Historical Books Esther

Pride Before the Fall

Discover Jesus as: The Despised One Esther 5-6 Read on Bible Gateway (HCSB)

Day 334 of 730
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INTRO

There’s is a great old movie that covers chapters 5—6, which could give a visual look into these chapters. There is also Laura’s Daily Word devotional that can lead you to look at the daily passages with a different focus. There are multiple ways God leads us to connect to these passages. We saw yesterday that letters had been sent to all the provinces with the king’s decree that all the Jews throughout the kingdom would be annihilated and their possessions plundered on one day. Mordecai found out and let Esther know what was going on. At the end of chapter 4, in verse14, Mordecai says to Esther that who knew but that God had brought her to the palace for such a time as this. Esther told him to assemble all the Jews in Susa to fast for her before she went before the king.

TEACHING

Esther 5:1–8:On the third day of fasting and praying, Esther donned her royal clothing and stood in the courtyard where the king could see her (v. 1). The king saw her, motioned her into his presence with his scepter, and asked her what she wanted (vv. 2–3). The king said he would give her anything up to one half of his kingdom (Mark 6:22-23). Why did Esther not immediately tell the king about what Haman was doing? Wiersbe suggests: (1) it wasn’t the right time to inform the king because he was unprepared to hear it; (2) it wasn’t the right place to expose Haman’s actions in the king’s throne room; (3) Esther wanted only Haman to be present with her and the king when she told the king what Haman had done; and (4) the king had yet to find out that he had never rewarded Mordecai for exposing the plot to assassinate the king five years earlier and finding that out would prepare the king to receive Esther’s news.1This can be seen as a picture of King Jesus waiting for us to prepare and to come into His presence. Queen Esther was ready to give up everything to enter into the king’s presence. She risked everything.

Esther asked only that the king and Haman would come to a banquet she had prepared for them (v. 4). Esther was radically prepared for the king and Haman to come to her banquet. The king and Haman hurried to attend (v. 5). Once again, the king asked Esther what she wanted and, once again, offered up to half his kingdom (v. 6). Esther asked only that the king and Haman return the next day for another banquet (vv. 7–8). Wiersbe states Esther’s actions gave evidence of God’s sovereignty: (1) God prevented Esther from immediately telling the king about Haman’s deceit; (2) God directed the king’s responses to Esther by leading him to accept her invitation to the second banquet; and (3) God prevented any of the people who knew that Esther was a Jew to share that information with Haman.2

Esther 5:9–14: Haman left the first banquet, full of joy and in good spirits over being honored by Queen Esther but came across Mordecai at the King’s Gate who still refused to rise before him. Haman’s good spirits turned to rage and anger toward Mordecai (v. 9). Remember the hatred between Haman and Mordecai had its roots in the actions of the Amalekites against the Israelites on their exit from Egypt. Haman was a descendant of King Agag, an Amalekite, and Mordecai was a descendant of the tribe of Benjamin (Exodus 17:8-16).

Haman controlled his anger until he got home, and then he sent for his friends and family to come hear him talk about how wealthy he was, how he had been promoted over all other royal staff and officials, and how Queen Esther had invited only him to a banquet with herself and the king (vv. 11–12). Yet, despite all the good things that had happened to him, Haman was obsessed with the fact that Mordecai had not shown him the respect he deserved (v. 13). Actor John Barrymore said, “One of my chief regrets during my years in the theater is that I couldn’t sit in the audience and watch me.”3Doesn’t that sound like Haman who was on a complete ego trip about how much power and authority he had been given, and was unwilling to accept anything less than honor from the people below him (Genesis 3:4-5; Proverbs 6:16-19; 16:18; 29:23)?

Haman’s wife and friends told him to build 75-foot-tall gallows and then the next morning, ask the king to hang Mordecai on it. They encouraged Haman to go and enjoy the banquet the next day. Since Haman liked the advice, he went ahead on that same day and had the gallows built, confident he could get the king to do as he wanted (v. 14). Note that the flesh always is impatient to push through its own agenda, but if something is of the Lord, there is no reason to rush or to try to force. Haman pushed everything forward so he could be rid of Mordecai sooner.

CLOSING

Wiersbe points out that Haman was controlled by his false confidence, pride, and malice.4William Barclay wrote that “pride is the ground in which all the other sins grow and is the parent from which all the other sins come.”5Malice turns into revenge, and that truly grieves the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30–32; Colossians 3:8). In Esther 6, Haman is humiliated by the king honoring Mordecai.

  1. Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary (Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2003), p. 729.

  2. Wiersbe, pp. 729–730.

  3. Quoted in Wiersbe, p. 730.

  4. Wiersbe, pp. 730–731.

  5. Quoted in Wiersbe, p. 731.

Questions

  1. When Esther was preparing to risk going before the king, what did she put on (Esther 5:1)? How are we, as believers, to clothe ourselves because we are in the King’s presence? (Romans 13:14; Galatians 3:27; Colossians 3:12–14; 1 Peter 5:5; Revelation 19:8)
  2. As Haman recounted his riches and all the ways he had been exalted by the king, what kept him from enjoying this favor (Esther 5:11–13)? What keeps you from being satisfied with what you have been blessed with?
  3. Why did Haman plot Mordecai’s death? According to Psalm 37:12–13, how did the Lord respond to this behavior, and why?
  4. In Esther 6:2–3, the king discovered how Mordecai had saved his life and that he had not been thanked or honored for his actions. How does this point to Christ?
  5. The king wanted to exalt Mordecai, so Haman was forced to honor him publicly (Esther 6:10–11). How do we see this foreshadow Christ in Philippians 2:9–11?
  6. What did the Holy Spirit highlight to you in Esther 5—6 through the reading or the teaching?

Next: the Daily Word →

Daily Word

Laura Martin Esther 6:6

“Haman entered, and the king asked him, ‘What should be done for the man the king wants to honor?’ Haman thought to himself, ‘Who is it the king would want to honor more than me?’”

FURTHER SCRIPTURE

  • Proverbs 27:2 — “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—a stranger, and not your own lips.”
  • Philippians 2:3 — “Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves.”
  • James 4:6 — “But He gives greater grace. Therefore He says: God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”