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The Dawn: Political Teachings of the Book of Esther
The Dawn removes the book of Esther from the realm of fairy tale, translating the biblical narrative's political thought into teachings of the utmost relevance today. It reveals Esther's ideas of the good state, how effective leadership makes decisions for the welfare of its people, and what modern-day Jews can learn about how to stand up to their enemies and maintain Jewish faith and nationhood even as God's face remains hidden from His people.
312 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2000
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144 people want to read
About the author
Yoram Hazony
17 books120 followersYoram Hazony is an Israeli philosopher, Bible scholar, and political theorist. He is president of the Herzl Institute in Jerusalem and serves as the chairman of the Edmund Burke Foundation. His books include The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, The Virtue of Nationalism, and Conservatism: A Rediscovery.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 7, 2011
stunningly good and important book. draws very contemporary lessons about morality, politics, and theology by remarkably penetrating interpretation of the purim story in the book of esther. some of it gives you chills down your spine -- how contemporarily relevant it all is. I also think the author provides a very beautiful and original theology by the end of the book, one that is challenging but inspiring. a must-read for all jews, that's for sure.
March 7, 2021
The purpose of this book is to clarify ambiguities in the Book of Esther. Hazony treats the book as a work of political science. For example:
1. Why does the book mention that Ahashverosh (the Persian king) allows people to drink wine a small amount or not drink? Because even though the king is in many ways a fool, he realizes that "granting a small amount of freedom" makes people feel free. (Also, Hazony suggests that the text's emphasis on this point suggests that imbibing might not be voluntary otherwise).
2. When the king's wife Vashti refuses to show up, why is the king so angry? Because for six months, he has been showing off his control, and "is proven impotent in his own house".
3. When Esther enters the story, the book emphasizes that the royal bureaucrat Hegai (who is in charge of the king's beauty contest) likes her. How does she do this? The book says she requested what Hegai advised; Hazony interprets this to mean that she shows "she considers him to be the expert, and that his interest [getting the king a bride] is identical to hers."
4. Why does the king promote Haman? He had just been the victim of a coup attempt within his own court, and as a result might have felt the need to take drastic action.
5. When Mordecai tries to persuade Esther to appeal to the king for mercy for the Jews, he says "If you are silent, you and yours will certainly be lost." What does he mean? He doesn't mean Esther will be killed- just that she "will have missed the opportunity to save thousands" and will be spiritually lost.
6. Why does Haman want to build a giant backyard gallows to hang Mordecai, instead of merely having him exterminated at the same time as the rest of the Jewish population? As a public statement that resistance is doomed, and to prevent Mordecai from lobbying other officials.
7. Why does Haman's decree of extermination specifically reference killing women and children, as well as despoiling the Jews' property? Hazony suggests that the purpose was not merely to give instructions to lower officials, but to demoralize the Jews- to tell them that everything that they have worked for and reproduced for would be destroyed. Conversely, when Mordecai wants to repeal Haman's decree, his counter-decree emphasizes the Jews' right to defend themselves, and he holds a parade. Why? To give the Jews "the sense of pleasure which results from a renewed belief that they have control of their lives."
8. Why is the text Mordecai's degree as bloody-minded as Haman's? To demoralize anti-Semites much as Haman's decree demoralized the Jews. Also, Hazony emphasizes that the pro-Jewish forces were actually far milder than the decree suggests; the text "avoids mention of casualties among the dependents, which were apparently minimal, emphasizing that the Jews did not even touch their property."
9. Why do Esther and Mordecai establish a new festival? Hazony points out that before Purim, exile inevitably meant either enslavement (as in pre-Moses Egypt) or assimilation (as occurred to the "lost tribes" deported to Assyria.) Mordecai wants to show Jews that they can be powerful and successful even in Diaspora.
Hazony wrote this in 1995 (with additional printings a few years later). It seems to me that his work reflects some of the core values of Bush-era neoconservatives: the idea that if you show "strength" (in the book of Esther, through tough talk; in the 21st-century Middle East, through actual warfare) your enemies will give in. The difficulties of the war in Iraq suggests that this style of leadership works better with easily intimidated adversaries than with enemies who are willing to fight back.
1. Why does the book mention that Ahashverosh (the Persian king) allows people to drink wine a small amount or not drink? Because even though the king is in many ways a fool, he realizes that "granting a small amount of freedom" makes people feel free. (Also, Hazony suggests that the text's emphasis on this point suggests that imbibing might not be voluntary otherwise).
2. When the king's wife Vashti refuses to show up, why is the king so angry? Because for six months, he has been showing off his control, and "is proven impotent in his own house".
3. When Esther enters the story, the book emphasizes that the royal bureaucrat Hegai (who is in charge of the king's beauty contest) likes her. How does she do this? The book says she requested what Hegai advised; Hazony interprets this to mean that she shows "she considers him to be the expert, and that his interest [getting the king a bride] is identical to hers."
4. Why does the king promote Haman? He had just been the victim of a coup attempt within his own court, and as a result might have felt the need to take drastic action.
5. When Mordecai tries to persuade Esther to appeal to the king for mercy for the Jews, he says "If you are silent, you and yours will certainly be lost." What does he mean? He doesn't mean Esther will be killed- just that she "will have missed the opportunity to save thousands" and will be spiritually lost.
6. Why does Haman want to build a giant backyard gallows to hang Mordecai, instead of merely having him exterminated at the same time as the rest of the Jewish population? As a public statement that resistance is doomed, and to prevent Mordecai from lobbying other officials.
7. Why does Haman's decree of extermination specifically reference killing women and children, as well as despoiling the Jews' property? Hazony suggests that the purpose was not merely to give instructions to lower officials, but to demoralize the Jews- to tell them that everything that they have worked for and reproduced for would be destroyed. Conversely, when Mordecai wants to repeal Haman's decree, his counter-decree emphasizes the Jews' right to defend themselves, and he holds a parade. Why? To give the Jews "the sense of pleasure which results from a renewed belief that they have control of their lives."
8. Why is the text Mordecai's degree as bloody-minded as Haman's? To demoralize anti-Semites much as Haman's decree demoralized the Jews. Also, Hazony emphasizes that the pro-Jewish forces were actually far milder than the decree suggests; the text "avoids mention of casualties among the dependents, which were apparently minimal, emphasizing that the Jews did not even touch their property."
9. Why do Esther and Mordecai establish a new festival? Hazony points out that before Purim, exile inevitably meant either enslavement (as in pre-Moses Egypt) or assimilation (as occurred to the "lost tribes" deported to Assyria.) Mordecai wants to show Jews that they can be powerful and successful even in Diaspora.
Hazony wrote this in 1995 (with additional printings a few years later). It seems to me that his work reflects some of the core values of Bush-era neoconservatives: the idea that if you show "strength" (in the book of Esther, through tough talk; in the 21st-century Middle East, through actual warfare) your enemies will give in. The difficulties of the war in Iraq suggests that this style of leadership works better with easily intimidated adversaries than with enemies who are willing to fight back.
December 23, 2022
This definitely makes the top 5 list for this year. I was blown away by this book. I learned a lot and it was the type of learning where my mind was being changed. Not only that, the book identified exact struggles I have and dealt with them in a way I've not encountered before. This book is like a dissection of the Book of Esther found in the Hebrew Bible. It approaches that book seriously, considering nearly every word and attempting to understand the ramifications, connecting it to other books in the Hebrew Bible, commentary by rabbis through the ages, and even a neat comparison to Machiavelli's Prince. My copy of this book is nearly fully underlined, marked up, written upon, and the like. I can't wait to review this one on the podcast.
May 7, 2018
Excellent Read
February 12, 2021
Fascinating, engaging analysis and interpretation of the Book of Esther
August 18, 2014
The Dawn
By Yoram Hazony
Shalem Press, 2000, 312 pages
ISBN 978-965-7052-06-8
Subtitled “Political Teachings of the Book of Esther,” The Dawn is one of the best commentaries written on the biblical book. Homiletical imaginative midrashic commentaries are legion, including a view that Esther was actually ugly but God caused King Ahashverosh to be fascinated and drawn to her. Another states that she was a religiously observant woman who was married to Mordechai who was forced into the marriage with the king, needed on pain of death to have sex with him, but who faithfully and adoringly snuck out of the palace on occasions after dunking in the cleansing ritual bath, a Mikvah, to have conjugal relations with her husband.
Some commentaries ingeniously suggest that her name Esther is related to the Hebrew word hester, meaning “hidden.” They insist that her name supports their view that God helps people in a hidden way. This is a clever sermon, but isn’t true. Esther is a Persian name, not Jewish. It is a variation of the name of the goddess Astarte. Mordecai is also a Hebraic version of the idol Marduk. Not only are the names of the main protagonists of this story not Jewish but they are terms used for idols.
It is also significant that the author doesn’t even hint that Esther observed Jewish practices, such as keeping the kosher laws and the Sabbath. This is not that surprising. It is unreasonable to imagine that she observed Jewish law. The book states she kept her background secret and was watched constantly, so our heroine who slept with a pagan monarch couldn’t observe Jewish practices.
There is no indication, not even a hint, in this biblical book that God helped Esther and Mordecai save the Jews of Persia from the evil machinations of Haman, who planned to kill them. True, the frightened Jews prayed when they heard that Haman received royal acquiescence for his nefarious plan, and prayer is generally thought to be a religious activity. But there is no suggestion that God heard their prayers, or acted because of them, or that the Jews relied on the efficacy of their prayers. In fact, just the opposite. Although forbidden to appear to the king unless summoned, Esther devises a subtle plan, visits the king, and saves her people. Jews remember Esther’s deed yearly by celebrating the holiday of Purim, a word that means “lots,” recalling the lots that Haman tossed to determine what day to murder the Jews. This title doesn’t indicate divine involvement, but pure chance.
These commentaries attempt to show that this volume teaches that God is involved in human affairs clandestinely and people should rely on God’s help. But Hazony examines what the book actually says and the lessons it actually gives. Readers will enjoy Hazony’s more reasonable interpretation, the very readable manner in which he presents it, and the lessons he reveals. Esther is a book about the politics of a disempowered Jewish nation living in exile, struggling against idolatry and assimilation, searching for a way to survive in a place and time without prophets or miracles.
Hazony shows that the book is not religious in the way that many people consider religious, a passive reliance on divine help, on being pious and having faith. But it contains important messages about human duty that are relevant today.
By Yoram Hazony
Shalem Press, 2000, 312 pages
ISBN 978-965-7052-06-8
Subtitled “Political Teachings of the Book of Esther,” The Dawn is one of the best commentaries written on the biblical book. Homiletical imaginative midrashic commentaries are legion, including a view that Esther was actually ugly but God caused King Ahashverosh to be fascinated and drawn to her. Another states that she was a religiously observant woman who was married to Mordechai who was forced into the marriage with the king, needed on pain of death to have sex with him, but who faithfully and adoringly snuck out of the palace on occasions after dunking in the cleansing ritual bath, a Mikvah, to have conjugal relations with her husband.
Some commentaries ingeniously suggest that her name Esther is related to the Hebrew word hester, meaning “hidden.” They insist that her name supports their view that God helps people in a hidden way. This is a clever sermon, but isn’t true. Esther is a Persian name, not Jewish. It is a variation of the name of the goddess Astarte. Mordecai is also a Hebraic version of the idol Marduk. Not only are the names of the main protagonists of this story not Jewish but they are terms used for idols.
It is also significant that the author doesn’t even hint that Esther observed Jewish practices, such as keeping the kosher laws and the Sabbath. This is not that surprising. It is unreasonable to imagine that she observed Jewish law. The book states she kept her background secret and was watched constantly, so our heroine who slept with a pagan monarch couldn’t observe Jewish practices.
There is no indication, not even a hint, in this biblical book that God helped Esther and Mordecai save the Jews of Persia from the evil machinations of Haman, who planned to kill them. True, the frightened Jews prayed when they heard that Haman received royal acquiescence for his nefarious plan, and prayer is generally thought to be a religious activity. But there is no suggestion that God heard their prayers, or acted because of them, or that the Jews relied on the efficacy of their prayers. In fact, just the opposite. Although forbidden to appear to the king unless summoned, Esther devises a subtle plan, visits the king, and saves her people. Jews remember Esther’s deed yearly by celebrating the holiday of Purim, a word that means “lots,” recalling the lots that Haman tossed to determine what day to murder the Jews. This title doesn’t indicate divine involvement, but pure chance.
These commentaries attempt to show that this volume teaches that God is involved in human affairs clandestinely and people should rely on God’s help. But Hazony examines what the book actually says and the lessons it actually gives. Readers will enjoy Hazony’s more reasonable interpretation, the very readable manner in which he presents it, and the lessons he reveals. Esther is a book about the politics of a disempowered Jewish nation living in exile, struggling against idolatry and assimilation, searching for a way to survive in a place and time without prophets or miracles.
Hazony shows that the book is not religious in the way that many people consider religious, a passive reliance on divine help, on being pious and having faith. But it contains important messages about human duty that are relevant today.
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March 15, 2015Andrea Rapp A book that will be treasured by people who are keenly interested in two subjects: 1) the biblical world view (i.e. Hebrew Bible), and 2) Western political philosophy. Since I am interested only in #1, I didn't rate the book. My eyes glaze over when someone gets into Hegel, Nietzsche, Machiavelli, and Plato, and one of Hazony's passions is to compare biblical thought to leading ideas of the philosophers. But the exposition of biblical thought and its uniqueness in its day is wonderful; modern-sounding ideas like "civil disobedience" and totalitarianism are found, according to Hazony, in the Jewish Bible, and for any who are interested I recommend Hazony's earlier book, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture.
In the present title, about the book of Esther, Hazony explains why this book, unique among biblical books in that God makes NO appearance or mention at all, has become elevated among Jewish traditional thinkers. It's importance lies in its being a book about living in diaspora--the only such book in the Bible -- one that offers hope that Jews can live and flourish away from their homeland and even in the absence--or hiddenness-- in God, in fact, in a state of powerlessness. Who knew that Mordecai came to be seen as a second Moses, and the Book of Esther, a second Exodus story for the Jews? Why is Esther herself called "The Dawn?"
Hazony relates the view that Book of Esther has much to teach diaspora Jews of any era. The ancients knew this. Why else does the Scroll of Esther tell us that Mordecai commanded that the story be written down and recalled each and year by Jews, wherever we are. The Purim story is not simply about children's costumes and pastries. To Hazony, it's about survival in exile, about courage, the inevitability of antisemitism, and insuring pride in our Jewish identity down through the generations. (less)
In the present title, about the book of Esther, Hazony explains why this book, unique among biblical books in that God makes NO appearance or mention at all, has become elevated among Jewish traditional thinkers. It's importance lies in its being a book about living in diaspora--the only such book in the Bible -- one that offers hope that Jews can live and flourish away from their homeland and even in the absence--or hiddenness-- in God, in fact, in a state of powerlessness. Who knew that Mordecai came to be seen as a second Moses, and the Book of Esther, a second Exodus story for the Jews? Why is Esther herself called "The Dawn?"
Hazony relates the view that Book of Esther has much to teach diaspora Jews of any era. The ancients knew this. Why else does the Scroll of Esther tell us that Mordecai commanded that the story be written down and recalled each and year by Jews, wherever we are. The Purim story is not simply about children's costumes and pastries. To Hazony, it's about survival in exile, about courage, the inevitability of antisemitism, and insuring pride in our Jewish identity down through the generations. (less)
March 13, 2013
This book is fascinating.
I didn't know the degree to which the Book of Esther was a favorite of the early Rabbis and certainly could not have guessed why it might have been. As the author states right up front as a generality, I certainly had never thought terribly deeply about the book or its lessons.
I'm glad this focused me on the timeline of events and on the strategies in play throughout, as well as on the theological and real-world implications of those strategies.
I'd recommend the book to: (a) those interested in non-pediatric Judaism; and (b) at least politically minded MOT.
I didn't know the degree to which the Book of Esther was a favorite of the early Rabbis and certainly could not have guessed why it might have been. As the author states right up front as a generality, I certainly had never thought terribly deeply about the book or its lessons.
I'm glad this focused me on the timeline of events and on the strategies in play throughout, as well as on the theological and real-world implications of those strategies.
I'd recommend the book to: (a) those interested in non-pediatric Judaism; and (b) at least politically minded MOT.
March 3, 2012
Superb book, I found it extremely relevant to our times. An original reading of the book of Esther that is a lot more, it's also a Jewish take on politics (Machiavelli + faith) and the perception of Judaism's place in the world in general.
August 17, 2011
Why can't I give this book more than 5 stars?
June 5, 2013
Engaging and thoughtful analysis of Esther through the lens of political realism.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews