The ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews they killed; but they did not lay a hand on the plunder….So the king commanded this to be done; the decree was issued in Shushan, and they hanged Haman’s ten sons. And the Jews who were in Shushan gathered together again on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and killed three hundred men at Shushan; but they did not lay a hand on the plunder. The remainder of the Jews in the kings provinces gathered together and protected their lives, had rest from their enemies, and killed seventy-five thousand of their enemies; but they did not lay a hand on the plunder. Esther 9:10, 14-16
The carnage is hard to comprehend, hard to deal with, even though it must be understood as the judgement of God. It is interesting that three times it is written—that they did not lay a hand on the plunder. What a contrast! A conqering army always takes away the plunder. To the victor belongs the spoils. But there was no victor here, save God Almighty.
