Esther 6
-During the very night that Haman had his gallows made for the purpose of eradicating Mordecai the Jew, King Ahasuerus could not sleep and had his book of records brought to him to be read. It was found written the incident recorded in Esther 2:21-23 where Bigthana and Teresh, the king’s eunuchs who were doorkeepers, had sought to lay hands on the king and Mordecai’s faithful report of it to authorities. King Ahasuerus wondered aloud what honor or dignity had been bestowed on Mordecai for his heroic act on behalf of the king. It was found that nothing of notoriety had been for this man. So the king asked, “Who is in the court?” Haman had just entered the outer court at that precise time (from the text it is difficult to discern if this was that night of the next morning, I presume it was the next morning) in order to speak to the king about hanging Mordecai out of his rage and vindictive spirit. The king’s servants reported to him that Haman was standing in the court, and Haman was presented to the king. When Haman came forth before the king, King Ahasuerus asked very matter-of-factly, “What is to be done for the man whom the king desires to honor?” Haman, puffed up with pride and filled with arrogance, thought to himself, “Whom would the king desire to honor more than me?” Then, he proceeded to gush, “For the man whom the king desires to honor, let them bring a royal robe which the king has worn, and the horse on which the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown has been placed; and let the robe and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble princes and let them array the man whom the king desires to honor and lead him on horseback through the city square, and proclaim before him, ‘Thus it shall be done to the man whom the king desires to honor.’” Haman must have been mortified when the king responded, “Take quickly the robes and the horse as you have said, and do so for Mordecai the Jew, who is sitting at the king’s gate; do not fall short in anything of all that you have said.” Humiliated by now, Haman took the robe and the horse, arrayed Mordecai, and led him on horseback through the city square proclaiming, “Thus it shall be done to the man whom the king desires to honor.” Afterwards, Mordecai returned to the king’s gate, probably very pleased and feeling honored for his actions; meanwhile, Haman hurried home, mourning, lamenting, and sulking, with his head covered in shame. When he recounted all that had transpired to his wife, Zeresh, and all his friends, his wise men and even his wife spoke in thus fashion, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of Jewish origin, you will not overcome him, but will surely fall before him.” While these things were still being discussed, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hastily brought Haman to the banquet that Esther had prepared for them (see Esther 5:8; 6:1-14).
*Application* I think the old lyrics from an Elvis Presley song echo true here, “I’m caught in a trap, I can’t walk out…(from Suspicious Minds).” The Divine Hand of God was now actively moving in perfect sequence of time to vindicate and save his faithful servant, Mordecai. In His sovereignty, He was involved of even moving the thoughts of an all-powerful earthly king. God will do that for us too, if we stay pure and true to His Word, following His course and way. The LORD has an uncanny way of bringing about circumstances to favor His people with more honor than we could ever imagine. God is good like that. For the villains, it’s a totally different story. Puffed up pride and scheming arrogance will never prosper in the final analysis. Even the pagans were perceptive to that in our text today. It has a lot to do with the fear of the LORD. Today, I learned from a friend that someone was stealing pumpkins from the church across the street from ours. Last week, someone stole a purse out of a car in that same vicinity in our church’s parking lot. Can you imagine how God feels about people stealing, which is one of His top ten commandments, in His sacred place? These kinds of actions will not prosper these people for long. A day of reckoning is coming, and that is never pretty unless a person repents and makes God desired changes. One more thing to note here in our application. God watches out for His people, the Jews. We have a biblical promise for blessing when we bless them and a biblical curse upon us when we go against them (Genesis 12:3). I pray we all choose blessing over the pain of not blessing God’s appointed people.
Verse to Memorize:
Esther 6:13
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