Ester 3

BLIVRE · Chapter 3/10

¹Depois destas coisas, o rei Assuero engrandeceu a Hamã filho de Hamedata agagita, e o exaltou, e pôs seu assento acima de todos os príncipes que estavam com ele.

²E todos os servos do rei que estavam à porta do rei se inclinavam e prostravam diante de Hamã, porque assim o rei tinha mandado acerca dele; porém Mardoqueu não se inclinava nem se prostrava.

³Então os servos do rei que estavam à porta do rei disseram a Mardoqueu: Por que transgrides o mandamento do rei?

⁴Sucedeu, pois, que, tendo eles dito [isto] dia após dia, e ele não tendo lhes dado ouvidos, avisaram dele a Hamã, para verem se as palavras de Mardoqueu continuariam; porque ele tinha lhes declarado que era judeu.

⁵Quando Hamã viu que Mardoqueu não se inclinava nem se prostrava diante dele, ele se encheu de furor.

⁶Porém, tendo já sido informado do povo de Mardoqueu, ele achou pouco matar apenas Mardoqueu; então Hamã procurou destruir a todos os judeus, o povo de Mardoqueu, que havia no reino de Assuero.

⁷No primeiro mês (que é o mês de Nisã), no décimo segundo ano do rei Assuero, foi lançada Pur, isto é, a sorte, diante de Hamã, para cada dia e para cada mês; e [a sorte indicou] o décimo segundo mês, o mês de Adar.

⁸Então Hamã disse ao rei Assuero: Há um povo disperso e dividido entre os povos em todas as províncias de teu reino, cujas leis são diferentes das de todo o povo, e não obedecem às leis do rei; por isso não convém ao rei tolerá-los.

⁹Se for do agrado do rei, escreva-se que sejam destruídos; e eu porei dez mil talentos de prata nas mãos dos executarem a ação, para que sejam postos na tesouraria do rei.

¹⁰Então o rei tirou seu anel de sua mão, e o deu a Hamã filho de Hamedata agageu, inimigo dos judeus,

¹¹E o rei disse a Hamã: Essa prata te seja dada; e também esse povo, para fazeres dele o que quiseres.

¹²Então chamaram aos escrivães do rei no primeiro mês, no [dia] treze do mesmo, e foi escrito conforme a tudo o que Hamã mandou, aos príncipes do rei, e aos governadores que havia sobre cada província, e aos líderes de cada povo, a cada província conforme sua escrita, e a cada povo conforme sua língua; em nome do rei Assuero foi escrito, e com o anel do rei foi selado.

¹³E foram enviadas cartas por meio de mensageiros a todas as províncias do rei, para destruírem, matarem, e exterminarem a todos os judeus, desde o menino até o velho, crianças e mulheres em um dia, no [dia] treze do décimo segundo mês (que é o mês de Adar), e para saquearem suas posses.

¹⁴A cópia do texto foi entregue como decreto para que anunciasse em todas as províncias em público a todos os povos, para que estivessem preparados para aquele dia.

¹⁵Assim os mensageiros, obrigados pela palavra do rei, saíram, e o decreto foi anunciado na fortaleza de Susã. E o rei e Hamã se sentaram para beber; porém a cidade de Susã estava confusa.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Haman, a high official of the king, is promoted and demands that everyone bow down to him. Mordecai refuses, because he is a Jew, which enrages Haman, who plots not only to kill Mordecai but to exterminate all the Jews in the empire.

Explanation

Mordecai's refusal to bow was likely tied to the Jewish conviction against giving honor that bordered on idolatrous worship of a human being. Haman's reaction is disproportionate and reveals deep hatred: instead of taking revenge on Mordecai alone, he schemes to exterminate an entire people, obtaining, through manipulation and bribery, a royal decree authorizing the massacre. The use of the 'pur' (lot) to choose the date of the killing gives its name to the feast of Purim, still celebrated by Jews today. This chapter shows how personal prejudice can rapidly escalate into systemic violence when leaders hold too much power and too little accountability.

Fun facts

Haman is identified as an 'Agagite,' a reference to the lineage of King Agag of the Amalekites, ancient historic enemies of Israel since the days of Moses and King Saul—suggesting a very old ethnic hostility behind the conflict.
The word 'pur,' meaning 'lot' in ancient Persian, gave rise to the name of the Jewish feast of Purim, celebrated to this day in memory of the deliverance told in this book.

Verse-by-verse explanation

Ester 3:1Haman is promoted by the king to a position above all the other princes, and the order goes out that everyone must bow before him. Mordecai refuses to pay this reverence, which comes to irritate Haman deeply throughout the chapter.
Ester 3:2While everyone bows before Haman by the king’s order, Mordecai flatly refuses, an act of resistance that will trigger the entire plot of persecution against the Jews.
Ester 3:3Mordecai’s colleagues at the king’s gate confront him directly about why he disobeys a clear order from the king himself.
Ester 3:4After repeatedly pressing him without success, Mordecai’s colleagues decide to report the matter to Haman, also revealing that the refusal was directly tied to Mordecai being a Jew.
Ester 3:5Haman reacts with tremendous rage the moment he sees with his own eyes that Mordecai really does refuse to pay him this reverence.
Ester 3:6Instead of taking revenge on Mordecai alone, Haman decides, out of pure wounded pride, to plan the destruction of the entire Jewish people scattered throughout the empire.
Ester 3:7Haman casts “Pur,” meaning lot, to decide in which month and day he would carry out his plan to destroy the Jews, and it is from this Persian term that the name of the feast of Purim is later born. The day of the slaughter is thus decided by a method of divination, not by strategic calculation.
Ester 3:8Haman presents his request to the king in a calculated way, without naming the people, describing the Jews only as a scattered group that disobeys the empire’s laws.
Ester 3:9Haman even offers to personally finance the extermination with an enormous sum of silver, proof of how much personal hatred he was willing to fund out of his own pocket.
Ester 3:10The royal ring, used to seal official decrees, is handed directly to Haman, giving him full power to act in the king’s own name.
Ester 3:11The king does not even ask the name of the people in question: he simply approves Haman’s plan and hands back the offer of silver, leaving the decision entirely in his hands.
Ester 3:12The decree of extermination is officially drawn up and sealed with the royal ring, becoming irrevocable law of the empire, exactly as had already happened with Vashti’s case in chapter 1.
Ester 3:13The decree Haman obtains from the king is sent by couriers to every province, ordering the destruction, killing, and plunder of all Jews, young and old, on a single appointed day. It is the threat that will drive the rest of the book.
Ester 3:14The decree is published nearly a year in advance, giving the enemies of the Jews in every province plenty of time to calmly prepare for the attack.
Ester 3:15While the king and Haman calmly celebrate with drink, the whole city of Shushan is thrown into shock and confusion by news of the decree, a contrast the text draws quite deliberately.