Esther 3:13

To kill, and to cause to perish.

A wicked massacre

The wickedness of the intended massacre does not rest with Ahasuerus and Haman. Great multitudes of the king’s subjects must participate in the guilt. The governors and rulers of every province, and the people under their command, have letters written to them, sealed with the king’s seal, to contribute their part to the massacre. Let the great consider what they do. If they are wicked, they are not wicked alone. We ought to bless God that no man hath power to require us to do anything but according to the known laws of the land. And yet men of true virtue will not comply with the will of the most absolute monarchs when it is not consistent with the laws of justice and of mercy. At the famous Bartholomew massacre, when the King of France sent his orders to the commanders in the different provinces to massacre the Huguenots, one of them returned him this answer: “In my district your Majesty has many brave soldiers, but no butchers.” That virtuous governor never felt any effects of the royal resentment. It is to be feared that few of the Persian governors would have given such proofs of virtuous courage if the king’s edict had not been reversed. (G. Lawson.)