Haman and the History of Hate

Esther 3:2

A Jewish proverb reminds us that

"Hate is a sword that wounds the hand that wields it."

In 2025, hatred of Jews, known also as Antisemitism, is tragically not a theotrical musing about historical hurts, marginal attitudes or future threats.In the current conflation of identities and solidarities, it’s not even reasonable to expect worldwide clear and complete condemnation of these persistent racist and hateful attitudes towards an entire nation. Weaponized by powerful leaders and nations, based on a wildly diverse and often confilcting ideological and cynical agendas, the hatred and persecution of Jews, whoever and wherever we are, persists today in alarming tones and numbers, with deveasting consequences for Jewish communities worldwide.

How did we get here? When did this hatred begin?

Some scholars claim that the first official mention of Antisemitism can be found in today’ chapter in the Esther Scroll, with the introduction of the battle of two individuals who stand in for the bigger binaries - brother against brother, generations-old trauma in tragic turmoil, an ongoing family feud.

Mordechai and Haman stand in for a much more complex saga of struggle.

We already met Mordechai in the previous chapter, introduced as the direct descendant of the tribe of Benjamin and of its most prominent persona - King Saul. He is known as Mordechai the Judean although he is of the tribe of Benjamin. It’s possible that by the time the text is written these prior tribal identities blurred and the term Judean - later - Jewish - already took hold. But the author of this text is careful to let us know which tribe he is from. It matters.

When the villain is introduced in this chapter, it is with a shorter genealogical mention that nevertheless links the two men and their enmity together. Haman son of Hamdata the Aggagite, the new minister who quickly rises in the ranks to be the king’s second in command is the descendant of King Agag of Amalek - the defeated enemy of King Saul of Israel. There is unfinished business of revenge between those two kings - and it will play out here, centuries later.

But the tale does not begin there. Amalek hails from Esau, Jacob’s brother. They were both born to Rebecca and Isaac.

These mythical mortal enemies share blood, and harbor hate as only brothers turned into others in arms can do.

The moment of encounter between them is described as a conflict:

וְכׇל־עַבְדֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־בְּשַׁעַר הַמֶּלֶךְ כֹּרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים לְהָמָן כִּי־כֵן צִוָּה־לוֹ הַמֶּלֶךְ וּמׇרְדֳּכַי לֹא יִכְרַע וְלֹא יִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה׃

All the king’s courtiers in the palace gate knelt and bowed low to Haman, for such was the king’s order concerning him; but Mordecai would not kneel or bow low.

Esther 3:2

Why doesn’t Mordechai bow down to Haman, even though he is breaking the law by doing so?

Mordecai’s defiance provides Haman with grounds for demanding genocie describing the Jews as having “laws different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not appropriate for the king to tolerate them” (3:8).

What was so wrong about bowing to Haman that prompted Mordecai to do so?

Prof. RabbiRachel Adelman shares the two main lines of thought in Jewish tradition:

“The exegetical tradition suggests two distinct lines of thought. The first is that Mordecai refuses to bow down on religious principles – obeisance to Haman is an expression of idolatry. The second points to an ethnic vendetta – the refusal serves as a pretext for the eternal battle between Amalek and Israel.”

The Book of Samuel describes in great detail the final battle of Amalek and Israel - led by Saul, the first king of Israel, who won the war but refused to kill King Agag and destroy all people and property as instructed by the prophet Samuel in the name of YHWH. This command stems from the previous attack of Amalek on Israel during the desert wandering - resulting in the decree to annihilate them and eliminate their name forever.

Saul’s refusal - whether on merciful or strategic grounds will cost him his crown. Agag is slaughtered by Samuel but the enmity between those two kings lives on as unfinished business - with Mordechai and Haman picking up where the kings left off. That’s how mythology works. And keeps on working.

The version of Esther that made it into our Hebrew Bible insists that Haman is from Agag, but the Greek version of Esther omits this biographical fact. Haman’s hatred in this version of the story does not go back to history -it’s sinuply because of religious divides.

Yet another version of the text, preserved in the Aramaic Translation, the enmity is not just about religious differences or political enmity between two nations once at war. It goes back all the way to Esau and Jacob - two brothers and their fight over their father’s birthright and love.

The Targum Sheni, composed sometime during the 3rd-6th cent. C.E., introduces Haman with a list of ancestors that goes back 20 generations, ending with the father of Amalek, Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn It also includes an incredible text that explains Mordechai’s refusal to bow down to Haman - in his own voice. It goes back to the moment when Jacob and Esau reunite after decades of separation, upon Jacob’s return to Canaan. In the scene described in Genesis, Jacob and his family bow down to Esau before they embrace and then part ways again. But according to the legend - not everybody bowed. Benjamin was still in his mother Rachel’s womb:

“Mordecai said: I am descended from Benjamin and when Jacob bowed down before Esau, Benjamin was not yet born and he did not bow down before any human all his days, as a result of which the Eternal One of the World guarded him in his mother’s womb, until the time that they would go up to the Land of Israel and the Temple would be rebuilt in its land, and the Shekhinah would dwell within its borders, and all the House of Israel would rejoice there and all the nations will bow down and do obeisance in the Land. As for me, I shall not bow down and do obeisance before the evil Haman in front of this gate.”

This tradition claims that Moredchai’s defiance is both mythical and nationlistitc - his pride simply echoed what was in his blood for generations, with a loyalty far deeper, despite the consequences, than the Persian law.

So why does Haman hate Moredchai and the Jews? Why do we still hate this possibly fictitious literary character so much?

The way the Jewish storytellers put it - it is either as old as the struggle of Genesis over birthright and land, or as old as the battle and unfinished business between Agag and Samuel. Either way what is possible is that this story sits on layers of enmity and the erosion of empathy, territorial struggles and tragic fallout that is yet to be addressed- as soon as possible. At least on one level the purpose of this story is to rehabilitate Saul’s legacy and lineage - giving his progeny the power to repair Saul’s reputation and complete his task, as terrible as it was.

So why does Haman hate Mordechai enough to want to kill him and all his people? And why does this hate persists and the mention of Amalek still resonate during these difficult times as a pretext for brutal war between Palestinians and Israelis that may have very little to do with these precise lineages and archaic enmities?

This is where mythic memories, and tragic trauma, carried over generations with little room to be properly explained, processed and healed - keeps claiming lives and keeps hurting, hateful and raw, reactivated again and again. Haman lives on only in our storytelling - including the pastries we eat on the holiday of Purim that bear his name - as ear or hat even though these triangle pastries with Persian origins have nothing originally to do with him (and everything to do with Her.)

This story is about archetypes that are bigger than the literary text and more powerful that what most people realize.

Mordechai’s choice not to bow, and Haman’s enraged response are links in longer chains, and result in what will drive the plot of the scroll and this story - till now.

This chapter ends with the bureaucracy of annihilation set into place, as the king and Haman sit to drink and the rest of the city is confused: Now what? What will help us deal and heal?

We still ask these questions. We still fight these fights.

How can we not perpetuate this story - and put down the swords that slay all of us together? This story goes on.. and knowing it will help us, hopefully, untangle the web., turning hate to healing, choosing to see each other’s hurts and histories, bow down to each other’s humanity, together, with humility, pride, purpose and hope.

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