Mordecai’s Royal Vestments: Princely and/or Priestly?

This essay examines the function of clothing and related accoutrements in the book of Esther. The motif of dressing and undressing oneself or another signals a shift in the investment or divestment of power and status. Identity, agency, and authority are also signified by vestments and appurtenances. Through synchronic and diachronic exegetical methodologies, Mordecai’s regalia of Esth 8:15 is the focus of this essay. This regalia evokes both princely and priestly ideology; therefore, the regalia is a significant symbol for the diasporic, post-monarchic Jewish people in the Persian period. The closest post-exilic analogue to Mordecai’s royal vestments and accessories is the diarchic portending prophecies of Zech 6; thus, extrapolations are made accordingly. Ultimately, a definite determination of the significance of Mordecai’s regalia cannot be made; nevertheless, the royal vestments are likely imbued with a complex intention—to ignite the imagination of the possibilities for the Jewish people’s open-ended future.


INTRODUCTION
Clothing is an often overlooked-though more recently emerging-field of study, important in the interpretation of biblical material. 1Herein, the function and performance of clothing and its related accoutrements along with the act of robing and disrobing in the book of Esther (MT) will be examined.The present presupposition is that characters and plots are vividly enhanced by the garments and accessories worn.In particular, special attention will be given to Mordecai being arrayed with regalia (Esth 8:15), in order to determine its full range of significance.
It shall be argued that Mordecai's regalia in Esth 8:15 signals royal ideology. 2On the one hand, the royal aspect is princely, as it resonates synchronically within the book of Esther; on the other hand, the royal aspect is priestly, which reverberates diachronically in the Pentateuch.The complimentary melding of synchronic and diachronic exegesis utilised yields a multivalent discourse or multidimensional mosaic of, in this case, clothing in the book of Esther. 3Further, Mordecai's regalia, especially his crown being analogous to the one in Zech 6, portend various possibilities of identity and agency in the post-exilic existence of Jewish leadership in Yehud.
To argue the thesis, the following stages of presentation and methodologies are thus arranged.First, an inventory of clothing in the book of Esther is made, and, in concert, a panorama of the issue of robing and disrobing is presented.Second, Mordecai's regalia in Esth 8:15 is juxtaposed with similar palatial materials in Esth 1:6, and a loose Israelite analogue is expounded; in addition, the vestments and accoutrements of Esth 8:15 are also comparatively examined in relation to the materiality of the high priest's vestments and the tabernacle fabrics and décor, an association analogous to the contents of Esth 1:6 and 8:15.In these sections, the book of Esther is methodologically approached via narrative criticism and synchronic linguistic analysis. 4Third, the princely and priestly ideology, alluded to by the foregoing textual analysis, is extrapolated.Fourth, the princely-priestly hybridity suggested by Mordecai's regalia is located in the diasporic, post-monarchic milieu, during the Persian Empire; this setting is brought into dialogue with other resonant post-exilic biblical material, specifically Zech 6*.These latter two sections, which directly address the thesis, is a diachronic analysis, specifically employing the tradition-historical method. 5inally, a summary of findings and statements of conclusion is submitted.

B CLOTHING IN ESTHER
Initially, the clothing of each character in the book of Esther will be surveyed.
Next, a corresponding survey will identify the acts of donning clothing on a character's own personage or upon another.This assessment will underscore who the main characters are and their association with the main events as well as to provide the necessary background to argue the thesis.

The Characters' Clothing
Clothing invariably denotes status or a change of status. 6In the book of Esther, the characters who are integrally connected with clothing and/or accessories are explicitly registered-they are Ahasuerus, Vashti, Haman, Esther, and Mordecai.It is the two Jewish personages, moreover, whose vestments come into focus most.

2
The Act of Robing and/or Disrobing Oneself and/or Another The act of robing and disrobing is often just as significant as the clothing itself.
In the book of Esther, characters both clothe themselves and others; and, complicatedly, sometimes the dressing of another person is done reluctantly or even unsuccessfully.The act of donning different types of clothes denotes that a status change is taking place, along with the related investment or divestment of power for the status in view.No verbs directly describe this; indirectly, instead, the queenship was to be given ‫ן(‬ ‫ָתַ‬ ‫:נ‬ Esth 1:19) to another, and eventually the royal crown is set ‫:ׂשים(‬ Esth 2:17) on Esther's head.appropriate attire (Esth 4:4b). 17Mordecai refusing, 18 Esther is unable to restore Mordecai's noble, dignified status by elevating his raiment.
Whereas Esther could not alter events by exchanging Mordecai's clothes, she does change events by dressing herself up.When Esther resolves to confront the king to intercede for her people, she dons ‫ש(‬ ‫ָבַ‬ ‫)ל‬ queenly regalia (Esth 5:1a). 19t must be inferred that Esther was wearing something more ordinary beforehand. 20  Levenson (Esther, 78-79) observes that, "given her ignorance of the cause of his public mourning, her extreme agitation would seem to be the result not of the genocidal decree against her people, but of her embarrassment at his grossly inappropriate appearance amid the opulence of the fortified compound of Susa."Cf. also Carol M. Bechtell, Esther, IBC (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2002), 44; Linda Day, Esther, AOTC; Nashville: Abingdon, 2005), 80.
18 For Mordecai's motive of wanting to be heard, see Jonathan Grossman, Esther: The Outer Narrative and the Hidden Reading, Siphrut 6 (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2011), 112-113.thereby elevating his status. 23Indeed, the public spectacle of Esth 6 is tantamount to being, or play-acting, king for a day. 24t with what exactly does Haman clothe Mordecai?From idea, to command, to implementation, the royal raiment ‫בּוש(‬ ‫)לְ‬ and horse ‫)סּוס(‬ are repeatedly specified (Esth 6:8-11); yet, the crown ‫ר(‬ ‫ֶתֶ‬ ‫)כ‬ is only mentioned in Esth 6:8 and not reiterated in the following verses. 25Syntactically, the crown is subsumed with either Mordecai's raiment or the horse's adornment; but which one?The antecedent of the crown is somewhat ambiguous; for, since Mordecai and the horse are both of masculine declension the first person, masculine, singular pronominal suffix affixed to head ‫ֹאשֹו(‬ ‫ר‬ ‫:בְ‬ Esth 6:8) might apply equally to either.Most scholars understand the horse to be the recipient of the crown; 26 indeed, Assyrian reliefs show warhorses adorned in precisely this manner. 27In the end, "The question of who wears the crown in Esth 6:8 is insignificant since both meanings have identical force.To wear the king's robe and to ride the king's horse signals the great favour in which an individual stands." 28th Haman there are also instances where a nonliteral donning transpires; and in each case the figurative item evokes a headdress, i.e. something which covers his head or face.The first time Haman's head is veiled ( ‫ֲפּוי‬ ‫ַח‬ ‫ו‬ ‫ל‬ ‫בֵּ‬ ‫אָ‬ ‫ֹאש‬ ‫:ר‬ Esth 6:12bβ) is when, mourning, he dashes home immediately after Mordecai's honouring.What catalysed the mourning which covers Haman's head?Shame and/or humiliation can be inferred (cf.Esth 9:25; cf. also Jer 14:3: ‫ם‬ ‫ֹאשָ‬ ‫ר‬ ‫פּו‬ ‫חָ‬ ‫וְ‬ ‫מּו‬ ‫לְ‬ ‫כְ‬ ‫הָ‬ ‫וְ‬ ‫שּו‬ ‫,)בֹ‬ since Mordecai receives honour and the two characters are 23 Dressing/donning ‫ש(‬ ‫ָבַ‬ ‫:)ל‬ Esth 4:1, 4; 5:1; 6:8-9, 11.Note the dressing of the honouree is part and parcel of the honouring act (Esth 6:9).24 "To wear the kings own clothing…was to have the power of the king himself" (Bechtel, Esther, 59).See also Day, Esther, 110.   25   Likewise, the initial occurrence of the episode has the modifier royal ‫כּות(‬ ‫לְ‬ ‫;מַ‬ Esth 6:8), while every subsequent occurrence simply states the clothing ‫בּוש(‬ ‫;לְ‬ Esth 6:9-11).Nonetheless, increased brevity after the initial full description is standard HB literary convention.(London: John Murray, 1853), pls.14, 21, 22, 23, 27, 57, 64, 72, 80; idem Berg, Esther, 62. Also, the horse could be seen, via metonymy, as a throne: that on which the king sits?here polarised. 29On the second occasion, the king's accusatory words of judgment, regarding Haman's perceived sexual violation of the queen, cover or veils Haman's face ‫פּו(‬ ‫חָ‬ ‫ן‬ ‫מָ‬ ‫הָ‬ ‫ֵּי‬ ‫נ‬ ‫:ּופְ‬ Esth 7:8bβ).Thus, instead of a crown of honour (like Mordecai [in Esth 8:15]), Haman receives a figurative head-covering-a crown, as it were-of shame.Therefore, Haman dons his own head first in a headdress of mourning; and Ahasuerus confers upon Haman the latter's second head-covering, that of accusation.

2d Mordecai
Mordecai's clothing first comes into focus when he tears ‫ע(‬ ‫רַ‬ ‫)קָ‬ it (Esth 4:1aα); considering his official position, these garments were likely semi-distinguished garb. 30 After the honouring episode (Esth 6), Mordecai's clothing vanishes from the narrative.Does he still wear the royal robe, or has he reverted to sackcloth and ashes?It is not stated either way; after the parade, Mordecai simply returned to the king's gate (Esth 6:12a).This location was previously mentioned in reference to his occupation (Esth 2:19, 21; 3:2-3); 33 yet, this is also a locale associated with his lamentation in sackcloth and ashes (Esth 4:2, 6; cf. also Esth 5:9, 13; 6:10).previous attire of sackcloth and ashes. 34Ultimately, it is a matter of reading into silence, or ambiguity.
Through the lens of clothing, the peripety of the book of Esther is signified by Mordecai wearing regal vestments in Esth 8:15. 35However, what is elliptic in this passage is the identity of the one who clothes Mordecai; the text simply states: "Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king, wearing…" (Esth 8:15a NRSV).

3
The Significance of the One who Clothes Another Through systematically examining clothing in the book of Esther as well as the circumstances whereby one undresses or dresses oneself or another gives way to a tentative conclusion: the person who clothes another in better raiment (viz.that of higher and more exclusive quality) is of a higher social standing than the one whom that person is dressing.Thus, it is only the one of inferior social standing that may be elevated by another of higher standing, as represented by clothing.
Similarly, in the book of Esther, and perhaps also indicative of the HB in general, someone of lower social standing may only dress oneself laterally to their status or dress-down to signal humiliation.

3a Ahasuerus
Significantly, it is Ahasuerus who indirectly dresses Mordecai with royal garments in both instances when Mordecai is dressed by another.In Esth 6:1-13 this is done through an intermediary (Haman) at the king's command.In Esth 8:15, while there is syntactical neutrality regarding whether Mordecai clothed himself or was the king's act, the social implication can only infer that Ahasuerus has the status and authority to elevate one by means of attire.
Perhaps it is this intertextual observation which underlies Lewis Paton's comment that Mordecai "is now privileged to wear continually what before he received for a short time only (6 11 )." 36 Whether or not it is the exact same set of clothing as before, the regalia of Esth 8:15 further distinguishes Mordecai from Haman; for, while both ascend to be prime minister (by virtue of wearing the 34 So Michael V. Fox, Character and Ideology in the Book of Esther, 2 nd ed.(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001), 79: "Mordecai simply returns…to his work in the middle echelons of the palace bureaucracy".Seidler ("Mordecai," 18) sees Mordecai's "rending of his garment and refusal to wear the garments sent to him by Esther…reflect an overt and clear attempt to shed the distinctive identifying features of a senior Persian minister…" 35 See Day, Esther, 111 (cf.ibid.95); Paton, Esther, 279; Fox, Character, 161.36 Paton, Esther, 279.king's signet ring and writing edicts in the king's name), 37 Haman wished in vain to be honoured by wearing a robe previously worn by the king.
With Haman, it was the king's angry words that covered the former's face, as a veil.This may be seen as an instance of Ahasuerus dressing someone down. 38Therefore, Ahasuerus is responsible for the most amount of dressing of another in the book of Esther-albeit this is indirectly and figuratively conveyed.

3b Haman
Part of the misconception of Haman's fantasy, in Esth 6, is that a noble will elevate Haman by means of adorning him with the king's previously worn regalia.As second-in-command, however, it is rather Haman who will administer the dressing of another; therefore, he-as higher ranking than Mordecai-elevates Mordecai by means of the monarch's recycled raiment.
Inversely, Haman dresses himself down, mounting a headdress, as it were, of mourning.

3c Esther
While Esther can dress herself up in royalty in Esth 5, she nevertheless is the queen and consequently dresses laterally to her status.Provocatively, Esther is unable to elevate Mordecai in Esth 4 by means of clothing; though she is queen, and thereby presumably has the authority to so order, Mordecai refuses the new garments opting instead to remain in sackcloth.Perhaps Mordecai sees Esther not as queen, per se-i.e.someone of higher social standing deserving obeisance-but still as his adopted daughter, and on these grounds can respectably refuse an elevation by means of clothing (cf.Esth 6).

C PALATIAL MATCHING OF REGALIA
Mordecai's regal vestments of Esth 8:15 shall now be further investigated.Of particular interest is the way in which Mordecai's last vestments match the palace materials in Esth 1:6.Additionally, it will be shown that the correlation between Ahasuerus's palace and Mordecai's vestments further correlate to the matching between the high priest's garments and the tabernacle.This synchronic Scholars recognise how there are "some verbal affinities" between Esth 1:6 and 8:15, 39 to the extent that Mordecai's "new attire echoes…the palace garden court…" 40 This is particularly curious considering the possibility that Esth 1:6 may have been a later editorial insertion; for the syntax of the verse is stilted and the narrative would flow seamlessly from Esth 1:5 to 1:7. 41Esther 1:6 (NRSV) reads: "There were white cotton curtains and blue hangings tied with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and marble pillars.There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and coloured stones." The terms shared between the palace décor and Mordecai's vestments are as follows.the correspondence of selectively reserved terms.In fact, the only material repeated elsewhere in the book of Esther, other than the above, is gold ‫ב(‬ ‫ָהָ‬ ‫:)ז‬ Ahasuerus's golden sceptre (Esth 4:11; 5:2; 8:4) and the golden drinking vessels (Esth 1:7).
To reiterate, Ahasuerus's regalia is not mentioned in the book of Esther; yet, his vestments might be extrapolated from the palatial décor. 45Thus, it remains possible, and is hereby proposed, that the palace's decoration is a metonymy of the king's wardrobe. 46Further, with Mordecai's regalia largely matching the palace in colours and materials, Mordecai's status is somewhat analogous to that of King Ahasuerus. 47Could Mordecai hence be presented in Esth 8:15 as a princely figure?

46
If it truly is the king's retired robe (of Esth 6:8) that Mordecai wears in Esth 8:15 (see B 2d above), then those vestments do indeed correspond to the materials of the palace.

54
The linen ephod is present in (parallel text) 2 Sam 6:14, but not the linen mantle.The curtain of the Solomonic Temple is made, in part, of ‫בּוץ‬ (2 Chr 3:14; cf. 2 Chr 2:13); it is also noteworthy that Levites wearing ‫בּוץ‬ are part of the procession bringing the Ark of the Covenant inside the First Temple (2 Chr 5:12).56 Levenson (Esther, 116) has observed, "the garments and colors mentioned in Esth.8:15 are reminiscent of the vestments of the priesthood (kōhănîm) in the Torah (e.g.Exod.28:6; cf. 1 Macc.10:15-20; 59-66).Given the substantial overlap of the royal and the priestly offices in ancient Israel, this is not surprising."Cf.Paton, Esther, 138.

Israelite Priestly Ideology
It has been established that there are several matching colours and materials between Mordecai's royal vestments and the palace materials and how those also correlate to the priestly vestments matching the tabernacle with its articles; in addition, the prominence of dressing others throughout the book of Estherspecifically with Mordecai ‫ש(‬ ‫ָבַ‬ ‫:ל‬ Esth 4:1, 4; 5:1; 6:8-9, 11)-has been underscored.The coalescence of this data makes it worthwhile to call attention to the fact that the priestly dressing/undressing rituals serve as the closest counterpart in the HB; for, as attested in the book of Esther (see B 3 above), in the Pentateuch the person of higher social standing is always the one who elevates a social inferior by means of clothing. 59As a result, the Pentateuchal priestly rituals surrounding cultic ceremony further underpin the association of Mordecai being portrayed in a priestly light.

D MORDECAI, THE PRINCE AND/OR PRIEST?
So what exactly is meant by Mordecai's portrayal in regalia (Esth 8:15)?At the very least it is an honorific gesture.Moreover, as previously suggested, there is a synchronic presentation of Mordecai, in the book of Esther, as a princely figure, on the one hand; 60 on the one hand, when viewing the entire HB, there may be a diachronic development which alludes to Mordecai's garments and accoutrement to those of the high priest and the tabernacle's décor in the Pentateuch. 61ncerning Mordecai's princely aspect, a few observations can be extrapolated.To reiterate, the grounds for inquiring the princely aspect of Mordecai lies in the fact that his meticulously detailed royal clothing and Visions of Zechariah," CBQ 54 (1992): 249-59; Åke Viberg, "An Elusive Crown: An Analysis of the Performance of a Prophetic Symbolic Act (Zech 6:9-15)," SEÅ 65 (2000): 161-69.

61
Priestly concerns include, for example, Sabbaths, holidays, and festivals; and this is the tenor of the description of Purim in Esth 9; corroborating the books of Esther and Exodus, as Gillis Gerleman has done (Esther, BKAT 21 [Neukirchen: Neukirchener  Verlag, 1973]), further undergirds this connection.accoutrements are apparently exceptional, over against what Haman achieved or received from King Ahasuerus. 62Again, Mordecai becomes second-in-command as represented by being entrusted with the king's signet ring thereby imbued with the authority to write legislation and enforce it (Esth 8). 63After the death of Haman and his ten sons, Haman's property is sequestered by Mordecai; 64 thus, the book of Esther effectively presents Mordecai as the unrivalled successor to the role of prime minister, or grand vizier (Esth 9-10). 65garding Mordecai's priestly aspect-based on how Mordecai is arrayed in what looks like priestly regalia (according to the textual correlation of Exod 28 and 39)-there are a few actions performed by Mordecai which might connote a priest-like personage. 66Like a priest, Mordecai effectively expiates and propitiates by means of mediation; 67 this is seen in Esth 2:21-23 and Esth 7-9.In both instances there is a murderous plot against a person or group of people (Ahasueurus || the Jews), however Mordecai exposes the conspirator(s) (Bigthan and Teresh || Haman) and life is preserved; further, the conspirator(s) are consequently executed by means of impalement (Esth 2:23; 7:10). 6862Although, perhaps such was the attire worn by Haman notwithstanding the narrative silence on the matter.Indeed, parallel statements are registered in the book of Esther along the leitmotif of greatness.Haman is made great ‫ל(‬ ‫ָדַ‬ ‫:ג‬ Esth 3:1; 5:11), as Mordecai is made great ‫ל(‬ ‫ָדַ‬ ‫:ג‬ Esth 9:4; 10:2); yet, Mordecai's greatness ‫ָה(‬ ‫דּול‬ ‫:גְ‬ Esth 6:3; 10:3) is again paralleled with Ahasuerus's greatness ‫ָה(‬ ‫דּול‬ ‫:גְ‬ Esth 1:4).Thus, Mordecai's great gold crown ‫ָה(‬ ‫דֹול‬ ‫גְ‬ ‫ב‬ ‫ָהָ‬ ‫ז‬ ‫ת‬ ‫רֶ‬ ‫ֲטֶ‬ ‫:ע‬ Esth 8:15) matches his greatness, something that appears to supersede Haman.63 Seidler ("Mordecai," 22) states, "Mordecai is no longer a minister struggling over his status in the Persian kingdom, but rather the representative of the Jews in the royal court."64 Cf. again, Day (Esther, 139) who cautions that "one should not understand Mordecai's golden garland as showing that he has attained royal status, but instead as a representation of his new wealth and status in the community."65 Diachronically, another way in which Mordecai is portrayed in a princely manner is by Mordecai being an ancestor of Israel's first king, Saul (Esth 2:5); cf.Yitzhak Berger, "Esther and Benjaminite Royalty: A Study in Inner-Biblical Allusion," JBL 129 (2010): 625-44.Hence, Mordecai may even be presented as a kinsman redeemer vis-àvis King Saul; cf.Joshua Joel Spoelstra, "Surviving the Agagites: A Postcolonial Reading of Esther 8-9*," OTE 28 (2015): 168-81.66 Interestingly, Tg.Esth.II relays how when Mordecai emerged from the king's presence, he is received by heralds who are described as "[y]oung people with the crowns of the priests set on their heads, holding trumpets in their hands" (Grossfeld,  Targums, 187 [bold and italics original]).The connection between priests and crown in proximity with Mordecai is allusive.67 See Jacob Neusner, "The Mishnah's Conception of the Priesthood: The Aggadah versus the Halakhah," Temenos 35-36 (1999-2000): 83-101.68   To nuance this parallel, it must be acknowledged that Esther is part and parcel of these initiatives.It is Esther who discloses the assassination plans for Mordecai; and it Therefore, with Mordecai's priest-like vestments, a (retrospective) sacrificial ideology may be evoked in the context of lives being saved at the cost of sacrificial victim(s), thereby nullifying the wrath of the sovereign. 69 avoid the either-or fallacy, a both-and consideration ought to be entertained.A hybrid of prince and priest is, in the HB, the composition and vocation of the messiah (see e.g.Ps 110).Is the princely-priestly amalgamation of Mordecai's vestments and personage depicted in terms of a messianic figure?This would be a logical leap, an untenable reading of the book of Esther-even diachronically. 70Nevertheless, the conjoining roles of priest and prince in the post-monarchic era do seem to be explored in the post-exilic literature of the HB.

E POST-EXILIC CONSTRUCTIONS OF YEHUDITE LEADERSHIP
The night visions of the prophet Zechariah (Zech 3-4; 6:9-15) relate to the hybridity or tandem nature of the princely and priestly figure(s) as conjectured in the book of Esther with Mordecai.While the textual integrity and the redactional activity of Zech 1-8 is the subject of much debate and many theories, 71 it will suffice for our purpose to remark on the TR.Of special interest is (still) the issue of clothing and accoutrements as it relates to the roles of the royal figures of Zech 3-4, and 6:9-15.

69
Cf. Berg's discussion regarding one Kish (Esth 2:9) who is a Levite (Esther, 65).70 See similarly (regarding any would-be messianic complex of Zerubbabel), Janet E. Tollington, Tradition and Innovation in Haggai and Zechariah 1-8, JSOTSupp 150  (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1993) will build the temple of Yahweh (Zech 6:12).Zerubbabel is initially declared to be the one who had founded and would finish the temple building in Zech 3:6-10a, however in Zech 6:9-15 the final construction of the temple is left outstanding and Zerubbabel is conspicuously absent from the vision; 72 consequently, a future Davidide, whose pseudonym is Branch, is anticipated. 73onetheless, Zerubbabel is a princely personage, by virtue of being governor of Yehud, a colony of the Persian Empire; and the forthcoming Branch is plausibly a kingly figure, by virtue of being the temple-builder. 74shua the high priest is portrayed wearing vestments appropriate to the office. 75 Curiously, there seems to be in Zech 3-4, 6* both an intentional conceptual assonance with the high priestly image and office as found in the Pentateuch and an intentional literary dissonance with the same tradition lest associations be imported wholesale into the visions of Zechariah. 76Furthermore, in Zech 3-4, 6* there is a lack of correspondence between sanctuary fabrics and 72 Tollington (Tradition and Innovation, 172-173) advances the notion that the pseudonym Branch was used to steer attention away from current historical persons, namely Zerubbabel.See also Jean Marcel Vincent, "L'apport de la recherche historique et ses limites pour la compréhension des visions nocturnes de Zacharie," Bib 87 (2006): 30-32.2, 4; 31:10; 35:19; 39:1, 41; 40:13; Lev 16:4, 32) and turban ‫ֶת(‬ ‫ֶפ‬ ‫נ‬ ‫צְ‬ ‫:מִּ‬ Exod 28:4, 37, 39; 29:6; 39:28, 31; Lev 8:9; 16:4).Also, the seven faceted stone on which Yahweh will engrave an inscription and set it before Joshua (Zech 3:9) is somewhat analogous to other engraved inscriptions of the pre-exilic high priest's vestments and accoutrements (Exod 28:9, 11, 21; 39:6, 14; cf.Wis 18:24; Sir 45:11).materials with the high priestly regalia (save gold [Zech 4:2, 12; 6:11]), as is the case in the Pentateuch.What is underscored in the night visions of Zechariah, though, is the diarchic leadership of the princely/kingly and priestly roles. 77oshua appears to receive the crown(s) for, i.e. on behalf of, the forthcoming political ruler.That ruler will sit on his throne, as will the priest sit on a throne; moreover, between the two (offices) will be a council of peace (Zech 6:13). 78 the Persian colonial existence of Yehud, a king was not optional; consequently, a princely figure-viz.a governor, like Zerubbabel-was the highest political position. 79Nonetheless, in the milieu of the multi-ethnic, multireligious Persian Empire, a priestly figure was able to flourish in association with their (rebuilt) temple, it being permitted and resourced by the imperium. 80Thus, the ambiguity of governor and high priest in Zech facilitates a multivalent dialogue for the remnant in its post-exilic era 81 -principally considering the night visions are "un langage symbolique." 82Therefore, as it concerns the book of Esther, perhaps Mordecai is literarily portrayed, and henceforth viewed, as a princely-priestly amalgam to the tenor of Joshua and the Branch in Zech 1-6-a figurehead of hope for the post-exilic community. 83This too is a symbolic and aspirational postulation, considering that fact that the historicity of the book of Esther is dubious.Ultimately, a definite determination of the significance of Mordecai's regalia cannot be made; nevertheless, its representation may be suggestive of a few options-all intended 77 Mark J. Boda ("Oil, Crowns and Thrones: Prophet, Priest and King in Zechariah 1:7-6:15," JHebS 3 [2001]: 1-35) contends for separate and distinct, yet linked, roles, instead of the priesthood overshadowing the throne.

78
The two sons of oil in Zech 4:14 may be a corollary counterpart (if not identical conceptualisation) to conjoint leadership described in Zech 6:11-13.Redditt ("Night Visions," 257) summarises: "Whether the author thought in terms of a diarchy or merely the absence of strife between the two institutions may remain open."79 Michael H. Floyd, Minor Prophets: Part 2, FOTL 22 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,  2000), 407: "Under the Persians Judah cannot aspire to be a kingdom in the ordinary sense, but Judah can nevertheless aspire to be like a kingdom in the theological sense, i.e., to be the earthly representation of Yahweh's heavenly rule."Emphasis original.80 Redditt ("The King," 61) maintains that "the building of the temple resulted in the elevation of the priesthood in the absence of any reigning royalty."So also Tollington,  Tradition and Innovation, 180; contra Michael Segal, "The 26 E.g.John Screnock and Robert D. Holmstedt, Esther: A Handbook on the Hebrew Text (Waco, TX: Baylor University Press, 2015), 185; Frederic Bush, Ruth/Esther, WBC 9 (Dallas, TX: Word, 1996), 415; Paton, Esther, 248.27 See Austen Henry Layard, The Monuments of Nineveh The Monuments of Nineveh

37
Mordecai is "placed by the king in Haman's position," states Paulus Cassel (An Explanatory Commentary on Esther [Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1888], 239).38Ahasuerusundressing others might be seen in the removal of the signet ring with Haman and the crown with Vashti.quadrilateral synthesis purports a diachronic development of royal ideology in Israelite histor(iograph)y.
73 James C. VanderKam, "Joshua the High Priest and the Interpretation of Zechariah 3," CBQ 53 (1991): 554.74 Paul L. Redditt ("The King in Haggai and Zechariah 1-8 and the Book of the Twelve" in Tradition in Transition: Haggai and Zechariah 1-8 in the Trajectory of Hebrew Theology, eds.Mark J. Boda and Michael H. Floyd, LHBOTS 475 [London: T&T Clark, 2008], 62) opines Zerubbabel is "the first step toward the restitution of the monarchy."75 For the alternate titles for high priest in the HB, see Noam Mizrahi, "The History and Linguistic Background of Two Hebrew Titles for the High Priest," JBL 130 (2011): 687-705, esp.693.76 Contra crown of holiness ‫ש(‬ ‫דֶ‬ ‫קֹ‬ ‫ֶר-הַ‬ ‫ֵּז‬ ‫)נ‬ in Exod 39:30 and Lev 8:9.Cf. the slightly differing terminology in the Pentateuch concerning the priestly clothing ‫ש(‬ ‫דֶ‬ ‫י-קֹ‬ ‫דֵּ‬ ‫גְ‬ ‫בִּ‬ / ‫י‬ ‫דֵּ‬ ‫גְ‬ ‫בִּ‬ ‫ש‬ ‫דֶ‬ ‫קֹ‬ ‫:הַ‬ Exod 28: Responsibilities and Rewards of Joshua the High Priest according to Zechariah 3:7," JBL 126 (2007): 717-34.81 See further Antonios Finitsis, Visions and Eschatology: A Socio-Historical Analysis of Zechariah 1-6, LSTS 79 (London: T&T Clark, 2011), 64-136.82 Vincent, "Des visions nocturnes de Zacharie," 41. 83 I am not suggesting the audience(s) of Zechariah and the book of Esther were the self-same or knew of the other body of literature; rather, from the perspective of the final-form of the HB canon can such a view emerge.