Three More Sons of Haman Defeated Esther 9:8 - Equipped for Battle

As we continue our story about Esther, Mordecai, King Ahasuerus and Haman, we are looking at the names of the ten sons of Haman who were destroyed by the Jews when the uprising against them began on the thirteenth day of Adar. In chapter nine and verse eight, we find three more of those sons' names. We read:

And Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha,

The fourth son's name was “Poratha” which means "fruitfulness" or "frustration". This name is interesting because of the seeming contrast of possibilities. Perhaps this son was ambitiously named “fruitfulness” with the thought of the abundance of the sons Haman was reproducing, or it might have been that Haman desired “fruitfulness” which speaks of prosperity in his life. However, the possibility that this son became “frustration” may speak to the reason for the latter meaning of the name.

The fifth son's name was “Adalia”, and it means "I shall be drawn up of Jah". The word “Jah” in Hebrew is “God”. It would be interesting to know why Haman named this son with this meaning, however, it could be that it was his reference to his Persian god rather than Jehovah God of the Jews. Though Haman might have desired that “Adalia” be drawn up of his god, he rather faced execution by his enemies the Jews instead.

The sixth son of Haman was named, “Aridatha” which means "the lion of the decree". This name seems a bit odd because of the tie between his name and a “decree”. Perhaps there was a certain decree that went forth that inspired Haman to name his son after it, or it could have been that Haman was influential in certain decree of which he considered himself the “lion” behind it. Nonetheless, Aridatha faced the same fate as his other brothers – death by the Jews.

Fruitfulness, frustration, I shall be drawn up of Jah, and the lion of the decree, were all eliminated by the Jews in their retaliation against those who would destroy them. Once again we may consider that these sons watched their father hang from the fifty cubit gallows he had constructed for Mordecai, and revenge was probably upon their minds. When the day of legal permission to destroy the Jews came, no doubt these sons were in opposition to them. They, however, did not factor in that God Almighty was watching over His chosen people, and anyone, with any name, was not going to destroy them. As we consider these three sons, we might be benefited by reviewing our own names and their meanings, but more importantly that we align ourselves with the name above all names – Jesus – whose name means “Jehovah is Salvation”.

Next time we will look at the last four sons of Haman, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

 

Until tomorrow...there is more...

 

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