The evil Haman begins his plot, as recorded in the Hebrew version of the book, and persuades the king to eradicate the Jews, accusing them of being like a fifth column of disloyal people within his empire. Artaxerxes gives him permission to do what he likes to them, and he arranges for letters to go out in the King’s name ordering the destruction of the Jews on a certain day.
Greek Esther now pipes up ad gives us a second addition - the wording of this malicious letter.
After saying how wonderful the king is, and how wise Haman is, the letter explains the existence of a hostile people, who ignore the ways of everybody else and refuse to conform to all the good things that the emperor wishes to do. So, on the 14th day of the month of Adar, they are all to be killed, which will leave the empire completely at peace and happy ever after.
This gives me a sense of the Jew’s self-understanding at this time. They felt they were a misunderstood people. Out of step with the rest of the world, who happily went along with whatever the current empire said, Jews refused to change and stubbornly worshipped God. Just as Daniel, who served different rulers faithfully, but still faithfully worshipped God, so the Jews refuse to conform to the latest imperial whims.
There is also a sense that the Jews are living in fear, living at least partly underground. They are hiding, which gives credence to the suggestion that they are dangerous aliens ready to destroy the empire from within. This is a different setting from Judith, where the Jews were safe in their own land. This is written from the perspective of exile - the Jews know they don’t belong in this strange empire.
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