Esther 4:1-3

IV. Pluck of Esther, Chapter 4
A. Cry

TEXT: Esther 4:1-3

1

Now when Mordecai knew all that was done, Mordecai rent his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and cried with a loud and bitter cry;

2

and he came even before the king's gate: for none might enter within the king's gate clothed with sackcloth.

3

And in every province, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, there was great mourning among the Jews, and fasting, and weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

Today's English Version, Esther 4:1-3

When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes in anguish. Then he dressed in sackcloth, covered his head with ashes, and walked through the city, wailing loudly and bitterly, until he came to the entrance of the palace. He did not go in because no one wearing sackcloth was allowed inside. Throughout all the provinces, wherever the king's proclamation was made known, there was loud mourning among the Jews. They fasted, wept, wailed, and most of them put on sackcloth and lay in ashes.

COMMENTS

Esther 4:1-2 Bitter: The tearing or rending of clothing, putting on sackcloth and throwing of ashes on the head were all actual, though symbolic, rites practiced by Jews (and other Semitic peoples) expressing grief and contrition. The English word is derived from the Hebrew word saq which describes a coarse, dark cloth, usually made of goat's hair. It was worn by mourners (2 Samuel 3:31; 2 Kings 19:1-2), often by prophets to symbolize the actions they sought from their audiences (Isaiah 20:2; Revelation 11:3), and by exiles (1 Kings 20:31). No one seems to know the precise form of the saq. Some think it was much like a loin cloth; others think it was like a burlap sack with openings for the arms and neck. Sometimes the garment was worn next to the skin (Jonah 3:6; 1 Kings 21:27; 2 Kings 6:30; Job 16:15; Isaiah 32:11) but usually it was worn over another garment. Ashes were sprinkled over a person or he sat among ashes as a sign of mourning (2 Samuel 13:19; Job 2:8; Jeremiah 6:26). Mordecai, having donned the symbolic dress of deep grief, went out into the middle of the imperial capital and began venting his feelings in loud, doleful, wailing which was customary in ancient eastern cultures. The Hebrew word marah is translated bitter. It is the same word used by Naomi when she said, Do not call me Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the Lord has afflicted me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me? (Ruth 1:20-21). This is what Mordecai was expressing. The rule that nothing mournful, of evil portent or distressing was to pass through the palace gates and into the presence of the emperor was another of the customs of the ancient east.

Esther 4:3 Baleful: The same loud piercing funeral wailings and death cries were heard in every province where Jews lived throughout the vast Persian empire. People fasted and wept and lay in sackcloth and ashes. Literally, the Hebrew phrase is sackcloth and ashes were spread out as a bed under many. The Hebrew word for fast is tzum and means abstain. Another Hebrew word for fast is -innah and means afflict the soul. The word tzum is not used in the Old Testament before the book of Judges. Apparently, the original commandment (Leviticus 16:29 ff) was to afflict the soul which later came to be practiced by abstinence. It is altogether possible that the original commandment to afflict the soul (fast) did not necessarily demand abstinence. Jesus made drastic revisions to traditional practices of fasting (Matthew 6:16-18). Fasting or afflicting the soul has always had to do with the human need for mediation and intercession before God in times of stress and sorrow. The fasting of the Hebrew people in Persia at this time should certainly be considered as an act of supplication and intercession toward Jehovah for their rescue from the impending slaughter of Haman.