The book of Esther: A study of God in action
when nothing appears to be happening!
by Patsy Norwood (c) 2023. All Rights
Reserved.
Note: with
this lesson we’ll be taking a holiday break until Thursday, January 4th,
2024.
Now, let’s delve into today’s lesson starting with verse 1 …
1. After
these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha
the Agagite, and advanced him and set his
seat above all the princes who were with him.
“After these things” … likely
several years after, about 476 or 475 B.C.
The king promotes Haman … who is Haman?
… the son of Hammedatha the Agagite
… descendant of King Agag (King of the Amalekites) an enemy of
Israel in the days of King Saul. God had
told Saul to destroy the Amalekites (I Samuel 15:3), but Saul didn’t do
it. His failure to obey led to what is about
to happen to the Jews here in the book of Esther. (God means what He says and says what He
means.)
… ‘prime minister’ of King Ahasuerus
… a proud and ambitious man
“and advanced him and set his seat above all
the princes who were with him.”
Did this ‘advancement’ go to Haman’s head? After all, he was
given precedence over all the king’s other nobles. We’ll find out later in the chapter!
2. And all
the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate bowed and paid
homage to Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage.
“And all the king’s servants who were within
the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman” … according
to the Pulpit commentary, these king’s servants were the lower officers of the
court, porters and others, of about the same rank as Mordecai.
These servants bowed and reverenced Haman which meant they
prostrated themselves before him in the usual Oriental fashion because the “king
had commanded it.”
No reason is given for this elevation of Haman and according
to research it was unusual, since this type of homage was expected as a general
rule. One has to wonder what he did to cause
the king to command such an honor.
“But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage.” …
Mordecai’s refusal to bow down lay in the fact that he was a Jew which prevented
him from prostrating himself/ bowing/worshipping before a man.
The Jewish Torah clearly stated, “You shall have no other gods
before Me.” Bowing down to Haman would
have been interpreted as idol worship. Mordecai, it seems, was not willing to
compromise his beliefs by doing so.
One more thought, could part of the reason behind Mordecai’s
refusal have to do with the likelihood of Haman demanding not mere allegiance,
but worship?
3. Then the king’s servants who were within
the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s
command?”
The king’s servants who were at the gate with Mordecai, it
seems, were the first to notice that he did not bow down and questioned him
about it.
Why are you disobeying the king’s command?
Will the king’s servants let this go?
Will Mordecai’s defiance and reasoning hold up if they don’t
or will it be the catalyst that brings about a great evil?
What are your thoughts?
In our next
class we’ll look at chapter 3: 4-6
What is Haman’s
reaction?
Does he take Mordecai’s
disobedience personally?
Wait a minute,
how did Haman find out about Mordecai’s refusal to pay him homage?
We have a lot to
unpack in our next lesson on January 4th, 2024. I’ll meet you back here then.
Merry Christmas
everyone!
I hope you’ve
enjoyed today's lesson. Don't forget to
leave a comment and if you're enjoying this class, please share the link with
other ladies who you think might enjoy it as well.
Links to
previous lessons:
Until the next
class ...
patsy @ From
This Heart of Mine
(c) 2023 by Patsy Norwood ~ All Rights Reserved.
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