Rabanus Maurus — Commentary on Scripture

Esther 7:8

Then the king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet of wine; and Haman was fallen upon the bed whereon Esther was. Then said the king, Will he force the queen also before me in the house? As the word went out of the king's mouth, they covered Haman's face.

Haman’s appeal to Queen Esther was considered by King Ahasuerus to be an act of deceit. Indeed, when the day of judgment is about to come, the petition of the wicked is no longer a prayer but a source of irritation. This is what is written in the psalm: “When he is tried, let him be found guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin.” Therefore the request is made for the oppression of those who previously oppressed the humble because the time of retribution has come. Then, after they are condemned, they are covered with the shame of their sins, as is written, “The confusion of their face will cover them,” when they are dragged to the darkness of hell to be rewarded with retribution suitable to their works.

Esther 7:9-10 · 2 passages

And Harbonah, one of the chamberlains, said before the king, Behold also, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman had made for Mordecai, who had spoken good for the king, standeth in the house of Haman. Then the king said, Hang him thereon.

It is written in the book of Proverbs: “Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on the one who starts it rolling.” So also Haman was forced to support the cross that he had prepared for Mordecai.

It is written in Proverbs: “He who digs a pit will fall into it; and when one starts a stone rolling it will roll back upon him” (Proverbs 26). So too Haman was forced to suffer the cross he had prepared for Mordecai. We might, however, ask what it means that, as we have read, the cross itself was made fifty cubits high. For the Law had previously been given to the people on the fiftieth day after a lamb was sacrificed on Mount Sinai; and given that we said before that Haman signified the Jews themselves when they were rioting against Christ—who had been promised to them in the Law—and persecuting his Church, the Law itself, which had been given to them to safeguard their lives, became the cause of their deaths because with it they had snuffed out the name of Christ and tried mightily to kill those who professed him. In other words, those who wanted by means of the Law to oppress the guiltless unjustly received through it the verdict of a just judgment, about which we are told by Paul: “Whoever has sinned in the Law will be judged through the Law” (Romans 2). Moreover, Harbona the…

It is written in Proverbs: “He who digs a pit will fall into it; and when one starts a stone rolling it will roll back upon him” (Proverbs 26). So too Haman was forced to suffer the cross he had prepared for Mordecai.

We might, however, ask what it means that, as we have read, the cross itself was made fifty cubits high. For the Law had previously been given to the people on the fiftieth day after a lamb was sacrificed on Mount Sinai; and given that we said before that Haman signified the Jews themselves when they were rioting against Christ—who had been promised to them in the Law—and persecuting his Church, the Law itself, which had been given to them to safeguard their lives, became the cause of their deaths because with it they had snuffed out the name of Christ and tried mightily to kill those who professed him. In other words, those who wanted by means of the Law to oppress the guiltless unjustly received through it the verdict of a just judgment, about which we are told by Paul: “Whoever has sinned in the Law will be judged through the Law” (Romans 2).

Moreover, Harbona the eunuch, who handed over the actual cross that had been made, signifies the teachers of the Law who brought to light—by reading the Law itself—the deceit of the Jews and everything which they did contrary to the precepts of God. Hence because Moses foresaw in the spirit the rebels and apostates who would one day come to be, he predicted in his song in Deuteronomy everything that was going to happen to sinners. So too the Savior says to the Jews themselves in the Gospel: “Do not think that I am going to indict you before the Father—it is Moses, in whom you hope, who accuses you; for if you believed in Moses you would perhaps believe in me as well, for it is about me that he wrote. But if you do not believe what he wrote, then how will you believe my words (John 5)?”

Esther 8:1 · 2 passages

On that day did the king Ahasuerus give the house of Haman the Jews' enemy unto Esther the queen. And Mordecai came before the king; for Esther had told what he was unto her.

When King Ahasuerus gives Queen Esther the house of Haman the enemy of the Jews, this must refer to the fact that after the people spurned the arrival of the incarnate intermediary between God and man and refused to accept his evangel, the true king and our Lord put at the disposal of the holy Church all the dignity and honor which in the past they had gotten from their knowledge of the Law and the prophets and from their practice of righteous faith, so that the Church would possess spiritual wealth and become the most respected guardian of all the virtues. Hence it is written in Proverbs: “The wealth of the sinner is guarded by the righteous” (Proverbs 13). And in the Gospel, the Lord says to the Jews themselves: “The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation that produces its fruits” (Matthew 21). This is also the reason for what Solomon says: “He who is good receives favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 12). We are next told about Mordecai that he went in before the face of the king, meaning that because the Church praises and proclaims the dedication of its leaders…

When King Ahasuerus gives Queen Esther the house of Haman the enemy of the Jews, this must refer to the fact that after the people spurned the arrival of the incarnate intermediary between God and man and refused to accept his evangel, the true king and our Lord put at the disposal of the holy Church all the dignity and honor which in the past they had gotten from their knowledge of the Law and the prophets and from their practice of righteous faith, so that the Church would possess spiritual wealth and become the most respected guardian of all the virtues. Hence it is written in Proverbs: “The wealth of the sinner is guarded by the righteous” (Proverbs 13). And in the Gospel, the Lord says to the Jews themselves: “The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation that produces its fruits” (Matthew 21). This is also the reason for what Solomon says: “He who is good receives favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 12).

We are next told about Mordecai that he went in before the face of the king, meaning that because the Church praises and proclaims the dedication of its leaders, these sacred teachers discover—in exchange for the effort they have exerted in nurturing the faithful—abundant grace in the sight of the creator of all things. We might also apply this principle to the characterization of all the persecutors of the Church more generally, because whatever the latter produced in their eagerness to acquire wisdom or useful disciplines; or sought out by investigating the respectability of the virtues; or whatever sorts of punishments they devised to torment the martyrs, it was all subverted by the faithful so as to magnify the honor and the glory of Christ. Nor did the wicked possessors of these things retain any of the good rewards that they earned for their labors, but everything was transferred to the righteous to consummate their perfection. And what follows this, where the king took the ring he had gotten from Haman and gave it to Mordecai, is an allegorical expression of the fact that the seal of faith, which the faithless Jews and all the persecutors of the name of Christ did not want to accept when it was offered to them through the preaching of the Gospel, was transferred to the nations by the apostles of Christ for the sake of their salvation. So Esther holds onto the house of Haman the enemy of the Jews, just as the Church of Christ possesses the world which was once the enemy of Christianity. And Mordecai goes in before the face of the king because the souls of the saints are taken every day from their homes in this life to contemplate the visage of the supreme Judge; there is no limit to the measure of their happiness—each day they experience ever more glory in the joy of eternal exultation.

The fact that King Ahasuerus gave Queen Esther the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews, clearly signifies that the true king who is our Lord transferred to the holy church all the dignity and honor which the people previously possessed because of their knowledge of the law and the prophets and because of their holy and religious worship. This happened because they despised the advent in flesh of the Mediator between God and humanity and because they had no desire to receive his gospel. And so the church was able to possess all the spiritual riches and become the sincere guardian of all virtue. Therefore it is written in the book of Proverbs, “The sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.” And the Lord says to the Jews themselves in the gospel, “The kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.” And again it is said through Solomon, “The good obtain favor from the Lord.”

Esther 8:2

And the king took off his ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it unto Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.

So Esther appointed Mordecai over her house, because it serves the beneficial intentions of the holy Church that great numbers of the faithful might be placed under the government of the aforementioned saints to be subjected—in humility and obedience—to the authority of their chosen magistrates.

Esther 8:3-8 · 2 passages

And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews.

The fact that Esther falls at the feet of the king and entreats him for the salvation of the people plainly symbolizes the holy church that humbly implores the almighty Lord every day for the rescue of her children through the faith and the mystery of the incarnation of the only begotten Son, so that the arrogance of her enemies may be restrained by the (Lord’s) grace, and the innocence of the faithful may be freed from the clutches of the (wicked). The heavenly king holds out his golden scepter to the pleading queen because he abundantly bestows the clemency of his mercy upon her. She asks that the old decree of the most wicked Haman may be changed into a new decree. Indeed this is the interest of the true queen, namely that any sect that is in error, any hostile plot which the ancient enemy prepares through his ministers for the extinction of the people of God, may be repelled and destroyed through the saving documents of the gospel.

So when Esther falls at the feet of the king and beseeches him for the sake of her people, this must refer to the fact that every day the holy Church humbly petitions the Lord Almighty—through the faith and mysteries of the incarnate, only-born Son of God—to free her children so that through his grace, the arrogance of the enemy might be crushed and the innocence of the faithful be freed from their hands. The supreme king holds out his golden scepter toward the queen as she pleads with him, because he is lavishing on her the mercy of his righteousness. She asks that the earlier letters of the wicked Haman be replaced with new instructions, because it is the fervent wish of the new queen that the followers of every error in doctrine, and all the hostile machinations with which the ancient enemy tried through its agents to exterminate the people of God, should be rejected and destroyed by the thoroughly salutary writings of the Gospels. The letters themselves are written in the name of the king and then sealed with his ring, because the teaching of the Gospels—which are preached throug…

So when Esther falls at the feet of the king and beseeches him for the sake of her people, this must refer to the fact that every day the holy Church humbly petitions the Lord Almighty—through the faith and mysteries of the incarnate, only-born Son of God—to free her children so that through his grace, the arrogance of the enemy might be crushed and the innocence of the faithful be freed from their hands. The supreme king holds out his golden scepter toward the queen as she pleads with him, because he is lavishing on her the mercy of his righteousness. She asks that the earlier letters of the wicked Haman be replaced with new instructions, because it is the fervent wish of the new queen that the followers of every error in doctrine, and all the hostile machinations with which the ancient enemy tried through its agents to exterminate the people of God, should be rejected and destroyed by the thoroughly salutary writings of the Gospels. The letters themselves are written in the name of the king and then sealed with his ring, because the teaching of the Gospels—which are preached throughout the world in the name of Christ—are declared everywhere to be confirmed by the seal of the Holy Spirit, since the preachers themselves, who are filled with its gift, seem to everyone to be undefeatable in their unflagging strength and to remain ever glorious and triumphant over their enemies.

Esther 8:9-10 · 2 passages

Then were the king's scribes called at that time in the third month, that is, the month Sivan, on the three and twentieth day thereof; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded unto the Jews, and to the lieutenants, and the deputies and rulers of the provinces which are from India unto Ethiopia, an hundred twenty and seven provinces, unto every province according to the writing thereof, and unto every people after their language, and to the Jews according to their writing, and according to their language.

The month of Sivan, which comes third after Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, is the same one the Greeks call Thessaroi and the Romans Junius. On the twenty-third day of that month new letters were dictated by Mordecai in order to refute the earlier letters of Haman. The significance of this is obvious—the teaching of the Gospel was framed by the writers of the New Testament, under the direction of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that it would fully encompass the faith in the holy Trinity, and the absolute perfection of the entire Decalogue would be proven in the two commandments of charity. And by means of the couriers—i.e. the sacred preachers—the Scripture itself is directed toward the entire world, which is symbolized by the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces that made up the realm of Ahasuerus, since the number ten when multiplied by twelve makes one hundred and twenty; and if we were to add another seven to this, it would allow us to complete the entire sum. In the same way, the true custodianship of the Decalogue within the apostolic tradition was imparted to all parts of the world…

The month of Sivan, which comes third after Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, is the same one the Greeks call Thessaroi and the Romans Junius. On the twenty-third day of that month new letters were dictated by Mordecai in order to refute the earlier letters of Haman. The significance of this is obvious—the teaching of the Gospel was framed by the writers of the New Testament, under the direction of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that it would fully encompass the faith in the holy Trinity, and the absolute perfection of the entire Decalogue would be proven in the two commandments of charity. And by means of the couriers—i.e. the sacred preachers—the Scripture itself is directed toward the entire world, which is symbolized by the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces that made up the realm of Ahasuerus, since the number ten when multiplied by twelve makes one hundred and twenty; and if we were to add another seven to this, it would allow us to complete the entire sum.

In the same way, the true custodianship of the Decalogue within the apostolic tradition was imparted to all parts of the world through the sacred teachers; whereas by the grace of the sevenfold Spirit it was spread through the hearts of the faithful. It is likewise of mystical significance that these letters which were sent in the name of the king and were sealed with his ring were, we are told, written according to the scripts and the languages of each and every nation, so that each nation might be able to read and to understand; that is, the teaching of the Gospels was ordained in such a way that its first teachers—who had been taught through the grace of the Holy Spirit—spoke first in the words of all the languages, and then the word of faith was seeded by their ministry through all parts of the world. Hence we read in the Acts of the Apostles that in the Cenacle of Zion, the Paraclete of the Spirit came over the one hundred and twenty believers in the form of a fire and enabled them to declare in the tongues of all the nations the marvels of God, so that those who gathered to listen to them would all be struck dumb by this miracle.

The month of Sivan, which is the third after Nisan among the Jews, and is called Thessari among the Greeks, is named June among Latin peoples. On the twenty-third day of this month new letters were written according to Mordecai’s dictation in order to invalidate the old letters of Haman. And the meaning of this event is quite clear, because the doctrine of the gospel was founded by the writers of the New Testament through our Lord Jesus Christ so that the faith of the Holy Trinity might be contained in it in its fullest form, and the supreme perfection might be shown to lie in two principles of charity that encompass the entire Decalogue. And the Scripture itself, through mounted couriers, that is the holy preachers, was provided to the whole world, which is signified by the one hundred twenty provinces that constituted the kingdom of Ahasuerus.

Esther 8:11-14 · 2 passages

Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey,

The fact that this earthly king sends his couriers to gather the Jews in each place and to assemble them in a single location so that they may fight for their lives and destroy all their enemies with their children and women and houses signifies that through his preachers our king, the absolute ruler of heaven and earth, orders the true Jews and his confessors among all the Gentiles, after they have gathered in the unity of society and peace, to fight for the salvation of their souls and to condemn their enemies both visible and invisible, namely the false Jews, who belong to the synagogue of Satan, and the unredeemed pagan and heretics, and the unclean spirits with all their impieties.

So when this earthly king orders his couriers to gather the Jews in each place, and to command them to assemble so that they might fight for their lives and kill all their enemies together with their wives and children and all their houses, this can only mean that our king, who rules over all of Heaven and earth, is—through his preachers—ordering the true Jews and their adherents throughout the nations to assemble as a union of fellowship and peace; and to fight for the salvation of their souls; and to condemn all their enemies both visible and invisible, i.e. the false Jews who are the synagogue of Satan and the incorrigible pagans and heretics, as well as the impure spirits with all their impieties and perverse notions. Nor should they permit any remnant of these to survive, or even their wives and children, i.e. they should wipe out completely the carnal desires and the works of sinners together with their houses, namely with their worldly ambitions; or allow to remain any offshoot of these things that could pose a threat to them. So it is that in the Law, the Lord commanded the I…

So when this earthly king orders his couriers to gather the Jews in each place, and to command them to assemble so that they might fight for their lives and kill all their enemies together with their wives and children and all their houses, this can only mean that our king, who rules over all of Heaven and earth, is—through his preachers—ordering the true Jews and their adherents throughout the nations to assemble as a union of fellowship and peace; and to fight for the salvation of their souls; and to condemn all their enemies both visible and invisible, i.e. the false Jews who are the synagogue of Satan and the incorrigible pagans and heretics, as well as the impure spirits with all their impieties and perverse notions. Nor should they permit any remnant of these to survive, or even their wives and children, i.e. they should wipe out completely the carnal desires and the works of sinners together with their houses, namely with their worldly ambitions; or allow to remain any offshoot of these things that could pose a threat to them. So it is that in the Law, the Lord commanded the Israelites to kill and to wipe out those nations in the Promised Land that were antagonistic to them; so too he afterward commanded them to destroy the Amalekites until they were all slaughtered, because he wanted to deprive them of any occasion for misbehavior. This is what the prophet is thinking of when he says in the Psalms: “In the mornings I was killing all the sinners of the land, to wipe out from the city of the Lord all the evildoers” (Psalms 101).

Furthermore, the time at which this slaughter of enemies was ordered to take place accords very well with the mystery of this spiritual slaughter, since the twelfth Hebrew month, which is Adar, can only symbolize the last age of our world when this spiritual war is being waged above all by the soldiers of Christ. And in the same way, the thirteenth day symbolizes the faith in the holy Trinity through the observing the commands of God, which is the basis upon which all our adversaries are effectively subdued.

Esther 8:14

So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out, being hastened and pressed on by the king's commandment. And the decree was given at Shushan the palace.

Moreover, what follows next—“And the king’s edict was published in Shushan”— means that the domain of the heavenly king rules over and governs the entire world: “everything has been placed under his jurisdiction, and there is no one who can resist his will” (Esther 13); and our mundane ambitions are laid low by his power. So it makes sense that according to the text the king’s edict was also published in Shushan, since “Shushan” means riding or conveying. In the end, the arrogance of the world is bested by the power of God; which is why the Savior says to his disciples in the Gospel: “in the world, you will face repression; but take heart, for I have conquered the world” (John 16).

Esther 8:15 · 2 passages

And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.

It is to the great credit of our sacred teachers that with their teaching and encouragement the faithful are able to conquer, through the power of the supreme king, the savagery of a most wicked enemy; and their reward for this awaits them in the heavenly kingdom of eternal blessing and perpetual brightness, which seem to be prefigured by the color blue and the flash of gold. Moreover, in the celestial citadel the martyrs of Christ, along with those who are going to rule together with Christ the king, are repaid with the dignity given to kings by that most righteous of source of recompense, in exchange for shedding their blood. The terms “purple” and “silken” offer us a prefiguration of this fact; and every gathering of saints will be happy and rejoice no less over this in the celestial Jerusalem. This is described in what follows: “So for the Jews, a new light was seen to arise; and joy, and honor, and celebration. Among every people, city and province, and wherever the king’s orders reached, there was a wonderful exultation, banquets, and feasting, and a holiday; and so much so tha…

It is to the great credit of our sacred teachers that with their teaching and encouragement the faithful are able to conquer, through the power of the supreme king, the savagery of a most wicked enemy; and their reward for this awaits them in the heavenly kingdom of eternal blessing and perpetual brightness, which seem to be prefigured by the color blue and the flash of gold. Moreover, in the celestial citadel the martyrs of Christ, along with those who are going to rule together with Christ the king, are repaid with the dignity given to kings by that most righteous of source of recompense, in exchange for shedding their blood. The terms “purple” and “silken” offer us a prefiguration of this fact; and every gathering of saints will be happy and rejoice no less over this in the celestial Jerusalem. This is described in what follows: “So for the Jews, a new light was seen to arise; and joy, and honor, and celebration. Among every people, city and province, and wherever the king’s orders reached, there was a wonderful exultation, banquets, and feasting, and a holiday; and so much so that many members of other nations and beliefs adopted their religion and their rites. For a great terror of the Jewish people had fallen upon them all.” Many, therefore, among the gentiles and enemies of the Church left behind their idolatry and their gentile superstitions, and were converted to the Christian faith by the power, wisdom and perseverance of the holy martyrs, and through the virtue of Christ that shines through them; which should be perfectly obvious to anyone who reads about the sufferings of the saints and the triumphs of the martyrs. And since that time, the numbers of the faithful have been growing every day by the mercy of God, and the precincts of the Church have been replenished. This is mentioned by the Psalmist: “Let all the land fear the Lord; let everyone be moved by him, and all who inhabit the world” (Psalms 33). And likewise: “The righteous will rejoice in the Lord and will hope in him; and all the upright in heart will be praised” (Psalms 64). And the apostle says: “In the name of Jesus every creature—celestial, terrestrial and infernal—shall bend his knee, and every tongue shall proclaim that the Lord Jesus is in the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2).

The glory of the holy teachers is exalted because it is through their doctrine and exhortation that the faithful defeat the cruelty of their most evil enemy with the help and strength of their heavenly king. And their reward remains with them in the heavenly kingdom of eternal blessedness and perpetual splendor, which appears to be signified by the colors of blue and white and the brightness of gold.

Esther 8:17

And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.

Thanks to the strength, wisdom and constancy of the holy martyrs—and to the virtue of Christ which shines among them—many among the Gentiles and the enemies of the church abandoned their idolatry and their pagan superstitions and were converted to the Christian faith because it does not hide the suffering of the saints and the triumphs of the martyrs from those it encounters. And therefore, through God’s mercy, the number of the faithful increases daily and the flocks of the church are filled. The power of the Christian name causes terror among infidels and joy among believers the world over. The psalmist also wrote about this: “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.”

Esther 9:1-2 · 2 passages

Now in the twelfth month, that is, the month Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put in execution, in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, (though it was turned to the contrary, that the Jews had rule over them that hated them;)

The twelfth month, as we said before, symbolizes the last era of our world when the Redeemer has been made incarnate and the preaching of the Gospel itself has spread throughout the entire world. And in the same way, the thirteenth day declares the light of faith and of good works, which—as the Gospels predict—is fulfilled every day by the faithful. For in the twelfth month, “on the thirteenth day of the month, when the slaughter of all the Jews was being readied and their enemies were eager for blood, the tables were turned and the Jews began to gain the upper hand, and to avenge themselves on their opponents.” This means that even though the enemies and persecutors of the name of Christ are constantly stirring up attacks against the community of the faithful—which maintains the true expression of the correct faith— and making every effort to oppress them, the latter have been helped by the grace of God and strengthened with the shield of faith and the arms of justice so that they might defeat their adversaries and carry back from them the spoils of glory. This they do by converting…

The twelfth month, as we said before, symbolizes the last era of our world when the Redeemer has been made incarnate and the preaching of the Gospel itself has spread throughout the entire world. And in the same way, the thirteenth day declares the light of faith and of good works, which—as the Gospels predict—is fulfilled every day by the faithful. For in the twelfth month, “on the thirteenth day of the month, when the slaughter of all the Jews was being readied and their enemies were eager for blood, the tables were turned and the Jews began to gain the upper hand, and to avenge themselves on their opponents.” This means that even though the enemies and persecutors of the name of Christ are constantly stirring up attacks against the community of the faithful—which maintains the true expression of the correct faith— and making every effort to oppress them, the latter have been helped by the grace of God and strengthened with the shield of faith and the arms of justice so that they might defeat their adversaries and carry back from them the spoils of glory. This they do by converting them to the light of faith and making them partners in the grace of Christ, after repelling their spiritual wickedness and the disseminators of error who were seducing them through various vices. “And no one dared to resist them.” That is, the fear of God’s majesty, which in the Church is made known by the gleam of miracles, thrashes soundly the hearts of fleshly creatures and compels them to yield to the word of God, which is naturally described in what follows...

The twelfth month, as we have said above, signifies the last age of the world when our Redeemer became incarnate and the preaching of the gospel spread over the entire world. In a similar way, the thirteenth day proclaims the light of faith and good works which is produced by the preaching of the gospel in the church through the faithful. Indeed, in the twelfth month on the thirteenth day when the destruction of all the Jews was being prepared and their enemies longed for their blood, the Jews, on the contrary, began to triumph and started taking revenge on their adversaries because they [represent] the assembly of the faithful where the true confession of the right faith resides who are helped by the grace of God and comforted by the shield of faith and the weapons of justice in the face of the enemies and persecutors of the name of Christ who persecute and oppress them wherever they are. The assembly of the faithful is thus able to defeat its enemies and to gain the triumph of glory over them.

Esther 9:3-4 · 2 passages

And all the rulers of the provinces, and the lieutenants, and the deputies, and officers of the king, helped the Jews; because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them.

“All the officials of the provinces, the satraps and the governors, and the royal officials were supporting the Jews.” Certainly the praiseworthy action of the holy teachers and the strength of their virtue have contributed great honor and respect to the multitude of the faithful. Therefore, in the Acts of the Apostles, in which we read how the first preachers of the gospel labored to teach the word of God and cared for it, it is written, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayer. Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles.”

That is, the praiseworthy actions of our sacred teachers and the power of the virtues gave great honor and reverence to the mass of the faithful. Hence in the Acts of the Apostles, where we read that these first preachers of the Gospel were trying to teach and to care for the word of God, it is written: “For they were devoted to the teachings of the apostles, and to breaking bread together, and to their prayers. Every soul was full of awe, and many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles in Jerusalem, and there was great fear among them all” (Acts 2). And likewise: “Many signs and wonders were being performed among the people by the apostles; and they were all together in the portico of Solomon. But none of the others dared to join them, though the people were paying them homage” (Acts 5).