When Mordechai refuses to bow, Haman’s response seems completely inordinate to the crime. Within the span of a few seconds, Haman becomes scathingly mad and decides to murder an entire nation. Difficulty with anger-management or just plain old anti-Semitism seem insufficient explanations for the wildness of Haman’s reaction. Furthermore, why does Mordechai refuse? On a pshat (simple) level there is no issue of idol worship whatsoever.

There is no doubt that one prominent theme played out through the Megilla is the conflict with Amalek. The nation of Amalek represents an antithesis to everything for which the Jewish people stand. They are characterized by the phrase “asher korcha baderech - they happened upon you” (Devarim 25:18). Things just chance to happen with no higher divine plan. They are the type of people who might be prone to casting lots. As the Jewish people stand for the belief in Divine providence, they are commanded to completely and utterly destroy Amalek. King Shaul does not succeed in destroying them and leaves their king Agag alive. Agag just so happens to be an ancestor of Haman. Where Shaul failed, another member of the family of Kish, from the tribe of Binyamin, namely, Mordechai, is more successful.

However, in order to more fully understand the story of the Megilla we must look to an even earlier conflict. Amalek is a descendant of the house of Eisav. Upon closer inspection, the story of Yaakov stealing the blessing from Eisav is full of linguistic and thematic parallels to the story of the Megilla. Consider the following:

·         Perhaps the most striking example is the almost verbatim repetition of an entire phrase. The description of Eisav crying bitterly over losing the blessing- “vayiz’ak ze’aka gedola u’mara ad me’od,” and he cried an exceedingly great and bitter cry  (Bereishit 27:34) is incredibly similar to the description of Mordechai’s reaction when hearing Haman’s decree (“vayitz’ak tze’aka gedola u’mara” and he cried a great and bitter cry. (Esther 4:1).

·         The word “vayivez- and he disdained” appears as a description of both Eisav’s attitude toward his birthright and of Haman’s attitude toward only killing Mordechai. (See Bereishit 25:34 and Esther 3:6)

·         Both Eisav and Haman are filled with burning anger against their adversaries. Rivka tells Yaakov to run away until his brother’s anger subsides- “ad asher tashuv chamat achicha” (Bereishit 27:44) . Similarly the text states explicitly that Haman was filled with anger against Mordechai- “vayimalei Haman al Mordechai cheima” (Esther 3:5).

·         Finally, both Eisav and Haman concoct secret plans. “vayomer Eisav bilibo,” Eisav said to himself (Bereishit 27:41) and “vayomer Haman bilibo,” Haman said to himself (Esther 6:6).

These parallels are not direct. No one character lines up exactly with a corresponding character in the other story yet the Megilla is quite clearly referencing the story of the stolen blessing. We are meant to read these two stories together.

Let us focus on one theme that occurs in both stories: bowing.[1] As discussed, Mordechai’s refusal to bow and Haman’s inordinate response are obviously key events in the Megilla’s plot. The theme plays a less obvious though similarly important role in the earlier narrative. The blessing that Yaakov steals is that other people will bow down to him:

Nations shall serve you and kingdoms shall bow down to you; you shall be a master over your brothers, and your mother's sons shall bow down to you

Bereishit 27:29

יעבדוך עמים וישתחוו לך לאמים הוה גביר לאחיך וישתחוו לך בני אמך

בראשית כז:כט

Even though Eisav is the elder, Yaakov gains the upper hand. It is this loss of power that causes Eisav to cry so bitterly. He secretly plots to murder Yaakov and get back his power causing Yaakov to run away to his uncle Lavan’s house. He marries and has children there, all the while unable to return to his parents’ house for fear of his brother’s wrath.

When Yaakov finally does return, he does an extraordinary amount of bowing to Eisav. He begins their first meeting by bowing seven times. Then each of his wives and all of his children bow. He seems to be saying “no hard feelings about that whole ‘you have to bow down to me’ thing, okay?” He gives up his right to be the one being bowed to.

The Midrash picks up on the fact that there was one member of the family not present at their ceremony of prostration: Binyamin had not yet been born. It depicts a scene in which Haman and Mordechai discuss Mordechai’s refusal to bow.

What did Mordechai say to them, to those who said “why are you going against the king’s law”? ... “And they told it to Haman etc.” Haman said to them “say to him did his ancestors not bow down to mine? As it says “and the concubines come forward etc. and afterward Yosef and Rachel came forward and bowed.” He answered “Binyamin had not been born yet”. And they told him. That is what it means when it says “and they told Haman”

Esther Rabbah 7:8

מה אמר להם מרדכי למי שאומר לו מדוע אתה עובר את מצות המלך... ויגידו להמן וגו' אמר לון המן, אמרון ליה זקנו הלא השתחוה לזקני, הדא ה"ד ותגשן השפחות וגו' ואחר נגש יוסף ורחל וישתחוו, היתיב ועדיין לא נולד בנימין, אמרין ליה הה"ד ויגידו להמן

אסתר רבה ז:ח 

Both parties see the meeting of Yaakov and Eisav as a precedent for the encounter between the two of them. Haman claims that Mordechai must bow because his ancestors did. Mordechai refuses on the basis that his ancestor Binyamin did not bow.

Mordechai is not refusing to bow because of his own personal pride. His refusal represents an unwillingness to perpetuate the trend in which sons of Yaakov bow to sons of Eisav. No wonder this is a thorn in Haman’s side! Ever-present in the collective consciousness of the Amalekite people is the notion that they lost the upper hand and will be made to bow down to Yisrael’s children. Mordechai is attempting to return to the power structure dictated by the blessing.

When Mordechai hears that his refusal to bow has led to such a terrible edict, he cries a bitter cry (vayiz’ak ze’aka gedola u’mara). Like Eisav, he feels that he has now lost his ability not to bow.

Haman, is at first characterized by the root word ג.ד.ל meaning large or great. Like the elder brother Eisav who is also characterized by this word, he thinks that others should bow to him. The Megilla tells us of Haman’s promotion through the ranks: gidal hamelech Achashveirosh et Haman (Esther 3:1). Haman even describes his own greatness using this root. He tells his friends about “et kol asher gidlo hamelech – how great the king had made him” (Esther 5:11). He thinks that his status as the גדול entitles him to power.

The blessing tells us that the younger brother becomes the greater of the two. Perhaps not so ironically, the last scene in which we find Haman alive, he is prostrating himself before Esther. When the tables begin to turn in the story, the root ג.ד.ל. begins to occur in conjunction with Mordechai (see 9:4 and perhaps even 6:3)[2] In fact, in the final chapter of the Megilla, which consists of only 3 verses, this root describes Mordechai no less than three times!

Mordechai’s lasting legacy is that of being a great man. He reinstates Yaakov’s blessing and takes his rightful position as the one to whom others bow. Where Yaakov and Shaul fail, Mordechai succeeds.

The story of the Megilla is not one of a localized power struggle between two people but is about a long-standing feud between brothers and the nations they father. It is the story of a Benjaminite hero who does not follow the course set out for him by history. He takes matters into his own hands and resuscitates a national blessing that has lain dormant almost since its inception.

[1] Food for thought: in both stories characters are commanded by their loved ones (צוה) to hide their identities. Both narratives also develop the themes of the importance of clothing and have people waiting outside in order to be recognized, in order that they are able to make a fancy meal for other people.

[2] It is interesting to note that when Shaul fails to destroy Amalek he is blamed for thinking of himself as being too small-  ויאמר שמואל הלא אם קטן אתה בעיניך, ראש שבטי ישראל, And Samuel said, "Even if you are small in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel?" (Samuel 1 15:17)