On this Shabbat Zachor, when we remember all that Amalek has attempted against us, we are reminded of the evil plans of Haman.

Haman, newly elevated to a senior position among King Achashverosh’s advisors, notices that Mordechai does not give him the respect he deserves:
And all the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate were kneeling and prostrating themselves (KOR’IM U’MISHTACHAVIM) to Haman, for so had the king ordered regarding him. But Mordechai would not kneel nor would he prostrate himself (LO YICHRA V’LO YISHTACHAVEH). And the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate said to Mordechai, “Why do you transgress the king’s order?” And it was, as they said this to him every day and he did not listen to them, that they told Haman to see whether the words of Mordechai would stand; for he told them that he was a Jew. And Haman saw that Mordechai was not kneeling and prostrating himself to him. And Haman was filled with fury. And it was despicable in his eyes to set his hand against Mordechai alone, for they told him of Mordechai’s people. So Haman sought to annihilate all the Jews, Mordechai’s people, that were in Achashverosh’s entire kingdom (Esther 3:2-6).

Mordechai stands his ground and, against the orders of the king, refuses to pay Haman obeisance, even though this refusal will endanger his own life. In fact, this action endangers the lives of all the Jews in the empire.

Should Mordechai have behaved this way? Why doesn’t he listen to the criticism of the king’s servants? Why does Haman’s rage against Mordechai evolve into a plan to exterminate the entire Jewish People? Does Haman think it beneath his dignity to target one man? If so, genocide seems a rather extreme measure (to put it mildly) to take in order to preserve his self-esteem!

On a textual level, we might ask about the meaning of the combined expression “kneeling and prostrating”. Also, why is Mordechai’s refusal expressed using the future tense (LO YICHRA V’LO YISHTACHAVEH)?

Amos Chacham (who prepared the commentary for Megillat Esther in the Daat Mikra series) makes the point that in Tanach many great people would prostrate themselves (MISHTACHAVEH) before dignitaries and rulers, including foreign ones (e.g., Bereshit 33:6-7). However, the combination “kneeling and prostrating” (KOR’IM U’MISHTACHAVIM) is found only with reference to Hashem (e.g., Divrei HaYamim II 7:3). Accordingly, Mordechai’s refusal is not strictly resistance to idolatry, but declining to pay a degree of homage to a human being that is reserved for Hashem.

Rashi, on the other hand, says (based on Esther Rabbah 7:6 and Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer 50) that Haman made himself a god. The Midrashic source says:
What did Haman do? He made himself an idol embroidered on his garments and over his heart, so that anyone who bowed before Haman was bowing to idolatry.

Alone, and against royal decree, Mordechai defies Haman’s self-idolization.

As to the use of the future tense, Malbim says (Ayelet Hashachar 45) that the future can be used in place of the past to indicate the present, ongoing action, a condition is still in effect, or the consideration of an action.

A number of commentaries explain LO YICHRA V’LO YISHTACHAVEH along these lines. Maharal (Ohr Chadash) and Rishon L’tziyon (commentary on the Megillot by Ohr HaChaim, R. Chaim ben Moshe ibn-Attar, 1696-1743) say that Mordechai would repeatedly refuse to bow before Haman, even making a point of walking near him so as to demonstrate his rejection. This idea is also reflected in Rashi’s comments on “whether the words of Mordechai would stand”:
“who said that he would not prostrate himself forever, because he is a Jew and he is prohibited regarding idol worship” (emphasis added).
For his own part, Malbim understands the future as a reflection of thought:
“He made up his mind that he would not kneel under any circumstances.”

Sefat Emet (R. Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter [1847-1905], second rebbe of Ger), in his comments on Purim (5643, 5653) takes these ideas even further. Mordechai made it clear that it would never even occur to him to bow. He is first introduced as:
There was a Jewish man (ISH YEHUDI) in the capital Shushan, and his name was Mordechai, son of Yair, son of Shim’i, son of Kish, a Benjaminite man (Esther 2:5).

On this the Midrash (Esther Rabbah 6:2) says:
ISH - this teaches that Mordechai was equal in his generation to Moshe in his generation, about whom it is written, And the man (V’HA’ISH)Moshe was very humble (Bamidbar 12:3). … A Jewish man (ISH YEHUDI) — Why is he called “Jewish” [literally, “Judean”], when he was a Benjaminite? Since he professed the unity of the Holy One, Blessed be He, before all the people of the world, he was called YEHUDI, as if to say YECHIDI [the one who professes unity].

Sefat Emet says that Mordechai is the one of his generation whose soul derives from the root of Moshe’s soul. But, Mordecahi is not an exception; rather, he is evidence of the great spiritual strength that endures within the Jewish nation.

Haman understood that if he would kill Mordechai, another such ISH YEHUDI-YECHIDI would arise to take his place, because in every generation there is one righteous individual who will not submit to evil. Therefore, it would not avail Haman to annihilate Mordechai only. This is the basis of Haman’s plan to destroy the entire Jewish People.

When the Jewish People resist the challenge to bow before idols, they earn the merit to subjugate themselves to Hashem. This is the ultimate outcome of the events of Purim. The Al Hanisim prayer for Purim, which is added to the ‘Amida in the section of Thanksgiving (where we do bow before Hashem) is the realization of this.

Mordechai teaches that Hashem gives every Jew the inner power to oppose ‘Amalek. From this power comes the joy of submitting to Hashem.