Esther 9:1-19

5. The Jews’ self-defense 9:1-19

The king gave the Jews permission to defend themselves by killing their enemies. Evidently this meant that they not only met attack with resistance, but in some cases they initiated attack against those who they knew would destroy them. [Note: See Baldwin, pp. 100-2.] These would have been people such as Haman’s sons, who would have sought retaliation for their father’s death in typical ancient Near Eastern fashion. Anti-Semitism has a very ancient history. Apparently it was widespread at this time, but the Jews did not plunder their enemies (Esther 9:15-16).

"The deliberate decision not to enrich themselves at the expense of their enemies would not go unnoticed in a culture where victors were expected to take the spoil. The very novelty of such self-denial would be remarked upon and remembered, and taken as proof of the upright motives of the Jewish communities." [Note: Ibid., p. 105.]

The absence of explicit reference in the text to God helping His people does not deny His help. Instead, it reflects the attitude of the Jews who chose to ignore God’s commands, through Isaiah and Jeremiah, to return to the land (Isaiah 48:20; Jeremiah 29:10; Jeremiah 50:8; Jeremiah 51:6; cf. Deuteronomy 28). They had pushed God aside in their lives, as Mordecai and Esther apparently had done to some extent. Nevertheless, God remained faithful to His promises, in spite of His people’s unfaithfulness (cf. 2 Timothy 2:13).

Evidently Esther had learned of a plot in Susa to attack the Jews on Adar 14 (March 8; Esther 9:13). The purpose of hanging the bodies of Haman’s 10 executed sons on the gallows was to disgrace them and to discourage other enemies of the Jews from attacking them (cf. Deuteronomy 21:22-23; Numbers 16:27; Numbers 16:32-33; Numbers 25:4; Joshua 7:24-25; 1 Samuel 31:8-12; 2 Samuel 21:6). Almost twice as many people died in the royal precincts of Susa as in the rest of the city. The word "capital" in Esther 9:6 really refers to the acropolis, the royal section of the capital city of Susa.