Esther

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In the Book of Esther, Esther and Mordecai were the truly evil ones. There are 4 reasons why I came to this conclusion.

Reason 1

God does not appear once in this book. In fact, the Book of Esther is the only one of the 66 books of the Bible in which God does not appear (perhaps also Song of Songs). So why is God not mentioned once in the book? Because Mordecai and Esther didn't care about God at all.

Reason 2

Mordecai and Esther are called by their pagan names throughout the Book of Esther. The name Mordecai means “servant of Marduk,” and the name Esther is a derivation of the name Ishtar. Marduk and Ishtar are both pagan gods. So why are they consistently called by their pagan names in the book, even though they also had Jewish names (Est 2:7)? Because they were not worshipers of God, but idol worshipers. The prophet Daniel, for example, also had a Jewish and a pagan name, but is called by his Jewish name throughout the Book of Daniel. Why? Because Daniel was a worshiper of God, not an idol worshiper.

Reason 3

Who started the dispute, Mordecai or Haman? According to the Book of Esther, it was Mordecai who started the dispute by disobeying the king's command to bow to Haman (Est 3:2-5). And no, bowing down out of respect for someone would not have been idolatry. In the Old Testament, we often see Jews bowing down out of respect for others. So why didn't Mordecai bow down? Because he was arrogant.

Reason 4

It is clear that the characters in the Book of Esther have references to the New Testament. Mordecai represents the devil, Esther represents Judas, the Persian king represents the governor Pilate and the Roman king, and Haman represents Jesus.

Let me explain:

• Mordecai goes to Esther and persuades her to betray Haman (Est 4:13-16). The devil goes to Judas and persuades him to betray Jesus (Jhn 13:2).
• Esther and Haman have meal together while Esther has decided to betray Haman (Est 7:1-2). Judas and Jesus have meal together while Judas has decided to betray Jesus (Jhn 13:26).
• Esther tells the Persian king to crucify Haman (Est 7:10). Judas (the Jews) tells the governor Pilate to crucify Jesus (Jhn 19:16).
• Esther tells the Persian king to kill Haman's sons (Est 9:13). Judas (the Jews) tells the Roman king to kill the Jesus' apostles (Acts 12:1-3).