Far too many people have bought the lie that a little liquor is a good thing. I remember as a child having some digestive problems and the doctor told my mother that a solution for me might be to have some beer every day. My parents rejected that suggestion. At the time I was just a child and had no opinion on the matter, but as an adult I can certainly see the foolishness of such counsel. God tells us that any liquor consumption will cause deception. Liquor affects the mind. It affects the ability to think properly. The person consuming the liquor will not even recognize the problem, but those who have a clear mind will certainly see it.
In our text, it did not matter that Haman was not trying anything untoward with Esther. The king had liquor in his belly and his mind was not clear. He assumed that Haman was trying to take away his wife. In verse 8 it certainly looked like Haman had immoral intentions. He was afraid for his life now. He was pleading with Esther that she would intervene on his behalf. He had no concern for the Jews, but when his life was threatened, he had great concern.
He did not realize that he was making matters worse for himself by his actions. As the king drew his own conclusions of what was taking place, his servants covered Haman’s face. He had no opportunity to answer for himself now.
In verse 9 we read that one of the kings chamberlains knew what Haman was planning. He knew that they had just built the gallows in Haman’s yard. He knew that Haman wanted to hang Mordecai on those gallows. It did not take much convincing to get the king to come up with the next step. He commanded that Haman be hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai.
What a sudden turn of events. Again we see that man can make plans, but God has the final say. There is nothing that happens that He does not know about. In our text, the king was quite a foolish person. He was too busy with worthless things to take the time to actually govern the country. He was caught off guard by so many things because of his drunkenness. However, in spite of the king’s foolishness, God knew what was going on. He was not going to allow His plans to be destroyed. He had promised Abraham that He would make a great nation out of him. He had also promised that the nation of Israel would be an everlasting nation. No one would ever wipe them out.
There have been other nations that no longer exist. Some of them rose up to prominence, but then they were wiped out. Israel rose up to be a great nation and then fell and was captured and taken into exile. Thousands of Jews have been killed over the centuries. However, Israel is still a nation today with over 7 million Jews living in Israel now. There are also thousands of Jews scattered across the earth. One day they will all move back to Israel. One day Israel will bow before Almighty God and will worship Him in truth. They will acknowledge their sin of rejecting Jesus Christ and crucifying Him and they will worship Him as their Messiah and Saviour and King.
In our text, we see one of the many attempts of the devil to try to greatly diminish the population of the nation of Israel. The devil would love nothing more than to be able to prove that God is a liar and cannot be trusted and sadly, many people are convinced that God cannot be trusted. However, God has shown that He is completely trustworthy. He is also working in the heart of every individual to show them the need to repent and know the truth.
In verse 10 of our text, we read that Haman was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. That would put an end to that man. We read as well that the king’s anger was pacified when he knew that Haman was dead. A fair weather friend indeed.
Haman needed to be removed. He did not want to know the Lord. He wanted to be the lord. He wanted to be in control. He used whoever he needed to use in order to gain a little more power. Now he was gone. He had his opportunity to know the truth, but he chose not to trust in God.
Sadly, Mordecai and Esther had not sought to help him to know the Lord. However, there had been other faithful men in Persia. Daniel had been there. Ezra and Nehemiah had also been there. God never leaves anyone in a vacuum. He provides the opportunity for each person to repent and be saved. The important thing is to listen to God and pursue the truth.
We will see further how God will protect His people in a very ungodly environment. God is never without an answer. He uses the ungodly for His glory. They may not want to glorify Him, but He will be glorified anyway.
The wise person chooses to submit to the true God and trust Him for their salvation and then for His guidance in their life. God does not intend that only one group of people can be saved. In the book of Esther it was a battle between the Jews and the Gentiles. God wants all to be saved. Jews and Gentiles can be saved. Heaven is big enough to hold all people. However, when the flesh is in control, there is always a battle for supremacy. There is no true unity when man is not living in the fear of God. It does not need to be that way.
The way of peace and blessing is God’s way. Submitting to Him and knowing Him is the key. If you do not know Him today, why not turn to God in repentance right now and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour and Lord. Don’t try to make a deal with God. He is God and you need a Saviour. Trust in Him and know His peace today.
Pastor Bartel