A Purim Lesson

 As a head of a vast territory and as wealthy as he was (Esther 1:1,4), one would expect King Ahasuerus to have been wise as well as generous if only to judge by the 187-day banquet that he gave "for all his princes and attendants, the army officers of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the princes of his provinces being in his presence…. And all the people who were present in Susa the capital, from the greatest to the least…" (1:3,5). However, very quickly, as the narrative continues to unfold, the King's shortcomings, weaknesses, and failures come to the fore.

When Queen Vashti refuses to be displayed at this banquet, the now enraged Ahasuerus is seen accepting uncontestably his advisers' far-reaching counsel, which was to affect every household in his kingdom (1:13-22). This is also true of the next phase of the story when it was time to find another queen to replace Vashti. Once again, the "king's attendants" proposed a suggestion which the King followed implicitly (2:2-3ff). The process of selection does not only expose Ahasuerus's indecisiveness but also his lack of any human standards regarding the value of these young girls that were brought to his palace to be "tried out" (2:12-14). This characteristic, demonstrated by a nonchalant response, reaches its peak when advised by his recent appointee, Haman, to exterminate an entire people group that was scattered throughout his kingdom, under allegations that they were not loyal to the King and his laws (3:8-15).

It is no wonder, therefore, that Ahasuerus's newly-elected deputy was a person of even lower moral standards. Haman very quickly demonstrates his nature of pride, power-hunger, greed, and brutality in a most extreme way. Both men, although in positions of responsibility over multitudes, do not appear to operate for the good of the kingdom and its subjects, rather, they are concerned with satisfying their lusts, selfish ambitions, and dubious needs (e.g. 5:9-14)

When the King is eventually faced with the truth regarding his choice of this high-ranking official, whose actions could have been detrimental to his kingdom, he acts in the same instantaneous and instinctive manner, never looking into the matter deeply or viewing his own share in the situation. What's more, once again the final decision is made by one of his eunuchs (7:8-10). (His only 'redeeming' act of a good conscience is made apparent when he inquired as to the reward accorded to the man who had saved his life. 6:1-11.)

As to Haman, whose self-importance and greed impelled him to plan genocide, and to gain financially from doing so (3:9), he had taken action even before he obtained an agreement from his superior (3:6-7). Thus, it is no wonder that he was looking to be elevated with the king's attire, when under the impression that the latter was about to elevate his status even more (6:6-9).  But when he realized that it could be the end-game for him, he had no compunctions to try to lure the queen, stooping to no less than a cowardly tactic (7:7,8).

Thus, the nature and characters of these two of the main protagonists very quickly become apparent, with each phase revealing more of their respective amoral and immoral postures.

Conversely, the other two protagonists, Mordechai and Esther, stay much longer under the covering of their characters and, in their case, also identity. When meeting them initially, their names stand out as proof of their attempt to conceal who they are, as these names are of local idols.

Esther was warned by her uncle not to reveal her identity, while when the latter saved the king's life, he did so stealthily (2:10, 20-23). However, pressure began to mount. Firstly, Mordechai found himself in a situation of having to act against his conscience, when it was demanded that he pay homage to Haman. Now his identity was revealed, as well as his strong stand for his belief (3:2-5). But more was to come…

Mordechai's choice brought onto the scattered Jews in the entire empire an impending catastrophe of genocide. Now it was time to take positive and risky action, which would also involve peeling masks of identity. Esther was not only to go to the King and reveal her Jewishness, and plead for her people, as a preliminary act she issued a decree for her uncle to gather all the Jews for a time of fasting and praying (ch. 4).

There was no more hiddenness. It was time to be fully exposed. And while the light shines, and the shadows are fleeing… Mordechai's past action of rescuing the King's life comes to light  – and that effortlessly (6:1ff.).  Mordechai, who in the past hid his identity, and who was then forced to reveal it in his strong stand, as well as in humility (4:1-5), was now 'shown off' in a glorious manner. It was not anything that he sought after, but that was the turn of events! (6:10-11).

As for Esther, who until now appeared to be passive and was 'acted upon' (e.g. 2:8, 11, 16, 21), under the pressure of the circumstances her bravery, devotion, and wisdom begin to shine forth. When she humbly revealed her identity and the demise of her people (7:3,4), not only did she find favor with the king (7:5ff.), but in this way she also freed the kingdom and its ruler from a possible overthrow by a traitor and a usurper to the throne.

In times of impending trouble, when evil runs rampant and danger is lurking, in-order to self-preserve one would instinctually choose to hide and conceal one's identity… The Book of Esther teaches us otherwise.  

"The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines brighter and brighter until the full day" (Proverbs 4:18).