Esther3

King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, who was given supreme authority, and all were commanded to bow before him. However, Mordecai, a Jew, refused to bow, which filled Haman with wrath. In retaliation, Haman plotted to destroy all Jews throughout the kingdom, obtaining the king's decree to accomplish this widespread extermination.
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Haman's Promotion and Mordecai's Refusal

1
After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him to a position above all the princes who were with him. ​
2
All the royal servants at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded that this be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage. ​
3
Then the royal servants at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why do you disobey the command of the king?”
4
Day after day they warned him, but he would not comply. So they reported it to Haman to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, since he had told them he was a Jew.
5
When Haman saw that Mordecai would not bow down or pay him homage, he was filled with rage.
6
And when he learned the identity of Mordecai’s people, he scorned the notion of laying hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the kingdom of Xerxes. ​

Haman Casts the Lot (Pur)

7
In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the Pur (that is, the lot) was cast before Haman to determine a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar. ​
8
Then Haman informed King Xerxes, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples of every province of your kingdom. Their laws are different from everyone else’s, and they do not obey the king’s laws. So it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.
9
If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will deposit ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to pay those who carry it out.” ​
10
So the king removed the signet ring from his finger and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. ​
11
“Keep your money,” said the king to Haman. “These people are given to you to do with them as you please.”

The Genocide Decree Is Published

12
On the thirteenth day of the first month, the royal scribes were summoned and the order was written exactly as Haman commanded the royal satraps, the governors of each province, and the officials of each people, in the script of each province and the language of every people. It was written in the name of King Xerxes and sealed with the royal signet ring.
13
And the letters were sent by couriers to each of the royal provinces with the order to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—and to plunder their possessions on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, the twelfth month. ​
14
A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued in every province and published to all the people, so that they would be ready on that day.
15
The couriers left, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa. Then the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was in confusion. ​

Study Notes for Esther 3

Verse 1

Haman is identified as 'the Agagite,' strongly suggesting he is a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites (1 Sam 15). This ancient, deep-seated ethnic enmity between Amalekites and Israel likely fuels Haman’s intense hatred for Mordecai and the Jewish people.

Verse 2

Mordecai’s refusal to bow is the catalyst for the entire crisis. While the text does not state the reason, it may stem from the Jewish prohibition against giving divine honor to humans, or it could be a specific refusal to honor a descendant of Israel’s ancient enemy, the Amalekites.

Verse 6

Haman’s vengeance escalates from a personal dispute with Mordecai to a plan for ethnic cleansing. This decision sets the stage for the book’s central conflict: the existential threat to the Jewish diaspora.

Verse 7

The casting of the *Pur* (a Babylonian/Persian word for 'lot') was done to determine a propitious date for the mass slaughter. The time gap between the casting (Nisan) and the execution date (Adar, 11 months later) provides the necessary window for Esther and Mordecai to intervene, showing God's providence at work despite the seemingly random process.

Verse 9

The bribe of ten thousand talents of silver was an astronomical sum, estimated to be more than half the Persian Empire's annual revenue. This demonstrates Haman’s immense wealth and his obsessive commitment to the destruction of the Jews.

Verse 10

Giving Haman the royal signet ring transferred the king’s absolute administrative authority, allowing Haman to seal the decree. This action effectively made the decree irrevocable under Persian law, cementing the danger.

Verse 13

The decree’s language is comprehensive and absolute, targeting all Jews regardless of age or gender. The date, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (Adar), becomes the focus of the subsequent conflict and the eventual reason for the celebration of Purim.

Verse 15

This verse presents a sharp contrast: the king and Haman are indifferent, celebrating their political success with a banquet, while the capital city of Shushan is thrown into confusion and despair by the genocidal edict.

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