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Learning from Esther 7 – Then The King’s Fury Subsided
Posted on June 7th, 2010 No comments
Esther 7:9-10 – “Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said, ‘A gallows seventy-five feet [50 cubits] high stands by Haman’s house. He had it made for Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.’ The king said, ‘Hang him on it!’ So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s fury subsided…”Haman, the enemy of God’s people, had planned to have Mordecai killed (impaled or crucified) on a tall execution stake. The word “gallows” in the original was actually a pole or cross to which they would impale the victim. In an unexpected turn of events, Haman himself dies on the very execution stake that he planned to use to kill God’s servant.
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Learning from Esther 3 – Character Traits of Haman & Mordecai
Posted on April 12th, 2010 No comments
Esther 3:2-5 – “All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honor to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him. But Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. Then the royal officials at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, ‘Why do you disobey the king’s command?’ Day after day they spoke to him but he refused to comply. Therefore they told Haman about it to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, for he had told them he was a Jew. When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged.”Esther is the only book in the Bible that never mentions God. God is certainly part of the story – the main characters fast and pray, and the answers to their prayers are miraculous. Esther and her relative Mordecai were deeply spiritual, and the Persian royalty at this time were zealous Zoroastrians, who believed in one true God (similar to the Jews) rather than pagan idols. Yet the Bible manages to recount the entire story without mentioning God by name even once. One reason for this unusual omission is that most of the story focuses on one particular character’s perspective – that of Haman, a court official.
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Learning from Esther 3 – The Genealogies of Haman and Mordecai
Posted on April 1st, 2010 No commentsEsther 3:1 – “After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles.”Haman the Agagite was the main enemy of God’s people in the book of Esther. He was apparently a descendent of Agag, an Amalekite king. Hebrew scholars since ancient times have identified Haman with the Agag in 1 Samuel 15. King Saul lost his kingship because he spared Agag’s life instead of following God’s instructions.