness because Haman’s ancestors were old archenemies of the people of Israel? (See Genesis 14:7; Exodus 17:8-16; Numbers 14:45; 24:7; Deuteronomy 25:17-19; Judges 3:13; 6:3,33; 1 Samuel 15:1-3,9,20,32-33; 27:8; 30:1; 2 Samuel 1:1; 1 Chronicles 4:42-43xiii.)

16.    According to Jewish tradition, (Targum Sheni; Josephus Antiquitiesxi. 6.5) Haman was a direct descendant of Agag, king of the Amalekites, in the sixteenth generation. Agag, like Pharaoh, means king or ruler. There is no mention made of Mordecai refusing to bow to the king. There are numerous records in Scripture of Jews bowing before kings (See 1 Samuel 24:8xiv.) and others who were regarded as superior to themselves. (Genesis 23:7; 27:29; 33:3; etc.) Haman was a Gentile, but Abraham had bowed before Gentiles. (Genesis 23:7) Mordecai, of course, refused to offer Haman the kind of reverence that is due only to God. (See 5T 450; PK 600.)

Did Mordecai put all the Jewish people at risk by his action? It was clearly a matter of considerable attention because Mordecai’s associates spoke to him about it on a regular basis. (Esther 3:4xv)

17.    How would you feel if you were Mordecai and you had just learned of the death decree against all of God’s people because of your actions? (Esther 3:1-15xvi) Why do you think Mordecai refused to bow down?

18.    It is not clear why Mordecai refused to bow to Haman. He may have thought that there was some special, legitimate reason why bowing in this case would represent a compromise of his religion. (See comments below.) Or, it may have been nothing more than stubbornness against a group of ancient rivals who had been enemies of God’s people since the days of Abraham. We have no way of knowing if Mordecai required bowing from his subordinates when he rose to the position of prime minister.

19.    How many other times in the Bible were death decrees issued? (Exodus 1:15-22; Matthew 2:16-18)xvii What was the purpose of those decrees? Who do you think was behind them? Why? Would the Jews, as a people, have disappeared if Esther had not done what she did? If you had been given the king’s permission to counteract the first decree of Haman, what would you have written or done? Was Esther partly responsible for the kind treatment received by Ezra and Nehemiah?

20.    It is very likely that Satan was hoping on this occasion to eliminate or at least reduce the possibility that the Messiah would be born as had been prophesied. He was determined to do whatever he could to disrupt God’s plans.

21.    Since Ahasueras (Xerxes I) reigned until 465 B.C. and Ezra led the second group of exiles back to Jerusalem in 457 B.C., it is most likely that Ezra at least knew of Esther. No doubt, he was very familiar with her story. How much personal contact a man like Ezra may have had with the queen, who as a member of the king’s harem was reserved just for the king, is questionable. But, it is clear that those in high office may have had opportunity to come in contact with the queen directly as evidenced by the banquets that Esther held to which Haman was invited.

22.    Artaxerxes I Longimanus (465-423 B.C.) was the third son of Xerxes I and his successor to the Persian throne. It is very unlikely that he was the son of Esther, but at least he would have known all about her. He was the king who granted the generous gifts and positions to Ezra and Nehemiah to help rebuild Jerusalem.

23.    Why do you think Esther, her friends, and the Jews in Susa fasted? Note that prayer was not mentioned in original versions. (Esther 4:15-16xviii) Was it to get God’s attention? Or, what?

24.    It is quite likely that their fast lasted no more than the last part of the first day, all of the second day, and the first part of the third day (Compare the time Jesus was in the tomb.) and would, thus, be about 36 hours in length. Even so, it was an attempt to get the moral and spiritual support of the Jews of Susa and God as well. (See Prophets and Kings 601.) It was known that the mind is particularly clear after such a fast, and Esther may have suggested it so that she would be especially clear-minded as she approached the king. It is also possible that it was a part of a period of prayer and fasting to appeal to God for the welfare of His people.

25.    Read Esther 5-8xix. In these chapters we have the critical parts of the story. By inviting the king and Haman to two different banquets and then finally revealing her identity, Esther sealed the plot against Haman.

26.    Why couldn’t the king sleep after the first night of banqueting with Esther? Did he eat too much food? Or, drink too much wine? Read Esther 6:1-3xx. At an earlier time, Mordecai had done a very important deed which resulted in the saving of the king’s life. We do not know how he found out about the plot or exactly how he reported it. But, he clearly was working in the king’s best interest.

27.    Try to imagine yourself in the position of Haman or the position of Mordecai as Haman led Mordecai through the streets of Susa, declaring Mordecai to be the man the king delighted to honor!

28.    What do you think of the solution that Esther and Mordecai worked out to this major problem? Was that God’s ideal way for dealing with enemies of the Jewish people? Read Esther 8:17xxi. Is fear of being killed a reason to declare yourself in favor of the Jews? Or, even of God? Do you think those people were truly converted? Or, were they just scared?

29.    Read Romans 1:18-20xxii. Most Christians misread this passage of Scripture. As it is commonly understood, it is believed that this passage basically says that when people oppose God or His people long enough, then God will step in with anger and destroy them.

30.    Read Romans 1:24,26,28xxiii. What this passage in Romans 1 actually says is that when people reject God long enough, God will ultimately turn away from them because they do not want Him anyway, thus, leaving them to the inevitable and awful consequences of their own destructive behavior. (See, for example, Hosea 4:17; Psalms 81:11-12; Ezekiel 20:25-26.)xxiv

31.    One interesting side note in all of this is found in Esther 3:13 compared with Esther 8:11. The people who were initially given permission to kill all the Jews were allowed to plunder their possessions. When Esther and Mordecai rewrote the decree, they apparently included the same phrase, that the Jews could plunder the possessions of their enemies. However, read Esther 9:10,15-17xxv, GNB which says that “there was no looting.” Did Mordecai and Esther want people to understand that the Jews were acting out of self defense and not greed?

The decree that will finally go forth against the remnant people of God will be very similar to that issued by Ahasuerus against the Jews. Today the enemies of the true church see in the little company keeping the Sabbath commandment a Mordecai at the gate. The reverence of God’s people for His law is a constant rebuke to those who have cast off the fear of the Lord and are trampling on His Sabbath.—Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, p. 605.2; LDE258.2; CC 245.3; FLB 311.4; Mar 269.2.

32.    Both ancient Jews and Christians disputed the right of the book of Esther to have a place in the Old Testament canon. It did not appear in the Old Testament used by the community that produced the Dead Sea scrolls, nor in the Old Testament of the churches of ancient Turkey and Syria. The name of God does not appear in the book of Esther, while there are about 190 references to the heathen king. There are no references to sacrifice, temple, or worship, although fasting and prayer (sic) are mentioned. Finally, the covenant emphasis on forgiveness and mercy is not mentioned. And yet, the Lord saw fit to include it in the canon. Why? What powerful spiritual lesson can we take from it about how God can work in our lives for good, even amid what appear to be very difficult circumstances? (Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide for Friday, August 7.) [Content in parenthesis is added.]

33.    One of the most puzzling questions in the story is why Mordecai and Esther were in Susa. Since Mordecai or his ancestors were first exiled to Babylon, it would have been necessary for Mordecai or his ancestors to move further east to Susa in the days of Cyrus or his descendants. Thus, there is a possibility that Mordecai was in Susa representing Jewish interests. Do you think that is possible? Or, was it just for commercial interest?

34.    Esther is sometimes called the secular book of the Bible. That is because the name of God is not mentioned and there is so much involvement in the affairs of the Medo-Persian government. Herodotus, the famous Greek storyteller, wrote that the wife of Xerxes was Amestris who was herself very cruel. So, how do we explain the story of Vashti and Esther? Mordecai is a name derived from the Babylonian god, Marduk. As far as we know, so far, no archaeological evidence has been found for the existence of Vashti, Esther, or Mordecai. However, it is interesting to notice that shortly after the occurrence of this story, a number of young Jewish males were given the name Mordecai! Clearly, that was not because they were wanting to worship a pagan deity! We have to assume it was because of this Mordecai.

35.    So, what are we supposed to do with the book of Esther? In order to see God’s involvement, one clearly has to read between the lines. But, Ellen White reminded us:

In the annals of human history the growth of nations, the rise and fall of empires, appear as dependent on the will and prowess of man. The shaping of events seems, to a great degree, to be determined by his power, ambition, or caprice.

But in the word of God the curtain is drawn aside, and we behold, behind, above, and through all the play and counterplay of human interests and power and passions, the agencies of the all-merciful One, silently, patiently working out the counsels of His own will.—Education, p. 173.2 (1903); PK 499.4; CC 250.3; FLB 168.2; AG 50.2; LDE 29.5. [Bold type is added.]

36.    The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. . . . To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Cor. 9:20, 22, NIV). In many ways this is a confronting passage of Scripture. What exactly does Paul mean by becoming “all things to all people”? The religious sect called “The Family” used to be known as the “Children of God.” In the 1970s, they began a recruiting practice that their founder, David Berg, called “flirty fishing”--basically using sexuality to lure people. Although no longer practiced, the David Berg Web site still defends this method of religious prostitution: “Over 100,000 people were led to faith in Christ because of the sacrificial love of Family men and women who were willing to go to such lengths to share the Lord’s love.” Adult Teachers Sabbath School Bible Study Guide p. 81.

37.    To what extent should Christians in our day assimilate into our culture? Should we stand out as strange and unusual? In what areas of our lives do we need to be separate and distinctive?

38.    Read Esther 4:12-16xxvi. Would it not have been quite easy for Esther to have refused the directions of Mordecai and pretended like she was Persian instead of Jewish when that crisis came? We know very little about Mordecai’s early training of Esther. But, clearly, she was willing to sacrifice her life to stand up for principle in some respects.

39.    In the Bible we have the stories of Esther, Joseph, and Daniel who served in foreign governments, undertaking the king’s work; and yet, they stood out in their honoring of God. Will the time come for some of us to do the same?

i-Esther 1-10;

1 1-2 From his royal throne in Persia's capital city of Susa, King Xerxes ruled 127 provinces, all the way from India to Ethiopia.[a]

3 In the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his officials and administrators. The armies of Persia and Media were present, as well as the governors and noblemen of the provinces. 4 For six whole months he made a show of the riches of the imperial court with all its splendor and majesty.

5 After that, the king gave a banquet for all the people in the capital city of Susa, rich and poor alike. It lasted a whole week and was held in the gardens of the royal palace. 6 The courtyard there was decorated with blue and white cotton curtains, tied by cords of fine purple linen to silver rings on marble columns. Couches made of gold and silver had been placed in the courtyard, which was paved with white marble, red feldspar, shining mother-of-pearl, and blue turquoise. 7 Drinks were served in gold cups, no two of them alike, and the king was generous with the royal wine. 8 There were no limits on the drinks; the king had given orders to the palace servants that everyone could have as much as they wanted.[b]

9 Meanwhile, inside the royal palace Queen Vashti was giving a banquet for the women.

10 On the seventh day of his banquet the king was drinking and feeling happy, so he called in the seven eunuchs who were his personal servants, Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas. 11 He ordered them to bring in Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown. The queen was a beautiful woman, and the king wanted to show off her beauty to the officials and all his guests. 12 But when the servants told Queen Vashti of the king's command, she refused to come. This made the king furious.

13 Now it was the king's custom to ask for expert opinion on questions of law and order, so he called for his advisers, who would know what should be done. 14 Those he most often turned to for advice were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan—seven officials of Persia and Media who held the highest offices in the kingdom. 15 He said to these men, “I, King Xerxes, sent my servants to Queen Vashti with a command, and she refused to obey it! What does the law say that we should do with her?”

16 Then Memucan declared to the king and his officials: “Queen Vashti has insulted not only the king but also his officials—in fact, every man in the empire! 17 Every woman in the empire will start looking down on her husband as soon as she hears what the queen has done. They'll say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to come to him, and she refused.’ 18 When the wives of the royal officials of Persia and Media hear about the queen's behavior, they will be telling their husbands about it before the day is out. Wives everywhere will have no respect for their husbands, and husbands will be angry with their wives. 19 If it please Your Majesty, issue a royal proclamation that Vashti may never again appear before the king. Have it written into the laws of Persia and Media, so that it can never be changed. Then give her place as queen to some better woman. 20 When your proclamation is made known all over this huge empire, every woman will treat her husband with proper respect, whether he's rich or poor.”

21 The king and his officials liked this idea, and the king did what Memucan suggested. 22 To each of the royal provinces he sent a message in the language and the system of writing of that province, saying[c] that every husband should be the master of his home and speak with final authority.

Esther Becomes Queen

2 Later, even after the king's anger had cooled down, he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and about his proclamation against her. 2 So some of the king's advisers who were close to him suggested, “Why don't you make a search to find some beautiful young virgins? 3 You can appoint officials in every province of the empire and have them bring all these beautiful young women to your harem here in Susa, the capital city. Put them in the care of Hegai, the eunuch who is in charge of your women, and let them be given a beauty treatment. 4 Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place.”

The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.

5 There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei. 6 When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jehoiachin of Judah into exile from Jerusalem, along with a group of captives, Mordecai was among them. 7 He had a cousin, Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah; she was a beautiful young woman, and had a good figure. At the death of her parents, Mordecai had adopted her and brought her up as his own daughter.

8 When the king had issued his new proclamation and many young women were being brought to Susa, Esther was among them. She too was put in the royal palace in the care of Hegai, who had charge of the harem. 9 Hegai liked Esther, and she won his favor. He lost no time in beginning her beauty treatment of massage and special diet. He gave her the best place in the harem and assigned seven young women specially chosen from the royal palace to serve her.

10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish. 11 Every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem, in order to find out how she was getting along and what was going to happen to her.

12 The regular beauty treatment for the women lasted a year—massages with oil of myrrh for six months and with oil of balsam for six more. After that, each woman would be taken in turn to King Xerxes. 13 When she went from the harem to the palace, she could wear whatever she wanted. 14 She would go there in the evening, and the next morning she would be taken to another harem and put in the care of Shaashgaz, the eunuch in charge of the king's concubines. She would not go to the king again unless he liked her enough to ask for her by name.

15 The time came for Esther to go to the king. Esther—the daughter of Abihail and the cousin of Mordecai, who had adopted her as his daughter; Esther—admired by everyone who saw her. When her turn came, she wore just what Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the harem, advised her to wear. 16 So in Xerxes' seventh year as king, in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, Esther was brought to King Xerxes in the royal palace. 17 The king liked her more than any of the other women, and more than any of the others she won his favor and affection. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 Then the king gave a great banquet in Esther's honor and invited all his officials and administrators. He proclaimed a holiday[d] for the whole empire and distributed gifts worthy of a king.

Mordecai Saves the King's Life

19 Meanwhile Mordecai had been appointed by the king to an administrative position. 20 As for Esther, she had still not let it be known that she was Jewish. Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone, and she obeyed him in this, just as she had obeyed him when she was a little girl under his care.

21 During the time that Mordecai held office in the palace, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the palace eunuchs who guarded the entrance to the king's rooms, became hostile to King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him. 22 Mordecai learned about it and told Queen Esther, who then told the king what Mordecai had found out. 23 There was an investigation, and it was discovered that the report was true, so both men were hanged on the gallows. The king ordered an account of this to be written down in the official records of the empire.

Mordecai Saves the King's Life

19 Meanwhile Mordecai had been appointed by the king to an administrative position. 20 As for Esther, she had still not let it be known that she was Jewish. Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone, and she obeyed him in this, just as she had obeyed him when she was a little girl under his care.

21 During the time that Mordecai held office in the palace, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the palace eunuchs who guarded the entrance to the king's rooms, became hostile to King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him. 22 Mordecai learned about it and told Queen Esther, who then told the king what Mordecai had found out. 23 There was an investigation, and it was discovered that the report was true, so both men were hanged on the gallows. The king ordered an account of this to be written down in the official records of the empire.

Haman Plots to Destroy the Jews

3 Some time later King Xerxes promoted a man named Haman to the position of prime minister. Haman was the son of Hammedatha, a descendant of Agag.[e] 2 The king ordered all the officials in his service to show their respect for Haman by kneeling and bowing to him. They all did so, except for Mordecai, who refused to do it. 3 The other officials in the royal service asked him why he was disobeying the king's command; 4 day after day they urged him to give in, but he would not listen to them. “I am a Jew,” he explained, “and I cannot bow to Haman.” So they told Haman about this, wondering if he would tolerate Mordecai's conduct. 5 Haman was furious when he realized that Mordecai was not going to kneel and bow to him, 6 and when he learned that Mordecai was a Jew, he decided to do more than punish Mordecai alone. He made plans to kill every Jew in the whole Persian Empire.

7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes' rule, in the first month, the month of Nisan, Haman ordered the lots to be cast (“purim,” they were called) to find out the right day and month to carry out his plot. The thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, was decided on.

8 So Haman told the king, “There is a certain race of people scattered all over your empire and found in every province. They observe customs that are not like those of any other people. Moreover, they do not obey the laws of the empire, so it is not in your best interests to tolerate them. 9 If it please Your Majesty, issue a decree that they are to be put to death. If you do, I guarantee that I will be able to put 375 tons of silver into the royal treasury for the administration of the empire.”

10 The king took off his ring, which was used to stamp proclamations and make them official, and gave it to the enemy of the Jewish people, Haman son of Hammedatha, the descendant of Agag. 11 The king told him, “The people and their money are yours; do as you like with them.”

12 So on the thirteenth day of the first month Haman called the king's secretaries and dictated a proclamation to be translated into every language and system of writing used in the empire and to be sent to all the rulers, governors, and officials. It was issued in the name of King Xerxes and stamped with his ring. 13 Runners took this proclamation to every province of the empire. It contained the instructions that on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, all Jews—young and old, women and children—were to be killed. They were to be slaughtered without mercy and their belongings were to be taken. 14 The contents of the proclamation were to be made public in every province, so that everyone would be prepared when that day came.

15 At the king's command the decree was made public in the capital city of Susa, and runners carried the news to the provinces. The king and Haman sat down and had a drink while the city of Susa was being thrown into confusion.

Mordecai Asks for Esther's Help

4 When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes in anguish. Then he dressed in sackcloth, covered his head with ashes, and walked through the city, wailing loudly and bitterly, 2 until he came to the entrance of the palace. He did not go in because no one wearing sackcloth was allowed inside. 3 Throughout all the provinces, wherever the king's proclamation was made known, there was loud mourning among the Jews. They fasted, wept, wailed, and most of them put on sackcloth and lay in ashes.

4 When Esther's servant women and eunuchs told her what Mordecai was doing, she was deeply disturbed. She sent Mordecai some clothes to put on instead of the sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then she called Hathach, one of the palace eunuchs appointed as her servant by the king, and told him to go to Mordecai and find out what was happening and why. 6 Hathach went to Mordecai in the city square at the entrance of the palace. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him and just how much money Haman had promised to put into the royal treasury if all the Jews were killed. 8 He gave Hathach a copy of the proclamation that had been issued in Susa, ordering the destruction of the Jews. Mordecai asked him to take it to Esther, explain the situation to her, and have her go and plead with the king and beg him to have mercy on her people. 9 Hathach did this, 10 and Esther gave him this message to take back to Mordecai: 11 “If anyone, man or woman, goes to the inner courtyard and sees the king without being summoned, that person must die. That is the law; everyone, from the king's advisers to the people in the provinces, knows that. There is only one way to get around this law: if the king holds out his gold scepter to someone, then that person's life is spared. But it has been a month since the king sent for me.”

12 When Mordecai received Esther's message, 13 he sent her this warning: “Don't imagine that you are safer than any other Jew just because you are in the royal palace. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, help will come from heaven to the Jews, and they will be saved, but you will die and your father's family will come to an end. Yet who knows—maybe it was for a time like this that you were made queen!”

15 Esther sent Mordecai this reply: 16 “Go and get all the Jews in Susa together; hold a fast and pray for me. Don't eat or drink anything for three days and nights. My servant women and I will be doing the same. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. If I must die for doing it, I will die.”

17 Mordecai then left and did everything that Esther had told him to do.

Esther Invites the King and Haman to a Banquet

5 On the third day of her fast Esther put on her royal robes and went and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace, facing the throne room. The king was inside, seated on the royal throne, facing the entrance. 2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing outside, she won his favor, and he held out to her the gold scepter. She then came up and touched the tip of it. 3 “What is it, Queen Esther?” the king asked. “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it—even if it is half my empire.”

4 Esther replied, “If it please Your Majesty, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tonight at a banquet I am preparing for you.”

5 The king then ordered Haman to come quickly, so that they could be Esther's guests. So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet. 6 Over the wine the king asked her, “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it. I will grant your request, even if you ask for half my empire.”

7 Esther replied, 8 “If Your Majesty is kind enough to grant my request, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tomorrow at another banquet that I will prepare for you. At that time I will tell you what I want.”

Haman Plots to Kill Mordecai

9 When Haman left the banquet he was happy and in a good mood. But then he saw Mordecai at the entrance of the palace, and when Mordecai did not rise or show any sign of respect as he passed, Haman was furious with him. 10 But he controlled himself and went on home. Then he invited his friends to his house and asked his wife Zeresh to join them. 11 He boasted to them about how rich he was, how many sons he had, how the king had promoted him to high office, and how much more important he was than any of the king's other officials. 12 “What is more,” Haman went on, “Queen Esther gave a banquet for no one but the king and me, and we are invited back tomorrow. 13 But none of this means a thing to me as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

14 So his wife and all his friends suggested, “Why don't you have a gallows built, seventy-five feet tall? Tomorrow morning you can ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on it, and then you can go to the banquet happy.”

Haman thought this was a good idea, so he had the gallows built.

The King Honors Mordecai

6 That same night the king could not get to sleep, so he had the official records of the empire brought and read to him. 2 [f]The part they read included the account of how Mordecai had uncovered a plot to assassinate the king—the plot made by Bigthana and Teresh, the two palace eunuchs who had guarded the king's rooms. 3 The king asked, “How have we honored and rewarded Mordecai for this?”

His servants answered, “Nothing has been done for him.”

4 “Are any of my officials in the palace?” the king asked.

Now Haman had just entered the courtyard; he had come to ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on the gallows that was now ready. 5 So the servants answered, “Haman is here, waiting to see you.”

“Show him in,” said the king.

6 So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “There is someone I wish very much to honor. What should I do for this man?”

Haman thought to himself, “Now who could the king want to honor so much? Me, of course.”

7-8 So he answered the king, “Have royal robes brought for this man—robes that you yourself wear. Have a royal ornament[g] put on your own horse. 9 Then have one of your highest noblemen dress the man in these robes and lead him, mounted on the horse, through the city square. Have the nobleman announce as they go: ‘See how the king rewards someone he wishes to honor!’”

10 Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry and get the robes and the horse, and provide these honors for Mordecai the Jew. Do everything for him that you have suggested. You will find him sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

11 So Haman got the robes and the horse, and he put the robes on Mordecai. Mordecai got on the horse, and Haman led him through the city square, announcing to the people as they went: “See how the king rewards a man he wishes to honor!”

12 Mordecai then went back to the palace entrance while Haman hurried home, covering his face in embarrassment. 13 He told his wife and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then she and those wise friends of his told him, “You are beginning to lose power to Mordecai. He is a Jew, and you cannot overcome him. He will certainly defeat you.”

Haman Is Put to Death

14 While they were still talking, the palace eunuchs arrived in a hurry to take Haman to Esther's banquet.

7 And so the king and Haman went to eat with Esther 2 for a second time. Over the wine the king asked her again, “Now, Queen Esther, what do you want? Tell me and you shall have it. I'll even give you half the empire.”

3 Queen Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty to grant my humble request, my wish is that I may live and that my people may live. 4 My people and I have been sold for slaughter. If it were nothing more serious than being sold into slavery, I would have kept quiet and not bothered you about it;[h] but we are about to be destroyed—exterminated!”

5 Then King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who dares to do such a thing? Where is this man?”

6 Esther answered, “Our enemy, our persecutor, is this evil man Haman!”

Haman faced the king and queen with terror. 7 The king got up in a fury, left the room, and went outside to the palace gardens. Haman could see that the king was determined to punish him for this, so he stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life. 8 He had just thrown himself down on Esther's couch to beg for mercy, when the king came back into the room from the gardens. Seeing this, the king cried out, “Is this man going to rape the queen right here in front of me, in my own palace?”

The king had no sooner said this than the eunuchs covered Haman's head. 9 Then one of them, who was named Harbonah, said, “Haman even went so far as to build a gallows at his house so that he could hang Mordecai, who saved Your Majesty's life. And it's seventy-five feet tall!”

“Hang Haman on it!” the king commanded.

10 So Haman was hanged on the gallows that he had built for Mordecai. Then the king's anger cooled down.

The Jews Are Told to Fight Back

8 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther all the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. Esther told the king that Mordecai was related to her, and from then on Mordecai was allowed to enter the king's presence. 2 The king took off his ring with his seal on it (which he had taken back from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai. Esther put Mordecai in charge of Haman's property.

3 Then Esther spoke to the king again, throwing herself at his feet and crying. She begged him to do something to stop the evil plot that Haman, the descendant of Agag,[i] had made against the Jews. 4 The king held out the gold scepter to her, so she stood up and said, 5 “If it please Your Majesty, and if you care about me and if it seems right to you, please issue a proclamation to keep Haman's orders from being carried out—those orders that the son of Hammedatha the descendant of Agag gave for the destruction of all the Jews in the empire. 6 How can I endure it if this disaster comes on my people, and my own relatives are killed?”

7 King Xerxes then said to Queen Esther and Mordecai, the Jew, “Look, I have hanged Haman for his plot against the Jews, and I have given Esther his property. 8 But a proclamation issued in the king's name and stamped with the royal seal cannot be revoked. You may, however, write to the Jews whatever you like; and you may write it in my name and stamp it with the royal seal.”

9 This happened on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. Mordecai called the king's secretaries and dictated letters to the Jews and to the governors, administrators, and officials of all the 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia.[j] The letters were written to each province in its own language and system of writing and to the Jews in their language and system of writing. 10 Mordecai had the letters written in the name of King Xerxes, and he stamped them with the royal seal. They were delivered by riders mounted on fast horses from the royal stables.

11 These letters explained that the king would allow the Jews in every city to organize for self-defense. If armed men of any nationality in any province attacked the Jewish men, their children, or their women, the Jews could fight back and destroy the attackers; they could slaughter them to the last man and take their possessions. 12 This decree was to take effect throughout the Persian Empire on the day set for the slaughter of the Jews, the thirteenth of Adar, the twelfth month. 13 It was to be proclaimed as law and made known to everyone in every province, so that the Jews would be ready to take revenge on their enemies when that day came. 14 At the king's command the riders mounted royal horses and rode off at top speed. The decree was also made public in Susa, the capital city.

15 Mordecai left the palace, wearing royal robes of blue and white, a cloak of fine purple linen, and a magnificent gold crown. Then the streets of Susa rang with cheers and joyful shouts. 16 For the Jews there was joy and relief, happiness and a sense of victory. 17 In every city and province, wherever the king's proclamation was read, the Jews held a joyful holiday with feasting and happiness. In fact, many other people became Jews, because they were afraid of them now.

The Jews Destroy Their Enemies

9 The thirteenth day of Adar came, the day on which the royal proclamation was to take effect, the day when the enemies of the Jews were hoping to get them in their power. But instead, the Jews triumphed over them. 2 In the Jewish quarter of every city[k] in the empire the Jews organized to attack anyone who tried to harm them. People everywhere were afraid of them, and no one could stand against them. 3 In fact, all the provincial officials—governors, administrators, and royal representatives—helped the Jews because they were all afraid of Mordecai. 4 It was well-known throughout the empire that Mordecai was now a powerful man in the palace and was growing more powerful. 5 So the Jews could do what they wanted with their enemies. They attacked them with swords and slaughtered them.

6 In Susa, the capital city itself, the Jews killed five hundred people. 7-10 Among them were the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. However, there was no looting.

11 That same day the number of people killed in Susa was reported to the king. 12 He then said to Queen Esther, “In Susa alone the Jews have killed five hundred people, including Haman's ten sons. What must they have done out in the provinces! What do you want now? You shall have it. Tell me what else you want, and you shall have it.”

13 Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty, let the Jews in Susa do again tomorrow what they were allowed to do today. And have the bodies of Haman's ten sons hung from the gallows.” 14 The king ordered this to be done, and the proclamation was issued in Susa. The bodies of Haman's ten sons were publicly displayed. 15 On the fourteenth day of Adar the Jews of Susa got together again and killed three hundred more people in the city. But again, they did no looting.

16 The Jews in the provinces also organized and defended themselves. They rid themselves of their enemies by killing seventy-five thousand people who hated them. But they did no looting. 17 This was on the thirteenth day of Adar. On the next day, the fourteenth, there was no more killing, and they made it a joyful day of feasting. 18 The Jews of Susa, however, made the fifteenth a holiday, since they had slaughtered their enemies on the thirteenth and fourteenth and then stopped on the fifteenth. 19 This is why Jews who live in small towns observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a joyous holiday, a time for feasting and giving gifts of food to one another.

The Festival of Purim

20 Mordecai had these events written down and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, throughout the Persian Empire, 21 telling them to observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar as holidays every year. 22 These were the days on which the Jews had rid themselves of their enemies; this was a month that had been turned from a time of grief and despair into a time of joy and happiness. They were told to observe these days with feasts and parties, giving gifts of food to one another and to the poor. 23 So the Jews followed Mordecai's instructions, and the celebration became an annual custom.

24 [l]Haman son of Hammedatha—the descendant of Agag and the enemy of the Jewish people—had cast lots (“purim,” they were called) to determine the day for destroying the Jews; he had planned to wipe them out. 25 But Esther went to the king, and the king issued written orders with the result that Haman suffered the fate he had planned for the Jews—he and his sons were hanged from the gallows. 26 That is why the holidays are called Purim. Because of Mordecai's letter and because of all that had happened to them, 27 the Jews made it a rule for themselves, their descendants, and anyone who might become a Jew, that at the proper time each year these two days would be regularly observed according to Mordecai's instructions. 28 It was resolved that every Jewish family of every future generation in every province and every city should remember and observe the days of Purim for all time to come.

29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai, also wrote a letter, putting her full authority behind the letter about Purim, which Mordecai had written earlier. 30 The letter was addressed to all the Jews, and copies were sent to all the 127 provinces of the Persian Empire. It wished the Jews peace and security 31 and directed them and their descendants to observe the days of Purim at the proper time, just as they had adopted rules for the observance of fasts and times of mourning. This was commanded by both Mordecai and Queen Esther. 32 Esther's command, confirming the rules for Purim, was written down on a scroll.

The Greatness of Xerxes and Mordecai

10 King Xerxes imposed forced labor on the people of the coastal regions of his empire as well as on those of the interior. 2 All the great and wonderful things he did, as well as the whole story of how he promoted Mordecai to high office, are recorded in the official records of the kings of Persia and Media. 3 Mordecai the Jew was second in rank only to King Xerxes himself. He was honored and well-liked by his fellow Jews. He worked for the good of his people and for the security of all their descendants.

1 Corinthians 9:19 I am a free man, nobody's slave; but I make myself everybody's slave in order to win as many people as possible. 20 While working with the Jews, I live like a Jew in order to win them; and even though I myself am not subject to the Law of Moses, I live as though I were when working with those who are, in order to win them. 21 In the same way, when working with Gentiles, I live like a Gentile, outside the Jewish Law, in order to win Gentiles. This does not mean that I don't obey God's law; I am really under Christ's law. 22 Among the weak in faith I become weak like one of them, in order to win them. So I become all things to all people, that I may save some of them by whatever means are possible.

23 All this I do for the gospel's sake, in order to share in its blessings.

John 4:1 The Pharisees heard that Jesus was winning and baptizing more disciples than John. (2 Actually, Jesus himself did not baptize anyone; only his disciples did.) 3 So when Jesus heard what was being said, he left Judea and went back to Galilee; 4 on his way there he had to go through Samaria.

5 In Samaria he came to a town named Sychar, which was not far from the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by the trip, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

7 A Samaritan woman came to draw some water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink of water.” (8 His disciples had gone into town to buy food.)

9 The woman answered, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan—so how can you ask me for a drink?” (Jews will not use the same cups and bowls that Samaritans use.)[a]

10 Jesus answered, “If you only knew what God gives and who it is that is asking you for a drink, you would ask him, and he would give you life-giving water.”

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you don't have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where would you get that life-giving water? 12 It was our ancestor Jacob who gave us this well; he and his children and his flocks all drank from it. You don't claim to be greater than Jacob, do you?”

13 Jesus answered, “Those who drink this water will get thirsty again, 14 but those who drink the water that I will give them will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give them will become in them a spring which will provide them with life-giving water and give them eternal life.”

15 “Sir,” the woman said, “give me that water! Then I will never be thirsty again, nor will I have to come here to draw water.”

16 “Go and call your husband,” Jesus told her, “and come back.”

17 “I don't have a husband,” she answered.

Jesus replied, “You are right when you say you don't have a husband. 18 You have been married to five men, and the man you live with now is not really your husband. You have told me the truth.”

19 “I see you are a prophet, sir,” the woman said. 20 “My Samaritan ancestors worshiped God on this mountain, but you Jews say that Jerusalem is the place where we should worship God.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Believe me, woman, the time will come when people will not worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans do not really know whom you worship; but we Jews know whom we worship, because it is from the Jews that salvation comes. 23 But the time is coming and is already here, when by the power of God's Spirit people will worship the Father as he really is, offering him the true worship that he wants. 24 God is Spirit, and only by the power of his Spirit can people worship him as he really is.”

25 The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah will come, and when he comes, he will tell us everything.”

26 Jesus answered, “I am he, I who am talking with you.”

Acts 17:26 From one human being he created all races of people and made them live throughout the whole earth. He himself fixed beforehand the exact times and the limits of the places where they would live.

Matthew 22:21 “The Emperor's,” they answered.

So Jesus said to them, “Well, then, pay to the Emperor what belongs to the Emperor, and pay to God what belongs to God.”

Romans 1:18 God's anger is revealed from heaven against all the sin and evil of the people whose evil ways prevent the truth from being known. 19 God punishes them, because what can be known about God is plain to them, for God himself made it plain. 20 Ever since God created the world, his invisible qualities, both his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people have no excuse at all!

ii-Esther 2:10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish. 20 As for Esther, she had still not let it be known that she was Jewish. Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone, and she obeyed him in this, just as she had obeyed him when she was a little girl under his care.

iii-John 4:1 The Pharisees heard that Jesus was winning and baptizing more disciples than John. (2 Actually, Jesus himself did not baptize anyone; only his disciples did.) 3 So when Jesus heard what was being said, he left Judea and went back to Galilee; 4 on his way there he had to go through Samaria.

5 In Samaria he came to a town named Sychar, which was not far from the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by the trip, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

7 A Samaritan woman came to draw some water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink of water.” (8 His disciples had gone into town to buy food.)

9 The woman answered, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan—so how can you ask me for a drink?” (Jews will not use the same cups and bowls that Samaritans use.)[a]

10 Jesus answered, “If you only knew what God gives and who it is that is asking you for a drink, you would ask him, and he would give you life-giving water.”

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you don't have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where would you get that life-giving water? 12 It was our ancestor Jacob who gave us this well; he and his children and his flocks all drank from it. You don't claim to be greater than Jacob, do you?”

13 Jesus answered, “Those who drink this water will get thirsty again, 14 but those who drink the water that I will give them will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give them will become in them a spring which will provide them with life-giving water and give them eternal life.”

15 “Sir,” the woman said, “give me that water! Then I will never be thirsty again, nor will I have to come here to draw water.”

16 “Go and call your husband,” Jesus told her, “and come back.”

17 “I don't have a husband,” she answered.

Jesus replied, “You are right when you say you don't have a husband. 18 You have been married to five men, and the man you live with now is not really your husband. You have told me the truth.”

19 “I see you are a prophet, sir,” the woman said. 20 “My Samaritan ancestors worshiped God on this mountain, but you Jews say that Jerusalem is the place where we should worship God.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Believe me, woman, the time will come when people will not worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans do not really know whom you worship; but we Jews know whom we worship, because it is from the Jews that salvation comes. 23 But the time is coming and is already here, when by the power of God's Spirit people will worship the Father as he really is, offering him the true worship that he wants. 24 God is Spirit, and only by the power of his Spirit can people worship him as he really is.”

25 The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah will come, and when he comes, he will tell us everything.”

26 Jesus answered, “I am he, I who am talking with you.”

iv-Esther 3:1 Some time later King Xerxes promoted a man named Haman to the position of prime minister. Haman was the son of Hammedatha, a descendant of Agag.[a] 2 The king ordered all the officials in his service to show their respect for Haman by kneeling and bowing to him. They all did so, except for Mordecai, who refused to do it. 3 The other officials in the royal service asked him why he was disobeying the king's command; 4 day after day they urged him to give in, but he would not listen to them. “I am a Jew,” he explained, “and I cannot bow to Haman.” So they told Haman about this, wondering if he would tolerate Mordecai's conduct. 5 Haman was furious when he realized that Mordecai was not going to kneel and bow to him,

v-1 Samuel 15:1 Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one whom the LORD sent to anoint you king of his people Israel. Now listen to what the LORD Almighty says. 2 He is going to punish the people of Amalek because their ancestors opposed the Israelites when they were coming from Egypt. 3 Go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy everything they have. Don't leave a thing; kill all the men, women, children, and babies; the cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.”

4 Saul called his forces together and inspected them at Telem: there were 200,000 soldiers from Israel and 10,000 from Judah. 5 Then he and his men went to the city of Amalek and waited in ambush in a dry riverbed. 6 He sent a warning to the Kenites, a people whose ancestors had been kind to the Israelites when they came from Egypt: “Go away and leave the Amalekites, so that I won't kill you along with them.” So the Kenites left.

7 Saul defeated the Amalekites, fighting all the way from Havilah to Shur, east of Egypt; 8 he captured King Agag of Amalek alive and killed all the people. 9 But Saul and his men spared Agag's life and did not kill the best sheep and cattle, the best calves and lambs,[a] or anything else that was good; they destroyed only what was useless or worthless.[b]

Saul Is Rejected as King

10 The LORD said to Samuel, 11 “I am sorry that I made Saul king; he has turned away from me and disobeyed my commands.” Samuel was angry, and all night long he pleaded with the LORD. 12 Early the following morning he went off to find Saul. He heard that Saul had gone to the town of Carmel, where he had built a monument to himself, and then had gone on to Gilgal. 13 Samuel went up to Saul, who greeted him, saying, “The LORD bless you, Samuel! I have obeyed the LORD's command.”

14 Samuel asked, “Why, then, do I hear cattle mooing and sheep bleating?”

15 Saul answered, “My men took them from the Amalekites. They kept the best sheep and cattle to offer as a sacrifice to the LORD your God, and the rest we have destroyed completely.”[c]

16 “Stop,” Samuel ordered, “and I will tell you what the LORD said to me last night.”

“Tell me,” Saul said.

17 Samuel answered, “Even though you consider yourself of no importance, you are the leader of the tribes of Israel. The LORD anointed you king of Israel, 18 and he sent you out with orders to destroy those wicked people of Amalek. He told you to fight until you had killed them all. 19 Why, then, did you not obey him? Why did you rush to grab the loot, and so do what displeases the LORD?”

20 “I did obey the LORD,” Saul replied. “I went out as he told me to, brought back King Agag, and killed all the Amalekites. 21 But my men did not kill the best sheep and cattle that they captured; instead, they brought them here to Gilgal to offer as a sacrifice to the LORD your God.”

22 Samuel said, “Which does the LORD prefer: obedience or offerings and sacrifices? It is better to obey him than to sacrifice the best sheep to him. 23 Rebellion against him is as bad as witchcraft, and arrogance is as sinful as idolatry. Because you rejected the LORD's command, he has rejected you as king.”

24 “Yes, I have sinned,” Saul replied. “I disobeyed the LORD's command and your instructions. I was afraid of my men and did what they wanted. 25 But now I beg you, forgive my sin and go back with me, so that I can worship the LORD.”

26 “I will not go back with you,” Samuel answered. “You rejected the LORD's command, and he has rejected you as king of Israel.”

27 Then Samuel turned to leave, but Saul caught hold of his cloak, and it tore. 28 Samuel said to him, “The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today and given it to someone who is a better man than you. 29 Israel's majestic God does not lie or change his mind. He is not a human being—he does not change his mind.”

30 “I have sinned,” Saul replied. “But at least show me respect in front of the leaders of my people and all of Israel. Go back with me so that I can worship the LORD your God.” 31 So Samuel went back with him, and Saul worshiped the LORD.

32 “Bring King Agag here to me,” Samuel ordered. Agag came to him, trembling with fear, thinking to himself, “What a bitter thing it is to die!”[d] 33 Samuel said, “As your sword has made many mothers childless, so now your mother will become childless.” And he cut Agag to pieces in front of the altar in Gilgal.

34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, and King Saul went home to Gibeah. 35 As long as Samuel lived, he never again saw the king; but he grieved over him. The LORD was sorry that he had made Saul king of Israel.

vi-Esther 3:8 So Haman told the king, “There is a certain race of people scattered all over your empire and found in every province. They observe customs that are not like those of any other people. Moreover, they do not obey the laws of the empire, so it is not in your best interests to tolerate them. 9 If it please Your Majesty, issue a decree that they are to be put to death. If you do, I guarantee that I will be able to put 375 tons of silver into the royal treasury for the administration of the empire.”

10 The king took off his ring, which was used to stamp proclamations and make them official, and gave it to the enemy of the Jewish people, Haman son of Hammedatha, the descendant of Agag. 11 The king told him, “The people and their money are yours; do as you like with them.”

12 So on the thirteenth day of the first month Haman called the king's secretaries and dictated a proclamation to be translated into every language and system of writing used in the empire and to be sent to all the rulers, governors, and officials. It was issued in the name of King Xerxes and stamped with his ring. 13 Runners took this proclamation to every province of the empire. It contained the instructions that on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, all Jews—young and old, women and children—were to be killed. They were to be slaughtered without mercy and their belongings were to be taken.

Acts 17:26 From one human being he created all races of people and made them live throughout the whole earth. He himself fixed beforehand the exact times and the limits of the places where they would live.

vii-Jeremiah 43:6 the men, the women, the children, and the king's daughters. They took everyone whom Nebuzaradan the commanding officer had left under the care of Gedaliah, including Baruch and me.

viii-Luke 15:1 One day when many tax collectors and other outcasts came to listen to Jesus, 2 the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law started grumbling, “This man welcomes outcasts and even eats with them!” 3 So Jesus told them this parable:

4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them—what do you do? You leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the pasture and go looking for the one that got lost until you find it. 5 When you find it, you are so happy that you put it on your shoulders 6 and carry it back home. Then you call your friends and neighbors together and say to them, ‘I am so happy I found my lost sheep. Let us celebrate!’ 7 In the same way, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine respectable people who do not need to repent.

Matthew 18:10 “See that you don't despise any of these little ones. Their angels in heaven, I tell you, are always in the presence of my Father in heaven. 11 [a]

12 “What do you think a man does who has one hundred sheep and one of them gets lost? He will leave the other ninety-nine grazing on the hillside and go and look for the lost sheep. 13 When he finds it, I tell you, he feels far happier over this one sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not get lost. 14 In just the same way your[b] Father in heaven does not want any of these little ones to be lost.

ix-Luke 15:11 Jesus went on to say, “There was once a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to him, ‘Father, give me my share of the property now.’ So the man divided his property between his two sons. 13 After a few days the younger son sold his part of the property and left home with the money. He went to a country far away, where he wasted his money in reckless living. 14 He spent everything he had. Then a severe famine spread over that country, and he was left without a thing. 15 So he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him out to his farm to take care of the pigs. 16 He wished he could fill himself with the bean pods the pigs ate, but no one gave him anything to eat. 17 At last he came to his senses and said, ‘All my father's hired workers have more than they can eat, and here I am about to starve! 18 I will get up and go to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against God and against you. 19 I am no longer fit to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired workers.”’ 20 So he got up and started back to his father.

“He was still a long way from home when his father saw him; his heart was filled with pity, and he ran, threw his arms around his son, and kissed him. 21 ‘Father,’ the son said, ‘I have sinned against God and against you. I am no longer fit to be called your son.’ 22 But the father called to his servants. ‘Hurry!’ he said. ‘Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. 23 Then go and get the prize calf and kill it, and let us celebrate with a feast! 24 For this son of mine was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.’ And so the feasting began.

25 “In the meantime the older son was out in the field. On his way back, when he came close to the house, he heard the music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him, ‘What's going on?’ 27 ‘Your brother has come back home,’ the servant answered, ‘and your father has killed the prize calf, because he got him back safe and sound.’ 28 The older brother was so angry that he would not go into the house; so his father came out and begged him to come in. 29 But he spoke back to his father, ‘Look, all these years I have worked for you like a slave, and I have never disobeyed your orders. What have you given me? Not even a goat for me to have a feast with my friends! 30 But this son of yours wasted all your property on prostitutes, and when he comes back home, you kill the prize calf for him!’ 31 ‘My son,’ the father answered, ‘you are always here with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be happy, because your brother was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.’”

x-Esther 2:1 Later, even after the king's anger had cooled down, he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and about his proclamation against her. 2 So some of the king's advisers who were close to him suggested, “Why don't you make a search to find some beautiful young virgins? 3 You can appoint officials in every province of the empire and have them bring all these beautiful young women to your harem here in Susa, the capital city. Put them in the care of Hegai, the eunuch who is in charge of your women, and let them be given a beauty treatment. 4 Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place.”

The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.

5 There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei. 6 When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jehoiachin of Judah into exile from Jerusalem, along with a group of captives, Mordecai was among them. 7 He had a cousin, Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah; she was a beautiful young woman, and had a good figure. At the death of her parents, Mordecai had adopted her and brought her up as his own daughter.

8 When the king had issued his new proclamation and many young women were being brought to Susa, Esther was among them. She too was put in the royal palace in the care of Hegai, who had charge of the harem. 9 Hegai liked Esther, and she won his favor. He lost no time in beginning her beauty treatment of massage and special diet. He gave her the best place in the harem and assigned seven young women specially chosen from the royal palace to serve her.

10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish. 11 Every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem, in order to find out how she was getting along and what was going to happen to her.

12 The regular beauty treatment for the women lasted a year—massages with oil of myrrh for six months and with oil of balsam for six more. After that, each woman would be taken in turn to King Xerxes. 13 When she went from the harem to the palace, she could wear whatever she wanted. 14 She would go there in the evening, and the next morning she would be taken to another harem and put in the care of Shaashgaz, the eunuch in charge of the king's concubines. She would not go to the king again unless he liked her enough to ask for her by name.

15 The time came for Esther to go to the king. Esther—the daughter of Abihail and the cousin of Mordecai, who had adopted her as his daughter; Esther—admired by everyone who saw her. When her turn came, she wore just what Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the harem, advised her to wear. 16 So in Xerxes' seventh year as king, in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, Esther was brought to King Xerxes in the royal palace. 17 The king liked her more than any of the other women, and more than any of the others she won his favor and affection. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 Then the king gave a great banquet in Esther's honor and invited all his officials and administrators. He proclaimed a holiday[a] for the whole empire and distributed gifts worthy of a king.

xi-Esther 1:12 But when the servants told Queen Vashti of the king's command, she refused to come. This made the king furious.

xii-Esther 1:13 Now it was the king's custom to ask for expert opinion on questions of law and order, so he called for his advisers, who would know what should be done. 14 Those he most often turned to for advice were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan—seven officials of Persia and Media who held the highest offices in the kingdom. 15 He said to these men, “I, King Xerxes, sent my servants to Queen Vashti with a command, and she refused to obey it! What does the law say that we should do with her?”

16 Then Memucan declared to the king and his officials: “Queen Vashti has insulted not only the king but also his officials—in fact, every man in the empire! 17 Every woman in the empire will start looking down on her husband as soon as she hears what the queen has done. They'll say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to come to him, and she refused.’ 18 When the wives of the royal officials of Persia and Media hear about the queen's behavior, they will be telling their husbands about it before the day is out. Wives everywhere will have no respect for their husbands, and husbands will be angry with their wives. 19 If it please Your Majesty, issue a royal proclamation that Vashti may never again appear before the king. Have it written into the laws of Persia and Media, so that it can never be changed. Then give her place as queen to some better woman. 20 When your proclamation is made known all over this huge empire, every woman will treat her husband with proper respect, whether he's rich or poor.”

21 The king and his officials liked this idea, and the king did what Memucan suggested. 22 To each of the royal provinces he sent a message in the language and the system of writing of that province, saying[a] that every husband should be the master of his home and speak with final authority.

xiii-Genesis 14:7 Then they turned around and came back to Kadesh (then known as Enmishpat). They conquered all the land of the Amalekites and defeated the Amorites who lived in Hazazon Tamar.

Exodus 17:8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Pick out some men to go and fight the Amalekites tomorrow. I will stand on top of the hill holding the stick that God told me to carry.” 10 Joshua did as Moses commanded him and went out to fight the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his arms, the Israelites won, but when he put his arms down, the Amalekites started winning. 12 When Moses' arms grew tired, Aaron and Hur brought a stone for him to sit on, while they stood beside him and held up his arms, holding them steady until the sun went down. 13 In this way Joshua totally defeated the Amalekites.

14 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write an account of this victory, so that it will be remembered. Tell Joshua that I will completely destroy the Amalekites.” 15 Moses built an altar and named it “The LORD is my Banner.” 16 He said, “Hold high the banner of the LORD![a] The LORD will continue to fight against the Amalekites forever!”

Numbers 14:45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived there attacked and defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hormah.

24:7

7 They will have abundant rainfall

And plant their seed in well-watered fields.[a]

Their king shall be greater than Agag,

And his rule shall be extended far and wide.

Deuteronomy 25:17 “Remember what the Amalekites did to you as you were coming from Egypt. 18 They had no fear of God, and so they attacked you from the rear when you were tired and exhausted, and killed all who were straggling behind. 19 So then, when the LORD your God has given you the land and made you safe from all your enemies who live around you, be sure to kill all the Amalekites, so that no one will remember them any longer. Do not forget!

Judges 3:13 Eglon joined the Ammonites and the Amalekites; they defeated Israel and captured Jericho, the city of palm trees.

6:3 Whenever the Israelites would plant their crops, the Midianites would come with the Amalekites and the desert tribes and attack them.

33 Then all the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the desert tribes assembled, crossed the Jordan River, and camped in Jezreel Valley.

1 Samuel 15:1 Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one whom the LORD sent to anoint you king of his people Israel. Now listen to what the LORD Almighty says. 2 He is going to punish the people of Amalek because their ancestors opposed the Israelites when they were coming from Egypt. 3 Go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy everything they have. Don't leave a thing; kill all the men, women, children, and babies; the cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.”

9 But Saul and his men spared Agag's life and did not kill the best sheep and cattle, the best calves and lambs,[a] or anything else that was good; they destroyed only what was useless or worthless.[b]

20 “I did obey the LORD,” Saul replied. “I went out as he told me to, brought back King Agag, and killed all the Amalekites.

32 “Bring King Agag here to me,” Samuel ordered. Agag came to him, trembling with fear, thinking to himself, “What a bitter thing it is to die!”[a] 33 Samuel said, “As your sword has made many mothers childless, so now your mother will become childless.” And he cut Agag to pieces in front of the altar in Gilgal.

27:8 During that time David and his men would attack the people of Geshur, Girzi, and Amalek, who had been living in the region a very long time. He would raid their land as far as Shur, all the way down to Egypt,

30:1  Two days later David and his men arrived back at Ziklag. The Amalekites had raided southern Judah and attacked Ziklag. They had burned down the

2 Samuel 1:1 After Saul's death David came back from his victory over the Amalekites and stayed in Ziklag for two days.

1 Chronicles 4:42 Five hundred other members of the tribe of Simeon went east to Edom. They were led by the sons of Ishi: Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel. 43 There they killed the surviving Amalekites, and they have lived there ever since.

xiv-1 Samuel 24:8 Then David went out after him and called to him, “Your Majesty!” Saul turned around, and David bowed down to the ground in respect

xv-Esther 3:4 day after day they urged him to give in, but he would not listen to them. “I am a Jew,” he explained, “and I cannot bow to Haman.” So they told Haman about this, wondering if he would tolerate Mordecai's conduct.

xvi-Esther 3:1 Some time later King Xerxes promoted a man named Haman to the position of prime minister. Haman was the son of Hammedatha, a descendant of Agag.[a] 2 The king ordered all the officials in his service to show their respect for Haman by kneeling and bowing to him. They all did so, except for Mordecai, who refused to do it. 3 The other officials in the royal service asked him why he was disobeying the king's command; 4 day after day they urged him to give in, but he would not listen to them. “I am a Jew,” he explained, “and I cannot bow to Haman.” So they told Haman about this, wondering if he would tolerate Mordecai's conduct. 5 Haman was furious when he realized that Mordecai was not going to kneel and bow to him, 6 and when he learned that Mordecai was a Jew, he decided to do more than punish Mordecai alone. He made plans to kill every Jew in the whole Persian Empire.

7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes' rule, in the first month, the month of Nisan, Haman ordered the lots to be cast (“purim,” they were called) to find out the right day and month to carry out his plot. The thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, was decided on.

8 So Haman told the king, “There is a certain race of people scattered all over your empire and found in every province. They observe customs that are not like those of any other people. Moreover, they do not obey the laws of the empire, so it is not in your best interests to tolerate them. 9 If it please Your Majesty, issue a decree that they are to be put to death. If you do, I guarantee that I will be able to put 375 tons of silver into the royal treasury for the administration of the empire.”

10 The king took off his ring, which was used to stamp proclamations and make them official, and gave it to the enemy of the Jewish people, Haman son of Hammedatha, the descendant of Agag. 11 The king told him, “The people and their money are yours; do as you like with them.”

12 So on the thirteenth day of the first month Haman called the king's secretaries and dictated a proclamation to be translated into every language and system of writing used in the empire and to be sent to all the rulers, governors, and officials. It was issued in the name of King Xerxes and stamped with his ring. 13 Runners took this proclamation to every province of the empire. It contained the instructions that on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, all Jews—young and old, women and children—were to be killed. They were to be slaughtered without mercy and their belongings were to be taken. 14 The contents of the proclamation were to be made public in every province, so that everyone would be prepared when that day came.

15 At the king's command the decree was made public in the capital city of Susa, and runners carried the news to the provinces. The king and Haman sat down and had a drink while the city of Susa was being thrown into confusion.

xvii-Exodus 1:5 Then the king of Egypt spoke to Shiphrah and Puah, the two midwives who helped the Hebrew women. 16 “When you help the Hebrew women give birth,” he said to them, “kill the baby if it is a boy; but if it is a girl, let it live.” 17 But the midwives were God-fearing and so did not obey the king; instead, they let the boys live. 18 So the king sent for the midwives and asked them, “Why are you doing this? Why are you letting the boys live?”

19 They answered, “The Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they give birth easily, and their babies are born before either of us gets there.” 20-21 Because the midwives were God-fearing, God was good to them and gave them families of their own. And the Israelites continued to increase and become strong. 22 Finally the king issued a command to all his people: “Take every newborn Hebrew boy and throw him into the Nile, but let all the girls live.”

Matthew 2:16 When Herod realized that the visitors from the East had tricked him, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighborhood who were two years old and younger—this was done in accordance with what he had learned from the visitors about the time when the star had appeared.

17 In this way what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true:

18 “A sound is heard in Ramah,

the sound of bitter weeping.

Rachel is crying for her children;

she refuses to be comforted,

for they are dead.”

xviii-Esther 4:15 Esther sent Mordecai this reply: 16 “Go and get all the Jews in Susa together; hold a fast and pray for me. Don't eat or drink anything for three days and nights. My servant women and I will be doing the same. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. If I must die for doing it, I will die.”

xix-Esther 5 On the third day of her fast Esther put on her royal robes and went and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace, facing the throne room. The king was inside, seated on the royal throne, facing the entrance. 2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing outside, she won his favor, and he held out to her the gold scepter. She then came up and touched the tip of it. 3 “What is it, Queen Esther?” the king asked. “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it—even if it is half my empire.”

4 Esther replied, “If it please Your Majesty, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tonight at a banquet I am preparing for you.”

5 The king then ordered Haman to come quickly, so that they could be Esther's guests. So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet. 6 Over the wine the king asked her, “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it. I will grant your request, even if you ask for half my empire.”

7 Esther replied, 8 “If Your Majesty is kind enough to grant my request, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tomorrow at another banquet that I will prepare for you. At that time I will tell you what I want.”

Haman Plots to Kill Mordecai

9 When Haman left the banquet he was happy and in a good mood. But then he saw Mordecai at the entrance of the palace, and when Mordecai did not rise or show any sign of respect as he passed, Haman was furious with him. 10 But he controlled himself and went on home. Then he invited his friends to his house and asked his wife Zeresh to join them. 11 He boasted to them about how rich he was, how many sons he had, how the king had promoted him to high office, and how much more important he was than any of the king's other officials. 12 “What is more,” Haman went on, “Queen Esther gave a banquet for no one but the king and me, and we are invited back tomorrow. 13 But none of this means a thing to me as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

14 So his wife and all his friends suggested, “Why don't you have a gallows built, seventy-five feet tall? Tomorrow morning you can ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on it, and then you can go to the banquet happy.”

Haman thought this was a good idea, so he had the gallows built.

6 That same night the king could not get to sleep, so he had the official records of the empire brought and read to him. 2 [a]The part they read included the account of how Mordecai had uncovered a plot to assassinate the king—the plot made by Bigthana and Teresh, the two palace eunuchs who had guarded the king's rooms. 3 The king asked, “How have we honored and rewarded Mordecai for this?”

His servants answered, “Nothing has been done for him.”

4 “Are any of my officials in the palace?” the king asked.

Now Haman had just entered the courtyard; he had come to ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on the gallows that was now ready. 5 So the servants answered, “Haman is here, waiting to see you.”

“Show him in,” said the king.

6 So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “There is someone I wish very much to honor. What should I do for this man?”

Haman thought to himself, “Now who could the king want to honor so much? Me, of course.”

7-8 So he answered the king, “Have royal robes brought for this man—robes that you yourself wear. Have a royal ornament[b] put on your own horse. 9 Then have one of your highest noblemen dress the man in these robes and lead him, mounted on the horse, through the city square. Have the nobleman announce as they go: ‘See how the king rewards someone he wishes to honor!’”

10 Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry and get the robes and the horse, and provide these honors for Mordecai the Jew. Do everything for him that you have suggested. You will find him sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

11 So Haman got the robes and the horse, and he put the robes on Mordecai. Mordecai got on the horse, and Haman led him through the city square, announcing to the people as they went: “See how the king rewards a man he wishes to honor!”

12 Mordecai then went back to the palace entrance while Haman hurried home, covering his face in embarrassment. 13 He told his wife and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then she and those wise friends of his told him, “You are beginning to lose power to Mordecai. He is a Jew, and you cannot overcome him. He will certainly defeat you.”

Haman Is Put to Death

14 While they were still talking, the palace eunuchs arrived in a hurry to take Haman to Esther's banquet.

7 And so the king and Haman went to eat with Esther 2 for a second time. Over the wine the king asked her again, “Now, Queen Esther, what do you want? Tell me and you shall have it. I'll even give you half the empire.”

3 Queen Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty to grant my humble request, my wish is that I may live and that my people may live. 4 My people and I have been sold for slaughter. If it were nothing more serious than being sold into slavery, I would have kept quiet and not bothered you about it;[c] but we are about to be destroyed—exterminated!”

5 Then King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who dares to do such a thing? Where is this man?”

6 Esther answered, “Our enemy, our persecutor, is this evil man Haman!”

Haman faced the king and queen with terror. 7 The king got up in a fury, left the room, and went outside to the palace gardens. Haman could see that the king was determined to punish him for this, so he stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life. 8 He had just thrown himself down on Esther's couch to beg for mercy, when the king came back into the room from the gardens. Seeing this, the king cried out, “Is this man going to rape the queen right here in front of me, in my own palace?”

The king had no sooner said this than the eunuchs covered Haman's head. 9 Then one of them, who was named Harbonah, said, “Haman even went so far as to build a gallows at his house so that he could hang Mordecai, who saved Your Majesty's life. And it's seventy-five feet tall!”

“Hang Haman on it!” the king commanded.

10 So Haman was hanged on the gallows that he had built for Mordecai. Then the king's anger cooled down.

The Jews Are Told to Fight Back

8 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther all the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. Esther told the king that Mordecai was related to her, and from then on Mordecai was allowed to enter the king's presence. 2 The king took off his ring with his seal on it (which he had taken back from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai. Esther put Mordecai in charge of Haman's property.

3 Then Esther spoke to the king again, throwing herself at his feet and crying. She begged him to do something to stop the evil plot that Haman, the descendant of Agag,[d] had made against the Jews. 4 The king held out the gold scepter to her, so she stood up and said, 5 “If it please Your Majesty, and if you care about me and if it seems right to you, please issue a proclamation to keep Haman's orders from being carried out—those orders that the son of Hammedatha the descendant of Agag gave for the destruction of all the Jews in the empire. 6 How can I endure it if this disaster comes on my people, and my own relatives are killed?”

7 King Xerxes then said to Queen Esther and Mordecai, the Jew, “Look, I have hanged Haman for his plot against the Jews, and I have given Esther his property. 8 But a proclamation issued in the king's name and stamped with the royal seal cannot be revoked. You may, however, write to the Jews whatever you like; and you may write it in my name and stamp it with the royal seal.”

9 This happened on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. Mordecai called the king's secretaries and dictated letters to the Jews and to the governors, administrators, and officials of all the 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia.[e] The letters were written to each province in its own language and system of writing and to the Jews in their language and system of writing. 10 Mordecai had the letters written in the name of King Xerxes, and he stamped them with the royal seal. They were delivered by riders mounted on fast horses from the royal stables.

11 These letters explained that the king would allow the Jews in every city to organize for self-defense. If armed men of any nationality in any province attacked the Jewish men, their children, or their women, the Jews could fight back and destroy the attackers; they could slaughter them to the last man and take their possessions. 12 This decree was to take effect throughout the Persian Empire on the day set for the slaughter of the Jews, the thirteenth of Adar, the twelfth month. 13 It was to be proclaimed as law and made known to everyone in every province, so that the Jews would be ready to take revenge on their enemies when that day came. 14 At the king's command the riders mounted royal horses and rode off at top speed. The decree was also made public in Susa, the capital city.

15 Mordecai left the palace, wearing royal robes of blue and white, a cloak of fine purple linen, and a magnificent gold crown. Then the streets of Susa rang with cheers and joyful shouts. 16 For the Jews there was joy and relief, happiness and a sense of victory. 17 In every city and province, wherever the king's proclamation was read, the Jews held a joyful holiday with feasting and happiness. In fact, many other people became Jews, because they were afraid of them now.

xx-Esther 6:1 That same night the king could not get to sleep, so he had the official records of the empire brought and read to him. 2 [a]The part they read included the account of how Mordecai had uncovered a plot to assassinate the king—the plot made by Bigthana and Teresh, the two palace eunuchs who had guarded the king's rooms. 3 The king asked, “How have we honored and rewarded Mordecai for this?”

xxi-Esther 8:17 In every city and province, wherever the king's proclamation was read, the Jews held a joyful holiday with feasting and happiness. In fact, many other people became Jews, because they were afraid of them now.

xxii-Romans 1:18 God's anger is revealed from heaven against all the sin and evil of the people whose evil ways prevent the truth from being known. 19 God punishes them, because what can be known about God is plain to them, for God himself made it plain. 20 Ever since God created the world, his invisible qualities, both his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people have no excuse at all!

xxiii-Romans 1:24 And so God has given those people over to do the filthy things their hearts desire, and they do shameful things with each other. 26 Because they do this, God has given them over to shameful passions. Even the women pervert the natural use of their sex by unnatural acts. 28 Because those people refuse to keep in mind the true knowledge about God, he has given them over to corrupted minds, so that they do the things that they should not do.

xxiv-Hosea 4:17 The people of Israel are under the spell of idols. Let them go their own way.

Psalms 81:

11 “But my people would not listen to me;

Israel would not obey me.

12 So I let them go their stubborn ways

and do whatever they wanted

Ezekiel 20:25 “Then I gave them over to laws that are not good and commands that do not bring life. 26 I let them defile themselves with their own offerings, and I let them sacrifice their first-born sons. This was to discipline them and show them that I am the LORD.

xxv-Esther 9:7-10 Among them were the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. However, there was no looting.

15 On the fourteenth day of Adar the Jews of Susa got together again and killed three hundred more people in the city. But again, they did no looting.

16 The Jews in the provinces also organized and defended themselves. They rid themselves of their enemies by killing seventy-five thousand people who hated them. But they did no looting. 17 This was on the thirteenth day of Adar. On the next day, the fourteenth, there was no more killing, and they made it a joyful day of feasting.

xxvi-Esther 4:12 When Mordecai received Esther's message, 13 he sent her this warning: “Don't imagine that you are safer than any other Jew just because you are in the royal palace. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, help will come from heaven to the Jews, and they will be saved, but you will die and your father's family will come to an end. Yet who knows—maybe it was for a time like this that you were made queen!”

15 Esther sent Mordecai this reply: 16 “Go and get all the Jews in Susa together; hold a fast and pray for me. Don't eat or drink anything for three days and nights. My servant women and I will be doing the same. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. If I must die for doing it, I will die.”

Table of Contents

i

ii

iii

iv

v

vi

vii

viii

ix

x

xi

xii

xiii

xiv

xv

xvi

xvii

xviii

xix

xx

xxi

xxii

xxiii

xxiv

xxv

xxvi

i-

ii-

iii-

iv-

v-

vi-

vii-

viii-

ix-

x-

xi-

xii-

xiii-

xiv-

xv-

xvi-

xvii-

xviii-

xix-

xx-

xxi-

xxii-

xxiii-

xxiv-