You Can’t Say This AND Still Call Yourself Christian…

Larry Alex Taunton critiques Tucker Carlson’s comments about Franklin Graham quoting Esther and argues Carlson dishonestly portrays Esther as a Jewish “genocide of Persians” to attack Jews, Israel, and ultimately God while trying to keep Christian listeners by claiming Esther isn’t really canonical. Taunton contends the 75,000 killed were not Persians but Amalekites aligned with Haman’s plot to annihilate the Jews, and that King Xerxes permitted Jewish self-defense, noting the Jews did not plunder. He defends Esther’s place in the canon, compares its implicit providence to Tolkien, and says other biblical books also omit God’s name. Taunton claims Carlson is increasingly aligned with Islam and uncomfortable with biblical violence, then argues God-ordained judgment appears throughout Scripture and should be approached with reverence, repentance, and submission to God’s justice and grace.