And when they spoke to him day after day and he would not listen to them, they told Haman, in order to see whether Mordecai's words would stand, for he had told them that he was a Jew.
Mordecai's refusal was not one dramatic moment. Day after day the king's own officials asked him why he broke the royal order. He told them he was a Jew, so they took the matter to Haman to see whether such a stand could survive.
The Reason He Gave
Mordecai's whole defence fits into a few words. Those words reach back to an oath God swore long before about the people Haman came from.
F. G. PattersonMordecai was ready to give a reason for the hope that was in him, and his simple answer was, I am a Jew! God had not forgotten His oath of old (Ex. 17), even if Israel were reaping the fruit of their sins under the Eastern kings. He had said, "Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary… and he did not fear God… You shall not forget it." (Deut. 25.) So the Lord had sworn that He would have war with Amalek from generation to generation. Mordecai refuses to give up this basic truth in Israel's calling.
Why a Bow Was Impossible
Commentators differ on what made the bow impossible. Some point to Haman's Amalekite descent. Others point to what the bow itself meant in that court.
Arno Clemens GaebeleinThey paid Haman the honour of a god. Nearly all these Eastern rulers claimed to be divine… Because Haman represented the king, people gave him that same worship. But Mordecai did not bow down, because such reverence involved the recognition of a false god and was against the commandment of God… What a noble figure! Mordecai the Jew stands upright among the servants bowing low before Haman. He showed faith in God.
The Arguments Pressed on Him
The officials pressed him day after day. One writer imagines what that pressure sounded like.
C. StanleyThe heart might plead a thousand excuses and urge a thousand reasons. It might look for an easy path, saying the Jewish system was in ruins and the Amalekite in power… "What use can it be to hold up the standard when everything has fallen apart? Your stubborn refusal to bow your head only makes your humiliation more obvious. Would it not be better to give just one nod? That will settle the matter. Haman will be satisfied, and you and your people will be safe. Do not be obstinate."
Obedience Left the Results to God
He would not listen to them. One writer imagines his reply, and it keeps two things apart: what is right, and what will follow.
C. Stanley"God has spoken. This is enough for me. True, we are a scattered people; but the word of the Lord is not scattered. He has not reversed His word about Amalek, nor made a peace treaty with him."… "Well then," someone might press this devoted Jew, "you will all be destroyed. You must either bow or perish." The answer is still very simple: "I have nothing to do with consequences. They are in the hand of God. Obedience is my path, the results are with Him."
The Charge of Narrow-Mindedness
To onlookers his stand looked like arrogance and bad manners. One writer meets that verdict head-on.
C. H. MackintoshPeople might call it arrogance, blind stubbornness, stupid bigotry, and contemptible narrow-mindedness; but that was not his concern. It might look like complete folly to refuse the usual mark of respect to the highest noble in the kingdom. But that noble was an Amalekite, and that was enough for Mordecai. The apparent folly was simple obedience.
From One Man to a Whole People
Once the officials named him as a Jew, the quarrel stopped being personal. They handed Haman not just one man but a whole people.
Leslie M. GrantOf course Haman, every time he passed the gate, would notice Mordecai and his refusal to bow, and it filled him with anger. Haman was a shrewd man with a bitter hatred of all Jews, so he formed a plan to get rid of not only Mordecai, but all the Jews in the realm of King Ahasuerus.
One writer links Mordecai's refusal to a later refusal to worship.
Michael HardtBut why did Haman hate Mordecai in the first place? The reason was that Mordecai refused to bow to him. Satan sought, but failed, to make the Son of God worship him.
Summary
- Reason. Asked why he disobeyed, Mordecai gave one answer: he was a Jew. Behind it stood God's sworn word about Amalek, which he refused to treat as out of date.
- Pressure. The test came daily, not once. The case for one small nod sounded sensible: the nation lay in ruins, Haman held power, and a bow would have kept everyone safe.
- Obedience. He separated duty from outcome. His path was obedience; the consequences he left in God's hand.
- Cost. To everyone watching, faithfulness looked like bigotry and folly. It also turned Haman's private rage into a plot against a whole people.
- Pattern. One man stands upright in a crowd of worshippers. He points on to the One who would not bow to Satan.