"HAMAN THE HORRIBLE!"
Written and preached by David P. Nolte

ESTHER 3:1-11

A man by the name of Ta Hum, a Cambodian Christian, owned a piece of property on which he grew bananas and other fruits. His neighbors treated him with contempt and decided to hire a surveyor to alter a property line so they could claim a chunk of his land. The surveyor fudged the lines and the neighbors took over about half an acre of Ta Hum's property. When Ta Hum discovered this chicanery he was angry! The shenanigan of his neighbors wasn't right! This was his property, inherited from his father. They were cheating him and he was indignant. Not only had they treated him with dishonor, but they had stolen what was rightfully his. He is in the same frame of mind as Haman in the text. King Ahasuerus had promoted Haman over all the other princes in Susa. All the princes and the people bowed down to Haman in homage as he entered the city gates. All the princes and people except a Jew named Mordecai. He staunchly refused to bend the knee to a mortal, no matter how highly elevated he was. And oh, how that angered Haman! Was he ticked off, or what? He was filled with rage. He was infuriated. As a result of his fury, he made an angry decision. He made a choice which turned the course of his life and ended in an ignominious, disgraceful death. But what led up to his choice? Let's find out as we consider Haman and see if we find any parallels in our own life.
  1. HAMAN WANTED HONOR: VV1-5, 6:6
    1. Well, that is a common and unfortunate human tendency.
      1. People like to be noticed and complimented: "Oh, look at that handsome man!" "Boy, you look sharp today!" That is appealing to our ego.
      2. People like to get credit for what they do: "Good job!" "My wife and I gave all the money to buy the turkey for the Thanksgiving dinner!" That seems fulfilling.
      3. People like to be in authority and occupy prestigious positions: "I am the head elder at Ebenezer Holier-Than-Thou Evangelical church!" That's satisfying.
    2.  But such an attitude is the essence of pride! It is, "Look at me!" "Notice me!" "Approve of me!" "Applaud me!" "Bow before me!" Haman wanted to be "the upper crust!" But let me tell you, there are a lot of crumbs in the upper crust!
    3. Here's God's point blank assessment of such a self-aggrandizing, self-embellishing attitude:
      1. 1 Samuel 2:3 (NASB)"Boast no more so very proudly, Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth; For the LORD is a God of knowledge, And with Him actions are weighed." That's part of Hannah's song of praise. She sure got that right!
      2. Proverbs 16:5 (NASB)"Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD; Assuredly, he will not be unpunished."
      3. Habakkuk 2:4 (NASB)"Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the righteous will live by his faith."
      4. James 4:6 (NIV)"But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'"
    4. Haman was filled with pride and when not treated with what he considered proper honor and respect, he became enraged and he'd not forget the slight!
Ta Hum, too, was angered by the mistreatment and illegal actions of his neighbors. They had wronged him and he would not forget it. You know how it is when someone does something, or you even think they've done something, to wrong or insult you. You think about it, mull it over, magnify it, blow it all out of proportion and won't forget it. That's what Ta Hum did and the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Haman did the same thing. Let's look at Esther 5:10-14: Haman "went to his house, and sent for his friends and his wife Zeresh. Then Haman recounted to them the glory of his riches, and the number of his sons, and every instance where the king had magnified him, and how he had promoted him above the princes and servants of the king. Haman also said, 'Even Esther the queen let no one but me come with the king to the banquet which she had prepared; and tomorrow also I am invited by her with the king. Yet all of this does not satisfy me every time I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate.' Then Zeresh his wife and all his friends said to him, 'Have a gallows fifty cubits high made and in the morning ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on it, then go joyfully with the king to the banquet.' And the advice pleased Haman, so he had the gallows made." He talked it over with his loved ones, those he knew would be sympathetic to him, and kept the flame of his hurt burning.
  1. HAMAN NURSED HURT FEELINGS: V5:
    1. The magnitude of his ego shows the minuscule side of his character. Here was a very small man strutting a king size ego.
      1. You know, anyone all wrapped up in self makes a very small package!
      2. The lack of veneration by one man, in light of all his elevated position in the kingdom, would have been overlooked by a greater and bigger man.
    2. Here is the epitome of shallowness: To have so much, to be so blessed, and then to be aggrieved by such a little thing; to be granted such prestige and to be offended by such a small slight which it would be to one's honor to overlook. Come on, Haman! Get over it! Be bigger than that! Rise above it!
    3. But hurt by Mordecai's disrespect, Haman, instead of overlooking the slight, overlooked his benefits! In so doing, he was like:
      1. A child who had a wonderful day at the fair, riding all the rides, eating all the eats, seeing all the sights, and then pouted because Dad wouldn't let him take one more turn on the merry-go-round.
      2. A man who has all the "guy toys" a boat, a snowmobile, fishing equipment and then sulks because his neighbor has a newer riding lawn mower than he has.
      3. An employee who has frequently been "employee of the month" and is jealous because someone else gets that honor once.
      4. A woman who has many friends, but ignoring that fact, is affronted and suffers wounded vanity when someone else is included in the circle.
    4. Haman was so excessively self-inflated that the barb of Mordecai's offense pricked his pride, assaulted his arrogance and burst the bubble of his boastfulness. But he'd not take it lying down! He'd get even!
So would Ta Hum. He was angry, and hurt, and wanted to be treated right. But they had the surveyor's false report which indicated that some of his land belonged to them. He decided he'd do what he could to get even. He'd take his machete and chop down all the trees in the stolen plot of land; he'd have the last laugh; he'd have his revenge. With that same objective in mind, Haman formulated a plot that was designed for ill to Mordecai and all the Jews along with him.
  1. HAMAN DESIRED REVENGE: VV6-9:
    1. Haman's exaggerated sense of self-importance and pomp left him open to the excesses of anger and hostility. He went way beyond the bounds of reason.
      1. Not only would Mordecai be rebuked, he'd be hanged! "He didn't honor me, so I'll have him killed!"
      2. Not only would Mordecai himself suffer, but the entire nation of the Jews would go down. Haman would fix his wagon!
      3. How often do we read of some worker, being offended or dismissed, returning to the workplace to annihilate those who wronged him? The post office shootings of a few years ago originated the term for excessive anger: "Going postal!"
    2. Haman "went postal!" Here is the embodiment of revenge: "You slap me in the face and I'll cut your arm off! You bump me, and I'll beat you black and blue! You insult me, and I'll ruin you! What you do to me once, I'll do back to you seven times! You "dis" me and I'll kill you!"
    3. Wounded ego has been from earliest times the seed-bed of violence, retribution and all sorts of evil.
      1. Cain slew Abel because God accepted Abel's offering and rejected his.
      2. Jezebel sought the life of the prophet Elijah because he showed up her religion as false.
      3. Jealous politicians delivered the prophet Daniel up to be cast into the den of lions because he found favor with Darius.
      4. Envious Pharisees sought to destroy Jesus because the multitudes heard Jesus gladly.
    4. Haman wanted revenge; he was consumed by blind aggravation; he was consumed by his own wrath.
Haman would have done well to consider that "curses, like chickens, come home to roost!" He should have realized that "ashes fly back into the face of the one who throws them!" Thanks to the timely intervention of queen Esther, Haman perished on the very gallows he built for Mordecai! "Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs who were before the king said, 'Behold indeed, the gallows standing at Haman's house fifty cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai who spoke good on behalf of the king!' And the king said, 'Hang him on it.'" Esther 7:9 (NASB). When we seek our own revenge, we end up destroying ourselves. Ta Hum wanted revenge; but he was a Christian and reasoned that Christ would not approve of his attitude and actions. So instead of tit for tat, he went to his enemies and said, "You have taken my land. I'll give you my house as well if you wan it. Then I'll go live with the pastor and help spread the good news of Jesus." His talk spread quickly and the chief heard it. He investigated and declared that the property belonged to Ta Hum; he jailed the offenders for their crime. Paul says, "Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, 'VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,' says the Lord. 'BUT IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK; FOR IN SO DOING YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS UPON HIS HEAD.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Romans 12:17-21 (NASB). If you brought a grudge with you, leave it? If you brought anger, leave it. If you brought wounded pride, leave it. The next time you feel abused, take a look at your hands; do you see nail scars? No, those are in the hands of Jesus who gave Himself up to all sorts of abuse, dishonor, contempt and wrath for us. Be like Jesus; pray for your tormentors; forgive those who abuse you; and you'll be blessed.
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