Esther: A Story with a Double Bottom

Introduction

The story of Esther is well-known. A striking aspect of the account is the absence of God's name, even though His hand is clearly visible in the salvation of the Jews. But perhaps the meaning goes beyond that. There are several parallels with other texts in the Old Testament that point to a more or less veiled message. The key is the letter Esther writes to the exiles explaining the annual celebration of Purim.
The names of Mordecai and Esther are striking as soon as we begin reading this book of the Bible. Mordecai is derived from the god Marduk, and Esther from the goddess Ishtar. Yahweh has faded considerably into the background. Incidentally, it likely happened more often that the exiles were given different names, because we read something similar in the book of Daniel:
Dan. 1:6-7 And among them were certain men of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: but the chief eunuch gave them other names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar; Hananiah, Shadrach; Mishael, Meshach; and Azariah, Abednego.


Parallelism with the Exodus

There are several striking similarities between the stories of Moses and Esther. Both are adopted children: Moses by Pharaoh's daughter, Esther by Mordecai. Moses arrives at the Pharaoh's court, Esther at the Persian court. In both cases, the Jewish identity is initially hidden from the people in the court, and both act for Israel when the people are oppressed. And when called to their task, both shrink from it. When the people of Israel flee Egypt, the king's servants help them on their way, and the Persian officials support the Jews. The Exodus is linked to the celebration of Passover, and the story of Esther leads to the celebration of Purim. Thus, we see numerous parallels.
But the difference is all the more striking. The Exodus led the people of Israel to the promised land. And here we come to the tricky point. Because the story of Esther takes place during the time of King Ahasuerus, the son of Darius. That is, after the return of the exiles to the land of Israel. In fact, the story of Esther takes place about 30 years after the reconstruction of the temple was completed. In other words, while a small group of returned exiles was occupied with the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple, Esther belongs to the (descendants of) those who remained behind who preferred the comforts of the Persian Empire to the hardships of Jerusalem. And despite the encouragement of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who prophesied in the time of Darius, to help rebuild the temple.


References to the temple

We read in the first verses:
Esther 1:1-3 Now it was in the days of King Ahasuerus, (…). In the third year of his reign, as he sat in the citadel of Susa, king Ahasuerus made a banquet for all the nobles and the high officials of the land, and all the captains of the army of Persia and the Median people, with all the nobles and the princes of the provinces,
The use of the word "fortress" ("birah" in Hebrew) for the palace is striking. It is used 10 times in Esther (cf. Dan. 8:2; Neh. 1:1). This word is also used to refer to the temple, twice in Chronicles:
1 Chronicles 29:1 Then David said to the assembled Israelites: “God has chosen my son Solomon, even him alone, a young man without experience. His task is great, for the fortress he is to build is not for man, but for the Lord God.”
1 Chronicles 29:19 “May my son Solomon be diligent in following your commands, your statutes, and your laws, and in doing all he can to build the fortress I have prepared.”
The comparison between the Susa fortress and the temple goes even further. The palace at Susa is described in terms reminiscent of the temple.
At its heart lay the inner courtyard with the throne room, which could not be entered without permission. This is reminiscent of the Holy of Holies:
Esther 5:1 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and went into the courtyard of the king's palace. She stood opposite the king's throne room. Inside the palace, opposite the entrance, was the king's throne.
The outer court parallels the Holy Place. Only the king's servants, such as Haman, were allowed there:
Esther 6:4 Then the king said, “Is there anyone in the garden?” Now Haman had just come into the outer court of the palace to speak to the king to impale Mordecai on the gallows that Haman had prepared for him.
The King's Gate can be compared to the outer court. Appropriate attire was required. Sackcloth was not permitted (Esther 4:2). Servants served here.
Esther 2:19-21 Now it came to pass, when the virgins were gathered together, that Mordecai was ministering in the king's gate. (…) Now it came to pass, as Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, that two of the king's eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, were in a rage, and plotted against him to kill King Ahasuerus.
Finally, there was the city square, in front of the King's Gate, which is on a par with Jerusalem:
Esther 4:2-6 He stood before the King's Gate, because it was not lawful to enter it wearing sackcloth. Now when the king's decree and edict came out, there was great mourning among the Jews throughout all the provinces. They fasted, wept, and lamented; and many put on sackcloth and lay in the ashes. Esther's maidservants and the eunuchs who attended her brought word to Esther. The queen was deeply troubled and sent for Mordecai to wear clothes instead of his sackcloth. But he refused to accept them. Then Esther summoned Hatah, one of the eunuchs the king had appointed her as a personal attendant, and told him to inquire into the cause of Mordecai's behavior. So Hatah went to Mordecai, who was standing in the city square before the King's Gate.
The picture is clear. Those who remained behind preferred to stay in Susa rather than in Jerusalem. And they preferred to remain under the rule of Ahasuerus rather than return to their own country at God's command. In other words, they replaced the temple with the king's palace.

There's another remarkable parallel. Haman's decree was issued on the 13th day of the first month, which is the 13th of Nisan:
Esther 3:12 So on the thirteenth day of the first month the king's scribes were summoned, and a decree was written according to Haman's commandment, to the king's satraps, to the governors of every province, and to the leaders of every nation. For every province there was a decree in its own script, and for every nation in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king's signet ring.
Mordecai's decree was issued on the 23rd of Sivan. The description of the issuance of that decree is almost identical to the previous one:
Esther 8:9 Immediately on the three and twenty days of the third month, which is the month of Sivan, the king's scribes were summoned, and a decree was written according to Mordecai's commandment to the Jews, to the satraps, and to the governors, and to the rulers of all the provinces from India to Cush, being one hundred and twenty-seven provinces. For every province there was a decree in its own script, and for every people in its own language; and for the Jews also in their script and language.
There are 70 days between the 13th of Nisan and the 23rd of Sivan. The month of Nisan had 30 days, and the following month, Iar, had 29 days. The month of Sivan follows Iar. In the Jewish calendar, the first day is counted, just as in French and Italian today. So, a week from now is 8 days from now in Hebrew. And the period from the 13th of Nisan to the 23rd of Sivan is therefore 70 days. This is a striking parallel with Jeremiah's 70 years between the beginning of the exile and the return (Jer. 25:11-12; 29:10). This is referred to at the beginning of Zechariah's prophecy:
Zechariah 1:12 Then the angel of the LORD said, “O LORD of hosts, how long will it be before you show mercy to Jerusalem and to the cities of Judah, against which you have been indignant these seventy years?”
The 70-year period of exile was a time of great uncertainty regarding the future of the Jewish people. The 70-day period discussed here is also a time of great uncertainty.


References to the prophecy of Zechariah

There's an interesting connection between the Book of Esther and Zechariah's prophecy. Esther explains the celebration of Purim in a letter, it says. This is striking. After the Jews had exterminated their opponents, Mordecai wrote a letter regulating the annual celebration of Purim. A second letter is therefore not really necessary. This draws our attention to the content of this second letter, which seemingly contains nothing new:
sther 9:30 And letters were sent to all the Jews throughout the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with declarations of faithfulness and kindness. 31 In them they were commanded to keep Purim at its appointed time, and to observe all that Mordecai the Jew had commanded them, as Queen Esther also now commanded them, and to keep the covenants they had made for themselves and for their descendants, concerning fasting and mourning. 32 And Esther's decree was made a binding decree concerning the days of Purim, and its contents were written down.
It's striking that the letter mentions "declarations of friendship and loyalty." In the context of the text, it seems a somewhat odd expression.
Esther 9:30 Letters were sent to all the Jews throughout the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of Ahasuerus' kingdom, with expressions of friendship and faithfulness ("divrei shalom ve-emet," "with words of friendship and faithfulness").
These words are strongly reminiscent of a text from Zechariah where the same expression “peace and truth” is used (cf. Isa. 39:8; Jer. 33:6):
Zechariah 8:16-19 “This is what you are to do: Speak the truth (emet) with one another and keep peace (shalom) by judging with equity and justice (NASB: Judge in your gates with truth (emet) and judgment that makes for peace (shalom)). Do not seek to harm your neighbor or be drawn into perjury, for that is what I detest,” declares the LORD. “Then the word of the LORD Almighty came to me: ‘This is what the LORD Almighty says: The fasts of the fourth and fifth months and the fasts of the seventh and tenth months will be joyful festivals for Judah, full of gladness and gladness. But keep peace and truth (ve-ha-emet ve-ha-shalom, “truth and peace”).’
Zechariah prophesies that the four fast days will be changed into feast days when Israel returns to the land. In Zechariah 7:5, we read about the fast days in the 5th and 7th months because of the destruction of the temple. Zechariah 8:19 reveals that fasts were also observed in the 4th and 10th months. Zechariah then prophesies that these fast days will be changed into feast days when the Jews return to Jerusalem. This has only happened to a limited extent. What we see now is the appointment of an additional feast day, Purim. This feast day thus becomes a day to commemorate the unfulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy. Therefore, Esther emphasizes that the fast days are not yet abolished:
Esther 9:31 (…) they were to keep all that Mordecai the Jew commanded them (…) and to keep the covenant which they had made for themselves and for their descendants concerning fasting and mourning. (…).

There's a second parallel. We read in Esther 2:
Esther 2:5 Now there was in the citadel of Susa one Mordecai, a Jew, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin.
In Hebrew, it's called an "ish yehudi," a "man of Judah." This expression only appears in Zechariah 8:
Zechariah 8:23 This is what the LORD of hosts says: “At that time, ten men from the nations of every language will take hold of a man who is a Jew by the hem of his robe, saying, ‘Let us join you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”
This is about non-Jews following a devout Jew in their search for God. Because they have seen that God is with the Jews by bringing them back to their land. But if even the Jews don't return to Israel, preferring to remain in Persia, how will the Gentiles come to glorify God for the return?

Finally, I would like to point to the last chapter of Zechariah, which prophesies about the end times. There, Zechariah sees how enemies will again fight against Jerusalem and that half of its inhabitants will be taken into exile. But then the Lord will appear on the Mount of Olives, and the nations who have gone to war against Jerusalem will be struck by a terrible plague. Those who remain of the nations will come to Jerusalem annually to honor the Lord and celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. We see how the story of Esther contains a reference to this. Here, too, there is a reversal of fortune: the enemies wanted to persecute the Jews, but ultimately they themselves became the victims. And in this way, the annual celebration of Purim becomes a reference to the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles that Zechariah speaks of.
In this context, I would like to point out once again the parallel between the 70-day period between Haman's command on the 13th of Nisan and Mordecai's command on the 23rd of Shivam, and the 70-year period of exile. Although this latter command caused great joy among the Jews in the Empire, they had to wait until the 13th of Adar, almost nine months later, before they could actually defeat their enemies. Thus, the return from exile during the time of Cyrus and Darius is only a foretaste of the liberation at the end of history, which Zechariah also portrays as a liberation from exile (Zech. 14:2).


Closing remarks

In the background of Esther's story, disobedience to God's command to return to Israel clearly plays a role. This is particularly evident in the references to Zechariah. But criticism is not expressed directly in this book, but rather in an almost veiled manner. Thus, Esther's story becomes a reminder of the still-open promise: that one day the Israelites will return en masse to their land. And the festival of Purim offers a foretaste of a time when all fast days will have been transformed into feast days. It also shows that despite the fact that people preferred to remain in a land where they did not worship God, God has not forgotten them and continues to protect them.
The story begins with the disobedience of Queen Vashti. She is deposed for setting a bad example:
Esther 1:18 This very day all the wives of all the great men of Persia and Media will hear of all that the queen has done and will complain to their husbands about it, and there will be much contempt and much scandal.
Just as Vashti refused to come to the palace, so too did the Jewish people in Persia refuse to go to Jerusalem. Vashti thus set a bad example for all the men of the empire. The Jews' disobedience to return to their land sets a bad example for the Gentiles. It is striking that the passage from Zechariah 8 to which Esther refers concerns Gentiles who want to join the Jews who have returned to Jerusalem because they see that God is with them. Gentiles are jealous of God's followers. This makes the disobedience of the Jews who remained in Persia particularly poignant. However, Vashti's disobedience leads to her rejection, but God does not forget His people. He does not reject His people but offers salvation.
Ironically, at the beginning of history, Mordecai and Esther were not recognizable as Jews to those around them and even bore pagan names. Ultimately, the fact that they identified themselves as Jews proves to be their salvation. This is even emphasized when the second letter is drafted:
Esther 9:29 Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, together with Mordecai the Jew, wrote a second letter to make Purim explicitly obligatory.
Esther is referred to here as the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai is explicitly called a Jew.
And so the book of Esther proves to have a clear message. People thought they could live safely in a foreign land, remaining anonymous. But ultimately, this story is a call to serve God and trust in Him. And to look forward to a time when the promises still remaining will be fulfilled.

Bas Krins