1 So the king and Haman went in to feast with Queen Esther. 2 And on the second day, as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king again said to Esther, “What is your wish, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” 3 Then Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish, and my people for my request. 4 For we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and women, I would have been silent, for our affliction is not to be compared with the loss to the king.” 5 Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who has dared to do this?” 6 And Esther said, “A foe and enemy! This wicked Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen.
7 And the king arose in his wrath from the wine-drinking and went into the palace garden, but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he saw that harm was determined against him by the king. 8 And the king returned from the palace garden to the place where they were drinking wine, as Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was. And the king said, “Will he even assault the queen in my presence, in my own house?” As the word left the mouth of the king, they covered Haman’s face. 9 Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.” 10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of the king abated.
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
The king and Haman attended Esther’s second feast and as they were drinking wine after the meal, the king again asked Esther to give her request, repeating his intention to honour it whatever it was. Esther revealed the fact that her people, the Jews, though the king may still not have known her heritage, had been sold to be annihilated (Est 3:9; 4:7). Esther showed her subservience to the king by adding, if they had simply been sold to slavery, she would not have bothered the king. The king asked who it was who would dare to do this terrible thing. At this point, Haman must have seen a lifetime of poor choices flash before him as his fate became crystal clear. Esther pointed to Haman and declared him a foe and an enemy, calling him wicked Haman. Haman stood there terrified before the king and queen.
The king was filled with rage, left the banquet, and went into the palace garden. Why did he go into the garden? He didn’t go to calm down because he returned just as angry. He didn’t go to figure out how to execute Haman legally as any word from him was law. Perhaps he considered how he could spare Esther and her nation. Whatever the reason, Haman was left with Queen Esther and he begged for his life. Haman was probably at Esther’s feet but when the king returned he accused him of assaulting his queen in his presence. The king issued a judicial decree to have Haman executed (“the word left the mouth of the king”) and they covered Haman’s face (perhaps this was the method of arresting someone for death-row). Then Harbona (Est 1:10), one of the king’s eunuchs pointed out that Haman had prepared a gallows for Mordecai, the one who had saved the king. At the king’s orders, Haman was executed on his own gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai.
Haman planned evil against Mordecai and that evil return on him. A number of proverbs highlight this truth. Proverbs 11:6 says, “The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust.” (see also Prov 29:16; 26:27). Is there any part of you that wished evil against someone else? Jesus taught that we should be quick to forgive (Matt 18:21-22) and we should love our enemies and pray for them (Mat 5:44). Who do you need to pray for today?
Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan
Eutychus Literally Dies of Boredom: Acts 19-20