Esther 3:1 - 15
Evil is a part of every one of our lives and is a theme that goes right through the book of Esther. In this section, we see it rear its ugly head in a very real and evident way - the plot of Haman to eradicate the Jewish people. Whilst we might say that this evil comes about only because of Haman, we need to look deeper to see the way that the characters in the story, and we ourselves are all responsible for the evil in this world. In Job 14:1 Job admits, “mortals, born of woman are of few days and full of trouble.” He goes on to ask, “who can bring what is pure from the impure?” (Job 14:4).
There is a long running feud between Haman as a Agagite and Mordecai as a Jew (see 1 Samuel 15 for the origins of this feud). This unresolved conflict has become exaggerated. Mordecai acts in unreasonable ways and it leads to a disproportional response on behalf of Haman. We need to consider how our unresolved conflict with others, our long term prejudices and even attitudes that we have inherited allow us to introduce evil into this world.
Xerxes allows evil to occur not through what he does, but through what he doesn't do. In giving his signet ring to Haman and saying "do what you want" he abdicates his responsibility. We need to explore our actions and ask where we're looking the other way and refusing to act when we should be taking a stand for justice, on behalf of the weak and powerless.
Finally, the unnamed court officials who dob on Mordecai for not bowing to Haman introduce evil. There is a blurred line between telling someone something they need to know and telling them something we want them to know. We need to make sure that we're not passing on stories for the sake of our own entertainment, but that we're seeking the best for the person we're speaking to.
Evil is always going to be a reality in this broken world. That's why we wait in this period of Advent for the return of the king who will bring about a new heaven and earth that is free of evil. Until then, as new creations in Jesus Christ, we have the Holy Spirit who leads us to holiness, where we say no to evil and yes to the good of God.
