| The Apocalypse of . . . Esther?? continued |
Esther's Days cont. In preparation for her appearance before the king, Esther underwent "twelve months of purification." Esther 2:3, 12 Just prior to going before the throne, Esther was "given whatsoever she desired...out of the house of the women," obviously referring to clothing and accessories. 2:23, 15 But Mordecai did not at this time enter into the palace, but "sat in the king's gate." 2:19 |
Latter Days cont. At the time of the end, "many shall be purified, and made white." Daniel 12:10 They shall "wash their robes, and make them white..." Rev. 7:14 Just prior to the Church's appearance before the heav-enly throne, they obtain "white robes...and palms in their hands." Rev. 7:9; 6:11 "A hundred and forty and four5 thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel" are "sealed," but remain "on the earth." Rev. 7:2-8; 14:3 |
Scene 2: Enter Haman the Agagite Just as Esther and Mordecai allegorically represent peoples and nations, likewise Haman the Agagite represents the greatest nation-foe of both Israel and the church in the End Times: Gog. Most readers have probably heard of this name. Coming wars with Gog are foretold in Ezekiel 38-39 and revelation 20. Once again, a historical back-ground is called for, one that will shed more light on the identity of Haman. At the beginning of the Exodus, when Israel had just escaped out of Egypt, the nation of Amalek attacked and fought a cruel, bitter battle against them. From that time onward, Amalek and Israel were mortal enemies: The LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. Exodus 17:16 Now, it is generally recognized that the name Agag was the title of Amalekite kings, just like the name Pharaoh was the title of Egyptian kings. The name / title Agag is found in Balaam's prophecy at the time of the Exodus. Num. 24:7; cf. vs. 20. Some 400 years later, Agag was the name of an Amalekite king killed by the Israelite prophet Samuel. 1 Sam. 15:33 The original Hebrew text of the Bible lacked vowels, which were added later, and therefore some ancient texts and modern scholars say that Agag should actually be spelled Agog, or Gog.4 The first century A.D. historian Josephus wrote that "Haman [was] ... by birth an Amalekite,"5 confirming this identification of Agag with Amalek Amalek the man was a grandson of Esau (Gen. 36:12), who was the older brother of Jacob/Israel. Because he was the firstborn son, Esau had claim to the birthright of his father Isaac and his grandfather Abraham, but he sold his birthright to Jacob. Gen. 25:29-34 Later on, Jacob stole Esau's right of the first blessing. Gen. 27 Therefore, Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart ... I will slay my brother Jacob. Genesis 27:41 This conflict between the brothers Jacob and Esau6 continued between their descendent nations Israel and Amalek during the Exodus, then later in the era of the Judges (Judg. 6:3), and again in Samuel's day, and once again in Esther's day. According to Ezekiel 38-39, which foretell events of the Day of the Lord, this conflict will resume in the End Times. And finally, the very last battle fought on Earth, at the close of the Millennium, will again be between Gog -- the descendants of Amalek -- and the chosen people of God. Rev. 20:8 Thus the prophecy is to be fulfilled that "the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation." It must be remembered that Esther and Mordecai do not represent whole nations: they represent those who believe in the Lord among their respective nations. Therefore, Haman must allegorically represent an ecclesias-tical and/or secular authority opposed to the followers of the Lord, an authority that come to power after the fall of the Babylonish church = Vashti. According to the 18th-century Swedish theologian Emanuel Swedenborg, who sought out the underlying spiritual meaning of the Scriptures, God spiritually signifies "external worship apart from internal."7 This suggests that a church shall come to the forefront that is all style and no substance. The Exaltation of Haman King Ahasuerus promote[d] Haman ... above all the princes that were with him. And all the king's servants that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman. Esther 3:1-2 At this point the allegory seems to break down, for it predicts that the Lord, represented by Ahasuerus, will grant power and authority to the enemies of Israel and the Church. The "princes that were with" Ahasuerus, i.e., those that were in the palace, allegorically represent the spiritual princes of this world's nations. (Cf. Daniel 10:20-21 and 12:1, which refer to the spiritual princes of Greece, Persia, and Israel. The concept of national princes, or national angels, will be discussed in Part 2 of this book.) The "servants that were in the king's gate" represent the corresponding rulers and governments on Earth. Haman had/will have power in both realms. Why would the Lord exalt the enemies of his people? Actually, this theme isn't so uncommon in the Bible. God gave power to Satan over Job, so that He might demonstrate to witnesses both in heaven and on Earth that his servants aren't faithful solely for reasons of material gain. Job 1-2 Also, in numerous instances God used Assyri-ans, Babylonians, Egyptians, and others as instruments to punish the Israelites, in order to bring them to repent-ance. Cf. Isaiah 10:5-27 Another example: Jehu subtly exalted Baal-worship for the purpose of luring its adherents out into the open: he then destroyed them. 2 Kings 10:18-28 All three of these motives seem to be involved in the latter-day lifting up of the evil spiritual and secular powers. Haman Versus Mordecai Before the ascendance of this new authority, the Church will be Raptured to heaven; but the 144,000 of Israel will remain on Earth, and must face a greatly empowered enemy: |
| Latter Days The 144,000 of Israel will refuse to honor the new religious and/or secular ideology, and will not "worship the image of the beast." Revelation 13:15 |
Esther's Days "But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. Esther 3:3 Continue Return to Index |