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Esther 3:1-15

A Decree for One Appointed Day

Lyrics · Esther

A Decree for One Appointed Day

Esther 3:1-15

Lyrics

About this song

About this song

This song belongs to the Esther collection. One recording is available to play here, with the complete lyrics below.

Bible book
Esther
Collection
Esther
Musical styles
Uncategorized
[Verse 1] Ahasuerus promotes Haman the Agagite above all the princes. Mordecai alone refuses to bow or do reverence. Mordecai identifies himself to them as a Jew. Haman sees Mordecai remain upright and becomes filled with wrath. [Pre-Chorus] The warning stood where no one wished to see, And every hidden root became a tree. [Chorus] A Decree for One Appointed Day, let the warning remain, Hidden sin still flowers into pain. The word of the LORD exposed what men concealed, And judgment stood where every heart was revealed. [Verse 2] The lot falls upon the twelfth month, Adar. Haman describes the Jews as scattered people with different laws. He accuses them of refusing the king's laws and harming royal interests. Ahasuerus removes his signet ring and gives it to Haman. [Bridge] Scribes write the command in every provincial script and language. The decree is sealed in the king's name with the royal ring. Posts carry orders to kill all Jews in one day and seize their possessions. Haman and the king sit down to drink while the city of Shushan is perplexed. [Final Chorus] A Decree for One Appointed Day, let the warning remain, Hidden sin still flowers into pain. The word of the LORD exposed what men concealed, And judgment stood where every heart stood revealed. [Outro] The warning did not vanish with the dust. The final line remembered judgment, fear, and trust.

Named in this songHamanMordecai

About the passage

Esther 3: One man’s anger acquires the king’s seal

Haman’s promotion creates a new crisis at the gate. Mordecai refuses the commanded reverence, and Haman chooses to treat that refusal not as one man’s offense but as grounds for destroying an entire people. Pur is cast to determine the day before Haman presents his accusation, so the desired outcome precedes the case he makes to Ahasuerus. He describes a dispersed people with different laws, alleges disloyalty, and joins the accusation to a large financial offer without naming the personal grievance underneath it. Ahasuerus transfers his signet and authorizes Haman to act. The resulting decree uses the empire’s multilingual administrative network to command the destruction and plunder of Jews on one appointed day. The chapter closes with one of Esther’s hardest contrasts: the king and Haman drink while the city of Shushan is perplexed.

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