Two idioms that can be heard in 21st century
American culture is “having the upper hand” and “having the tables turned.” To
“have the tables turned,” someone or something reverses the situation to have
the upper hand. To “have the upper hand” means to have power and control over
someone or something. Whoever or what “has the upper hand” controls the person
or the thing. Put it all together, having the tables turned means reversing the
situation in order to have the power and control. That’s exactly what we’ll see
in Esther 7. Last chapter, we saw the book of Esther climax as we saw the
tables turn to give the Jews the upper hand on the small scale. In this
chapter, we see will the tables turn on a medium scale. In the next chapter, we
will see the tables turn on the large scale.
Esther chapter 7 opens up with the 5th banquet
mentioned in the book. This banquet probably took place in the afternoon, for
time is needed to carry out the rest of the events of the story. In accordance
to Persian customs, this banquet probably mostly consisted of drinking wine,
perhaps with a few desserts on the side.
It also has the 3rd opportunity that Esther has
to present her request to King Xerxes. This time, Esther wastes no time in
relaying her request. She requests the life of her and her people. Esther must
have rehearsed this speech, for she carefully chooses her words. Despite the
banquet creating an informal time to talk to her husband, Esther still uses the
proper terms that someone would use in the public court, like referring to her
husband as “o king.” She humbly admits she cannot boss the king around, but
rather she needs his favor. Although not using the term “Jew,” by saying “her
and people,” Esther has revealed her ethnicity as a Jew. She is smart to say
“my people” instead of calling them Jews outright, for it brings the attention
to Esther, the queen the king loves dearly, instead of making them an unrelated
people. Note that Esther says that her people have been “sold for destruction
and slaughter and annihilation”. The “destruction and slaughter and
annihilation is a direct quote from the decree Xerxes and Haman drew up in
chapter 3. The verb “sold” is a reference to the money Haman put into the
treasury in order for the genocide to happen. Speaking of Haman, notice that
Esther leaves out his name. Esther makes sure King Xerxes’s focus is on her
people, not on Haman.
Finally, I find it peculiar that Esther says that if the
case was anything but death, even slavery, Esther would have remained silent.
Esther might be proposing that the king cannot afford to let the Jews die. The
Jews have contributed to Persian society. Even if they were slaves, they could
still contribute to the empire. If they died, however, they could not
contribute anymore. I wonder if Esther is thinking of history of Israel. God is
able to bless the people of Israel, no matter where they are or what their
condition is. God blesses them so much, it overflows to the nations around
them, and those countries benefit. Persia has been benefiting from God’s
blessing to the Jews. Without the Jews, Persia loses that blessing. Esther
makes the annihilation of the Jews an issue for the king. Anything else, it
would not be the king’s problem, for the Jews could still contribute to the
Persian. But now the Jews are going to be wiped off the face of the Persian
Empire, it is the king’s issue, for it could lead instability within the
empire, an issue for a king!
Altogether, Esther’s statement shows how humble Esther
stands before the king. Esther knows she does not know have the power to sway
the king, nor does the king have to even take into consideration what she
thinks. Esther’s job, as queen, is to agree and support the king on all
matters. Knowing that, I wonder if Esther remember Vashti’s fate for standing
up against Xerxes, and she feared she would receive the same fate. Yet God gave
her the strength to go through with her request.
As you can tell from verses 5 and 6, Xerxes does not stand
against Esther, but rather he sides with her. He demands who has done such a
thing. There is some irony in the question. A mass murder on this scale cannot
happen without the king’s consent, so the king stands somewhat guilty. Still,
it would seem Xerxes does not remember the edict Haman coerced him to sign, or
at least Xerxes cannot put the pieces together. Esther waits until the end to
mention the name for dramatic suspense, but she then points out it is Haman,
whom she calls “the foe (or adversary) and enemy.” This title will stick with
Haman, as he’ll be known as the “enemy of Jews” at least 3 more times in
remainder of the book. Perhaps Esther used these titles in order to remind that
king that actions Haman committed were not just against the Jews, but against
the king himself as well. Esther 7:6 describes Haman’s look as complete horror.
I can imagine the horror immediately coming over Haman’s face as Esther begins
making her plea. He puts the pieces together sooner than Xerxes. No longer is
his hatred towards foreigners from a distant land. He was now stands against
the queen, the king’s wife, and against the royal family. For that, the king
would accuse him of treason, which would lead to his execution.
When Xerxes hears who planned this genocide, he immediately
leaves the banquet hall for the palace gardens. Many have attempted to suggest
why Xerxes did this. Some suggest perhaps Xerxes tried to calm himself down and
let the anger subside. Other suggest maybe Xerxes was planning how to execute
Haman, especially without violating any laws of the land. And yet others think
Xerxes was doing the opposite: thinking of how to spare Esther and her family
when the laws of Persia were irreversible. It could just simply be the king
needed from fresh air to process all these things. In a matter of seconds, the
king learned his lovely wife and her family were going to be executed, and all
at the hands of his second-in-command! That’s a lot to process in such a short
time. Imagine trying to think up a way to solve it, too!
King Xerxes’s exit provides some alone time for Esther and
Haman. Haman takes advantage of this time to beg Esther for mercy. He knows
that he is a dead man walking, and that his only hope for survival is to beg
Esther for mercy. Now in the Bible times, people would recline around the table
for meals. This was the case for Esther’s banquet. Also in the Ancient Near
East, when someone wanted to beg for mercy, that person would fall at the feet
of the other person and kissed those feet. When Haman begged Esther for mercy,
he must have fell at laid down at her feet, kissing them. Social protocol of
the day dictated that men had to keep a safe distance of 7 steps from any of
the king’s women, so no wonder Xerxes saw this action as molesting the queen
when he re-entered the banquet hall! Xerxes announces, “Will he even molest the
queen while she is with me in the house?” This is not a rhetorical question,
but King Xerxes speaks as judge bring judgment down on Haman’s actions. At that
very second, those nearby covered Haman’s head, the first step for those about
to be executed. Even the attendants and the guards nearby knew at the king’s
last words that Haman was a dead man.
From Esther 7:8, I draw a parallel from chapter 6. In Esther
6, Haman covers his head in shame after carrying out the reward for Mordecai,
the foreshadowing of what was to come. Now here in chapter 7, the attendants
cover Haman’s to prepare him for execution. Perhaps Haman should have covered
his own head in humility and begged Yahweh, the God of the Jews for mercy
instead of Esther. Then maybe his life would have been spared. Yet I don’t
blame Esther for extending mercy to Haman, as much as we Yahweh-worshippers
would want to extend to grace and mercy to others as Yahweh has extended it to
us. Because Persian laws are irreversible, if Haman were allowed to live, he
could have still led a successful uprising against the Jews, even if King
Xerxes changed his mind. Esther knew Haman could not be trusted, so he had to
be dealt with swiftly and harshly.
Soon after covering Haman’s face, Harbona, a eunuch of king,
speaks up. He informs the king of gallows Haman built by his house. He even
mentions how they were meant for “Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.” How
does Harbona know about the gallows, especially concerning their purpose?
Knowing Haman and his pride, he probably boasted and bragged loudly about them.
Harbona uses this information to his advantage. As we can tell from the first 6
chapters, Haman was not a nice guy to hang around. He thought he was the best,
and he looked down on anyone who disagree with him on that fact. I can imagine
that Haman had many enemies besides Mordecai (maybe Mordecai was the only one
to stand up to Haman). Perhaps Harbona was one of them. Maybe Harbona saw his opportunity
to finish Haman off. To make sure Xerxes finished him off, Harbona reminds King
Xerxes that not only is Mordecai a Jew, but also the man who saved his life.
Harbona knows what he’s doing. It fuels Xerxes’s anger, and Xerxes demands
Haman is hanged on it.
Looking back on this passage, I see a whole lot of irony.
Haman wanted the Jew Mordecai to fall at his feet in worship. Now Haman falls
at the feet of Mordecai’s cousin, the Jew Esther, for mercy. The gallows Haman
built to hand Mordecai now will become the place where Haman will be hanged from.
Up to this point, Esther has been a shy queen, staying within her expected
boundaries. Now Esther is strong and courageous, making requests and calling
out people. Reading Esther 7, it’s easy to notice that there’s a power change
happening. In fact, it’s so easy, it’s hard to tell there’s not a power change!
Truly the tables have been turned!
That’s how great God’s providence is. It can turn the
tables; it can give the powerless the upper hand. God’s providence reminds us
that God is truly the all-powerful one. 1 Corinthians 1:26-28 states that God
is more powerful than the greatest power on earth. In order to demonstrate that
power, God uses the powerless of the world and gives them the power to become
more powerful than the most powerful. In short, God uses his providence to
display his power, and God wants to use you to display his providence and his
power. God does so by turning the tables in your life. He can turn you from the
powerless to the powerful. You just need to trust in him and take that opportunity
when he gives it. Perhaps you can think of a time God has turned the tables for
you. You were once weak and lowly, and God turned you the strong and powerful.
Reflect on that moment. Thank God for it. Then, use that moment next time you
are weak and lowly to rely on God to turn the table. Remember, God is the
all-powerful. When the powers of this world turn against you, fear not, for
they cannot take down God.
We will see a similar theme in Esther chapter 8, but in a
larger scale. Remember this chapter’s theme of God’s providence, and look out
for it in the next chapter.
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