Drippings from the HoneycombSeason 6, Episode 2
Profile of a Megalomaniac (Esther 1:10-11)
One of the many odd features of the book of Esther is that the main character is not its namesake. The author sets the entire narrative against the backdrop of the Persian king, Ahasuerus, drawing a remarkably unflattering portrait of the man behind the story.
An entitled, unstable, and arrogant drunkard, Ahasuerus—portrayed through the eyes of the book’s author—fails to embody the kingly character he so desperately wants to project. The author offers no clear explanation for the king’s immature and erratic behavior, leaving that to the reader’s supposition or investigation. What he does make clear, however, is that Ahasuerus is utterly unfit to rule his empire, a man far too petty for the task into which he was born.
