Mordechai's Refusal to Bow/1

Mordechai's Refusal to Bow

Introduction

Why Refuse?

The entire story of Purim transpired because of one crucial decision of Mordechai in Chapter 3:

EN/HEע/E

(ב) וְכׇל עַבְדֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר בְּשַׁעַר הַמֶּלֶךְ כֹּרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים לְהָמָן כִּי כֵן צִוָּה לוֹ הַמֶּלֶךְ וּמׇרְדֳּכַי לֹא יִכְרַע וְלֹא יִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה...

(ה) וַיַּרְא הָמָן כִּי אֵין מׇרְדֳּכַי כֹּרֵעַ וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לוֹ וַיִּמָּלֵא הָמָן חֵמָה.  (ו) וַיִּבֶז בְּעֵינָיו לִשְׁלֹחַ יָד בְּמׇרְדֳּכַי לְבַדּוֹ כִּי הִגִּידוּ לוֹ אֶת עַם מׇרְדֳּכָי וַיְבַקֵּשׁ הָמָן לְהַשְׁמִיד אֶת כׇּל הַיְּהוּדִים אֲשֶׁר בְּכׇל מַלְכוּת אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ עַם מׇרְדֳּכָי. 

(2)  And all of the king's servants who were in the king's gate, knelt and bowed down to Haman, for such was the king's command concerning him, but Mordechai would not kneel or bow down...
(5)  And Haman saw that Mordechai would not kneel or bow down to him, and Haman filled with rage.  (6)  But he despised to lay hands on Mordechai alone, since they told him who Mordechai's people were, and Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, Mordechai's people, throughout the whole kingdom of Achashverosh.

Mordechai's defiance of the king's directive leads Haman to attempt to annihilate the Jewish nation.  Surprisingly, though, the Megillah explains neither Mordechai's motives¹ nor the backdrop for Achashverosh's original order.  Why did Haman desire that the king's servants bow to him?²  What were the factors which caused Mordechai not to comply?³ 

Poor Judgment?

As Mordechai's actions led to the near annihilation of his people, it begs the question of whether his action was justified.  There appears to be no prohibition against bowing to people, as evidenced by the many Biblical characters (including Moshe) who do so.⁴  What, then, could have been so vital to Mordechai to prompt him to endanger his entire nation?  As Ibn Ezra writes:

EN/HEע/E

והנה יש לשאול למה הכניס מרדכי עצמו בסכנה גם הכניס כל ישראל היה ראוי שידבר לאסתר ותסירנו משער המלך ולא יכעיס את המן אחר שראה שהשעה משחקת לו!

And

Additional Questions

• "כִּי הִגִּיד לָהֶם אֲשֶׁר הוּא יְהוּדִי" – Do these words provide the reason for Mordechai's refusal to bow, or do they point only to the antisemitism of the servants who informed on him to Haman?
• "לֹא יִכְרַע וְלֹא יִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה" – The pair of kneeling and bowing is repeated three times in a span of four verses.  Is there a difference between them?  Is each used as a means to honor another person, or is kneeling more of a religious act?  Are they equally permitted or prohibited?
• Haman's edict – Did Mordechai anticipate the consequences of his actions?⁵  Was he cognizant, even after the fact, that it was his refusal that led Haman to his decision of destruction, or did he never connect between the two?
• "כׇל עַבְדֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר בְּשַׁעַר הַמֶּלֶךְ" – Who was included in the command to prostrate themselves – only members of the king's court or the entire populace?  What might this teach regarding either Haman or Mordechai's motives?

¹ See below that although the verse states, "כִּי הִגִּיד לָהֶם אֲשֶׁר הוּא יְהוּדִי", it is unclear whether or not this is an explanation of what motivated Mordechai's original refusal.

² It is also possible that this was not Haman's initiative at all, but only that of Achashverosh (as the verse states "כִּי כֵן צִוָּה לוֹ הַמֶּלֶךְ").  However, Haman's internal thoughts and recommendation to the king in Esther 6:6-9 make it probable that he was the impetus behind the king's instructions.

³ The motives of the two need not be identical.  It is possible that Mordechai's motives were religious in nature while Haman's were political, or vice versa.

⁴ See R. Saadia Gaon, who questions:  "Why did Mordechai refrain from bowing down before Haman?  Was he better than the Patriarchs, some of whom bowed down to others?"

⁵ Did he think that he was endangering only himself, or did he have reason to believe that Haman might seek vengeance on the whole nation?  Alternatively, did he assume that his stance would not have put anyone's life in danger?