1. The Great Reversal – continued
In chapters 6 & 7, we saw a great reversal taking place – the proud and persecuting Haman was humbled and hung while the faithful and reliable Mordecai was favoured and raised by the king. And we noted that such is the way of God: he opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble; he brings low those who trust in themselves but raises those who trust in him.
In the opening verses of chapter 8 that great reversal continues. The estate of Haman is given over to Esther and then the king’s signet ring that had been given to Haman is placed instead on Mordecai’s hand and Esther appoints him over Haman’s estate. Then, in v.15, we see Mordecai leaving the palace clothed in royal robes and crowned with gold and joy and gladness break out among the Jews who so recently had been weeping and fasting.
We could take the words of Xerxes in 6:9 and re-work them slightly to explain this dramatic reversal: ‘This is what is done for those whom the Lord delights to honour’. He honours those who honour him and that is vividly demonstrated here.
This scene also portrays, in its localised and temporal manner, the destiny of all who put their trust in the Lord and in his Messiah. In Rev. 5:10 we hear a song of praise to the Lamb who conquered by his death; he’s worshipped as the one who with his blood “purchased for God members of every tribe and language and people and nation.” But what was his purpose in doing so? To make them “a kingdom and priests to serve our God and they will reign on the earth”.
Do you see what’s happening there? The purpose of God in creation for humanity to bring God’s good rule to the whole of creation – a purpose which sin had opposed – is now brought to fruition through the death of Jesus. The destiny of all God’s people is to serve him and to rule on the earth. That doesn’t mean domination in this present age but is looking further forward, to the time when the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our God and of his Messiah.
But of course it does also mean that where we have opportunities now to promote the will and ways of God that we do so. But in saying that we must always bear the larger more perfect picture in mind.
Here are God’s creation purposes being worked out for fallen, sinful humanity through the crucified Messiah. That is a reality to which the great reversal put in place by the Lord in this book so clearly points towards. However the world perceives the church (1 John 3:1 tells us it fails to recognise the reality of our relationship with the Lord) this is our destiny.
2. The Now & the Not-yet
The reversal of fortunes is, of course, massively significant for the whole Jewish people throughout the entire Persian empire. A decree is issued, sealed with the king’s signet ring, that effectively annuls the previous decree that sought their slaughter. And so there is great rejoicing among the Jews. The Lord has bestowed on them “a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Is. 61:3).
This is surely the only possible response to such a great deliverance, to so great a salvation. It ought also to be mirrored in our lives in the light of what God has done for us in Jesus – he has annulled the decree of death for our sins by a decree that says whoever believes in the crucified and risen Messiah is saved. What joy and blessing is ours!
But notice that there is still a great battle to be fought in the next chapter. Yes, the decree has changed everything but it has still got to be worked out on the ground. This is very much a case of the now and the not-yet for the Jewish people. Come the 13th of Adar, they’ll be in the thick of it.
That reality is also the case for us today and is often brought to the fore in the NT. Now we are the people of God, now we are truly saved, but there is still a race to be run and a fight to be fought. That reality is one we must grapple with if we are to make genuine and lasting progress in the life of faith.
Many of our troubles as believers can often be traced to a failure to grasp these twin points: that we are saved and yet we are also being saved. Yes, sin has been overcome by Jesus through his cross but we have got to work out the reality of that in our lives. You see this very much in Rom. 6 – we have been united to Jesus in his death and resurrection and therefore must live in the light of that.
3. A holy war?
But I guess it’s what the Jews had to do that has caused the most discussion on this chapter and the next. The decree that Esther asks the king to make, and which Mordecai takes to all the peoples, is a direct counterpart to the one issued by Haman, point for point, line for line. They are given licence to “destroy, kill and annihilate any armed force, and their women and children, of any nationality or province that might attack them and to plunder the property of their enemies.” (8:12)
This has been a problem, not just for commentators, but for many thoughtful Bible-reading believers. Doesn’t this just reduce the Jews to the level of the Persians? Won’t they now be just as bad as Haman?
Some think that’s the point being made here – that the Jews are not chosen by God because they’re better than the rest but because of his grace. And, of course, that’s true – but is that really the point being made here? Others suggest that we’re meant to make a contrast between the severity of this decree and the ‘softer’ approach of the NT. Again, there is a need to bring the NT into the equation but not perhaps in that way.
Just what should we make of this holy war? And not only this one here but those throughout the OT? Can they be justified or do we need to steer people away from these less presentable parts?
That is a very big topic to try to handle and we can’t do it justice on this occasion but let me try to sketch something of an answer. In terms of the decree itself, we ought to notice that it is defensive and only permits the Jews to act in order to protect themselves. That alone is worth bearing in mind here. But there are other significant points we need to make and bear in mind. Let me mention 2 of them.
i) God has a right to judge people, as and when he chooses to do so and will do so fairly and with complete justice. His calling of his people to arms in the OT has that as an aspect to it; Israel fights the Amorites when their sin has reached its full measure (see Gen. 15:16). Who of us can tell the Lord when and how he should judge? What we know for sure is that the judge of all the earth will do right.
ii) The whole progress of salvation history needs to be kept in mind. Why does the Lord choose to defend and protect the Jews? Why does he drive out nations before them? Because he’s at work through the Jews to bring healing and salvation to all the nations of the earth and to every people group.
That is why he turns his guns on Israel when they turn aside to idols and sin against the Lord. They cannot be allowed to do so; the glory of God and the whole future of humanity is at stake. And that is also why he doesn’t make an end of them but remains faithful to his covenant and brings the exile to an end.
This battle in Persia is tied to the Lord’s purposes of salvation for the whole world. That’s why he decrees the preservation of his people. It also explains why the battle is so intense – the nations’ hatred of Israel in the Bible is not simple nationalism but spiritual warfare.
But the OT is only part of the picture. We need to see where the whole story is heading. God’s holy war against sin and evil reaches its climax on the cross of Calvary; God’s faithfulness to his covenant promises to redeem the world climax in the death of his son as a sin offering. At the cross, the justice and love of God are revealed and reconciled.
And so holy war is brought to an end, or at least redefined. The followers of Jesus are not to take up arms to extend his kingdom; violence will never change the hearts of sinful people (v.17 aside). The NT is clear: we do wage war but not with worldly weapons. Rather it is by the Word of God, the gospel, and by prayer and faithful living that we wrestle against powers, not flesh and blood.
The war was won by Jesus, through his cross. We fight in the light of that, seeking to be clothed in the armour of light. That’s our calling.
