Haman definitely had an issue with pride. He boasted to his
wife of his great wealth, how many sons he had, the king had just granted and
funded his request to annihilate Mordecai and the Jews, and he believed that
Esther was honoring him with a banquet. The core belief of pride is “You exist
to serve and give to me.” Could the opposite, humility, mean “I exist to serve
and help others.” Esther was willing to give her own life to save her people.
She submitted to the king’s eunuch and found favor with him. He helped her
become queen. Her humility won the respect of the king. When she appeared to
him in the courts, he was willing to give her up to half of the kingdom. On the
other hand, Haman’s pride led to his destruction. In Chapter 5:13 he says “But
all this (the things he boasts about) gives me no satisfaction as long as I see
that Jew Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate.” He prepared to hang Mordecai
because Mordecai would not fear nor worship him. Pride always leads to
destruction. Haman ended up honoring Mordecai and hanging from the gallows that
he built.
The Psalm for today sums it up well. Psalm 37:1-2 . . .
concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God (Me: he has
pride) before his eyes. For in his own eyes he flatters himself (Boasts) too
much to detect or hate his sin. Verse 4: “Even on his bed he plots evil; he
commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong.” What do
you see in your life? Is there any area that you were not able to detect, but
that was exposed today?
My prayer today is that God will open my eyes to fear him.
Show me the areas I am sinning and teach me to hate it. Help me to have a heart
like Esther. Help me to give and improve the lives of others.
