By Kevin Blackwell, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Ministry Training Institute/Assistant to the President for Church Relations, Samford University
HAMAN
Esther 3:1–9; 6:10–14
The Book of Esther is a remarkable story of the resilience and courage of a young Jewish woman who risked her own life to save her people.
The book is a historical narrative set in the context of the Jewish people’s exile and eventual return to Judah under the reign of the Persians. The story is the tale of the prideful and the humble.
We meet King Ahasuerus, who at the beginning of the book throws a six-month party in his own honor. We also meet Haman, the head noble who would seek to use his position for evil.
These two men stand in comparison to the humble Esther and Mordecai, who sought to honor God and do what was best for others.
We can learn much from the prideful and the humble in this book, but Haman stands as the greatest example of what not to do!
Accept any honors or achievements with humility. (3:1–5)
The king gave Haman a prominent position. He was basically the assistant to the king and second in charge of the kingdom. Haman is listed as an Agagite, which means that he was a descendent of the Amalekites, the enemy of the Jews. This might explain his hatred toward the Jews and Mordecai’s hesitancy to bow down to him.
Haman became filled with pride and eventually anger toward all who did not recognize his new prominence.
Humility is not only seen during times of struggle, but perhaps it is most authentically displayed during times of success. Haman did not handle his professional success well, and it was ultimately his downfall.
Don’t leverage your position for personal gain. (6–9)
When Mordecai refused to bow down to Haman, it incensed Haman to the point that he not only wanted to destroy Mordecai but all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews. He used his relationship with the king for a personal vendetta and used hyperbole to describe the Jews as those who “do not obey the king’s laws.”
The king was a person who was easily swayed by the opinions of others, and he did not show prudence and wisdom in his decrees. When we are in a position of authority, we must always use it to bring glory to God through humility in our posture and wisdom in our decisions.
Pride can lead to humiliation and destruction. (6:10–14)
Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride comes before destruction and an arrogant spirit before a fall.” Haman would not have known of this proverb, but he certainly could have benefited from it. Haman assumed that the king sought to honor him, and he walked into the king’s court filled with arrogance. His arrogance led to a lack of proper judgment, leading him to give his boss foolish advice. His heart must have fallen as the king told Haman to do just what he had suggested to honor Mordecai instead of himself. Ouch!
In God’s economy, the prideful will always suffer loss while the humble will always experience gain. God had placed Esther in a key position to save His people from destruction. Haman would eventually be killed due to his foolishness, while Mordecai and the people of God were honored and saved.
Like Esther, Jesus humbled Himself to save His people from death. We are called to emulate their example to serve those around us and not abuse our positions of authority for our own sake.
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