Haman was not a kind man. He was out for power and honor that was due a kind but he wasn't a king. He was out for blood. It wasn't good enough to just kill Mordecai for his lack of honoring him, he wanted to kill all the Jews. This desire became his own demise.
Adar = Feb or Mar in our calendar year
For ancient calendars they planned events a year in advance.
Die or pur were cast to determine dates for important events.
Haman presented the idea of getting rid of a group of people to the kind without the kind seeming to give it much thought. The king very willingly gave Haman his authority by giving him his ring and allowing Haman to do as he pleased with the people.
The amount of money that Haman offered to put in the royal treasury was equivalent to 55,000,000 today. Either Haman was a very wealthy man already or he understood the wealth of the Jews. The king however, wasn't interested in the money or the people. What kind of king was Xerxes? He really didn't seem to care about people and apparently had more money than he knew what to do with.
There was a long history of animosity between the Amalekites and the Jews. The Jews were more unaware of this history and the decree was shocking to them. They didn't understand the reasons for their scheduled destruction. The Jews were hard working and supportive people. They wanted prosperity for Persia.
The kind and Haman sitting down to drink was proof of their total disregard for life... especially that of Jewish life.
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The conflict between Haman and Mordecai is more than a personal conflict. The Amalekites wanted nothing more than to wipe every Jew from the face of the earth.[See Deut 25: 17-19 / The war still rages. It is called the Middle East conflict]. So it is no wonder that when Mordecai would not bow to Haman, he became enraged.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting, though, that Haman who had everything, focused on this one transgression by one "little" man. Haman answered only to the king. He had influence, power, authority, etc... But he couldn't let go of the fact that Mordecai wouldn't bow, and for that he vowed to destroy the whole of the Jewish nation. Overkill, don't you think?
If Haman had just told the king that Mordecai was being a pain and wouldn't bow, the king would have probably given him permission to do whatever he wanted to Mordecai, but Haman was foaming at the mouth to kill him and threw all reason to the wind.
The fact that Haman was obsessed with destroying the Jewish nation shows he was under demonic influence. Demonic influence always opposes the will of God and causes a frenzy, or a loss of focus. The Israelites are already in captivity, subject to the will of the king. What more was needed? The king could have had them slaughtered at any time.
It's obvious the king wasn't too smart in the first place. First, he allowed his counselors to convince him that Vashti should be banished, and now he allowed Haman to convince him the Jews should be destroyed. He never questioned anything. He just went with what his counselors advised. I believe the correct term would be a fool.
I think this is a good lesson for us in that we should know why we do what we do, regarding our actions. We also have to ask ourselves, is what I am doing lining up with God's word. It's easy to see things through our own focus or view point (justification), but we always need to stop and consider what God's word says.
I agree with Debra, about the king. He appears to be so lazy too, relying on his advisors to tell him what to do. And I can't help but admire Mordecai even more as he knew what he was up against. His faith was so strong, and his reliance on God apparent even though the text does not say it.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree as well. The king doesn't appear to be the decision maker and easily persuaded. It reminds me of some of our current day government. We allow so many other people make decisions We entrust people to make decisions for the welfare of all of us, and are they going to god to make these decisions? What is the driving factor.
ReplyDeleteI love all of your comments. I am catching up with the study. Haman was just plain crazy and evil just like Hitler was. As far as the King, he was lazy. We probably would be too if we were that rich back then. This story is so amazing. I love to watch the movie on DVD. I always cry when I watch it.
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