NOTES for Est 3:1-15

In the third chapter of the Book of Esther, we see that the persecution of the Jews is caused by the fact that they are “not like everyone else.” The law of the Jews differs from the laws of the pagans, their rites are distinctive, their beliefs strange... Most importantly, they do not worship what everyone else worships. The Jews do not worship earthly power and earthly glory. Persecution is raised against an entire people because of one man, Mordecai. Apparently the author still means that Mordecai refuses to bow to the king’s satrap for religious reasons. In one way or another, Haman is told in whispers that Mordecai does not bow because he is a Jew, and Jews bow to no one and do not even honor the Babylonian and Persian gods.

Reading this chapter, it is impossible to escape the thought that it is about something very familiar. Haman’s frantic desire for people to bow to him, honor him, and glorify his greatness is a very common symptom of profound spiritual and mental ill health. In the New Testament we see Haman’s complete opposite in the Lord Jesus Christ, who says: “I do not receive honor from men.” This matters because very many of us, on our own scale of course, know this dependence on human esteem from personal experience. Moreover, much of what happens in modern societies, and ours is no exception, can be explained precisely by this craving for praise. Yet the Bible emphasizes that it leads to nothing good.