2024_07_01 Insight Post- Kim Feld
This week’s reading- Esther 3-10
This is our last week in the book of Esther, and we have covered a lot of ground. As we look at Haman this week, what stands out to you about him? Chapter 3 tells us that Haman was given the highest position of all the nobles in the land. All the royal officials were to bow down to Haman by order of the king, yet Mordecai refused. When the royal officials could make no headway with Mordecai, they told Haman “…to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, for he had told them he was a Jew” (Esther 3:4, NIV). Here’s what happened next:
5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged. 6 Yet having learned who Mordecai’s people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes (Esther 3:5-6, NIV).
While doing some research on this, I came across an interesting fact. It was unlikely that Mordecai had reached the level of official that he had without bowing to the king. Hence, the speculation that his refusal had more to do with the fact that Haman was a descendant of the Amalekites, an ancient enemy of the Jews (Barker & Kohlenberger, 2004). This makes sense based on verse 6, which indicates that Haman decided to destroy all the people when he found out Mordecai was a Jew.
Haman’s hatred must have run pretty deep, and when coupled with injured pride (and later humiliation as the story goes on), we can see the progression. The character trait of pride is often portrayed negatively in the Bible. Take a look at Proverbs 16:18, NLT:
18 Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.
Haman’s story is a living depiction of this proverb. His pride and sinful strategies for revenge led to his ultimate downfall. Last week, we saw Esther’s humility in interacting with others, even those who served her. Humility and pride are opposite character traits played out in this story and its outcome. Proverbs 29:23, NLT sums this up nicely:
23 Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor.
Kim Feld
Executive Director of Education and Outreach
Reference: Barker, K. L., & Kohlenberger, J. R. (2004). The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Old Testament. Zondervan Academic.