Two Great Men & a Man

We are considering Esther 6

Two great men were about to meet to discuss one man. Both were passionate about that man. Both wanted a quick and severe decision to be made about the man. Both were courageous about their obsessions about this man. Can you smell the excitement? Let me add one important detail… one loved him, the other hated him, and they didn’t know the extent of each other’s feelings towards this man!

The first great man was a King of kings over 127 provinces. His queen had invited him and a friend to supper. After the supper, the king asked what she wanted, and she invited them yet again to another supper. He had tossed through the night wondering why, even though Queen Esther had not seen him for over a month, she just invited them twice to dinner. He called for the records to be read to him in his restlessness. Then he discovered someone who had saved his life but had not been rewarded.

The second great man could be called a prince in that kingdom. Everyone knew Haman was the king’s closest friend and people bowed to him wherever he went. Well, everyone except Mordecai, who never did. Whenever he saw him, his heart missed a couple of beats and raced angrily to catch up. But he had already dealt with that problem. His wife and advisors had helped him to hatch a plan that would destroy Mordecai and all his people all at once. And the plan was going fine.

Even the queen had recently invited only the king and himself to a scrumptious dinner. Clearly, Haman was the royal family’s favourite, the envy of many. Yesterday they decided that he hasten his plan because seeing Mordecai affected his blood pressure and emotions and the doctors warned him to avoid stress. So they came up with a plan that would make the king order Mordecai to be hanged.

So on this crucial morning, the two great men met. King Ahasuerus leaned forward excitedly and jabbed his finger at Haman, “What should be done to someone I want to honour?” Haman suggested the ultimate royal treat (Est. 6:6-10). “Quick”, said the king, “Go and carry it out on Mordecai”. Needless to say, Haman was thunderstruck. Do you see God in the works? It is said that when Napoleon began his wars, he touted that “God is on the side with the best artillery”[1]. And when defeat had finally confined him to a tiny islet somewhere in the Pacific, he observed, “Man proposes, but God disposes”[2]. That night, Haman’s wife and advisers said to him, “If this Mordecai is, in fact, a Jew, your bad luck has only just begun. In fact, you are ruined”. Of course, he was!

Who is that fighting against you? What is fighting against your success? Who has planned your end? Maybe you don’t even know who, right? Just be on God’s side. Do His will in your life and leave the consequences to Him.

May all your Hamans meet their Ahasuerus in God’s good time.

©nana amoah 2021

---

[1] https://kidadl.com/articles/best-ever-napoleon-quotes-from-the-french-military-leader

[2] (Meyers, 2000-2019)

Tags: King Ahasuerus, Haman, Queen Esther, plotting against God’s child(ren), evil plots, God’s interventions, trusting God,