PRIDE COMES BEFORE…
Opening Prayer
God, I celebrate You today! You are indescribably amazing.
Read Esther 5:9–14
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Haman’s Rage Against Mordecai
9 Haman went out that day happy and in high spirits. But when he saw Mordecai at the king’s gate and observed that he neither rose nor showed fear in his presence, he was filled with rage against Mordecai. 10 Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home.
Calling together his friends and Zeresh, his wife, 11 Haman boasted to them about his vast wealth, his many sons, and all the ways the king had honored him and how he had elevated him above the other nobles and officials. 12 “And that’s not all,” Haman added. “I’m the only person Queen Esther invited to accompany the king to the banquet she gave. And she has invited me along with the king tomorrow. 13 But all this gives me no satisfaction as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate.”
14 His wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a pole set up, reaching to a height of fifty cubits,[a] and ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai impaled on it. Then go with the king to the banquet and enjoy yourself.” This suggestion delighted Haman, and he had the pole set up.
Footnotes
a Esther 5:14 That is, about 75 feet or about 23 meters
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Think about the achievements you are most proud of. How were they celebrated?Haman’s exceedingly great hubris stands out like a sore thumb. He is wealthy and honored by the king, and he is the only other invitee to the queen’s banquet beside the king. “What an utterly marvelous person I am!” he tells his friends (11,12). His attitude towards himself explains the great rage he has towards Mordecai: “How on earth could such a great person as I not receive respect from absolutely everyone else?”
His family and friends pander to him and encourage him in this attitude, and the plan to have Mordecai killed the following day is suggested, enthusiastically received and prepared (14). Haman’s importance in his own eyes, and presumably in the eyes of those who are fawning upon him, has blinded him to the precarious position he is actually in. He believes that his supposed enemy Mordecai is going to be defeated.
Haman further believes that Mordecai’s people are going to be annihilated. He believes that he is highly esteemed by the king and the queen. But as noted earlier, he doesn’t know all the facts, and the whole truth is not on his side.
Apply
God is the source of all we have, including our achievements. Spend time recalling and giving thanks with humility for what God has enabled you to accomplish.
Closing prayer
God, I am nothing without You. Help me to boast in You alone.
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