King Ahasuerus and Haman had
just attended a banquet held by Queen Esther. The king's desire was
to have Esther tell him her petition up to half the kingdom, and yet
she delayed because she wanted them to attend yet another banquet the
next day. In chapter five and verse nine we see the reaction of Haman
to the banquet as we read:
Then went Haman forth
that day joyful and with a glad heart: but when Haman saw Mordecai in
the king's gate, that he stood not up, nor moved for him, he was full
of indignation against Mordecai.
Our
verse begins, “Then went Haman forth that day joyful and with a
glad heart:...” Oh how happy Haman was as he left the banquet
held by Esther. He was joyful, merry and with a pleasant, cheerful
and excellent heart as he departed the palace that evening. We might
imagine him happily walking with a cheerful gait and humming or
whistling a little tune as he skipped his way back to his home.
However, that was about to change.
The
verse goes on to say, “but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's
gate, that he stood not up, nor moved for him, he was full of
indignation against Mordecai.” Therein lies that wonderful word
“but” in our reading. This conjunction means “what is
about to be stated takes priority and precedence over what was just
stated”, and what comes after this “but” altered the
very countenance of Haman. As Haman walked merrily along, he saw
Mordecai at the king's gate. Perhaps he had not even left the palace
for very long at all, and now Mordecai was in front of him. Let us
not forget that Mordecai's refusal to bow to Haman was the cause for
the edict to execute the Jews to be given in the first place, and now
Mordecai “stood not up, nor moved for him” once again. If
we see this with our mind's eye, we might imagine Haman's countenance
changing from his merriment to anger right away. We read, “he
was full of indignation against Mordecai.” What started out as
a very happy walk home turned into an internal torture for Haman. The
site of rebellious Mordecai ruined his happy visage.
Emotions
are funny things. One moment we can be deliriously happy, and the
next moment we can be steaming mad. Like waves of an ocean we like
Haman can move from one emotion to the next. Movie writers know this
and take people on an emotional roller coaster throughout their
stories. As we consider Haman's emotions today, perhaps we will
remember that God Almighty has never left this scene. Although Haman
is unaware, God is at work. He will use every opportunity to fulfill
His desires and purposes, and if it means altering emotional
reactions, so be it. When we have emotional responses to our
circumstances, will we be wise enough to consider that the Almighty
oversees, the Almighty knows, and the Almighty is able to use every
situation good and bad, happy and sad, glad and mad to fulfill His
purposes and plans for our lives and others? If so, we will find
ourselves aligning with the Creator of the Universe, and if not, we
should buckle up for the emotional ride.
Next
time we will see Haman return to his home, so read ahead, and we
shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation” and the new marriage book “So, You Want
to Be Married” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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