Smoodock's Blog

At this point in our study of the Book of Esther, Haman is dead. He had been executed by the order of Ahasuerus on the very day in which he was invited to Esther’s second banquet. Moreover, it was on this very day, in the morning, that Ahasuerus had commanded Haman to lead Mordecai, Haman’s hated enemy, about the city on the king’s horse praising him in the name of the king. The sudden reversal of Haman’s prosperity is astonishing, to say the least, which brings up the prospect of the value of one’s life, as that pertains to what one had labored to possess. What did Haman do in his entire life that ultimately prospered or lived on, so to speak, as his memorial? Considering what we’ve discovered, thus far, in this study, we must conclude that Haman was a fool, and nothing he ever did lasted longer than his wicked life.

The confiscation of a man’s goods often accompanied his public execution as a criminal in the ANE culture. In fact, this is the reason Jesus left the care of his mother to the disciple whom he loved (cp. John 19:26-27). All of Jesus’ property would have been confiscated by Rome.[1] The Persian Empire was no different. Haman’s property, including his lands, servants, livestock and his gold and silver, would have been confiscated by Ahasuerus, and, according to the text, he delivered it over to Esther, because of the danger in which Haman had placed her life (Esther 8:1).

Moreover, after revealing her national origins to the king, Esther also told Ahasuerus what Mordecai was to her, a foster father who had raised her as his own daughter. Therefore, he was brought before the king and he was given the king’s ring, which he took back from Haman. Thus, indicating Mordecai now spoke for the king (Esther 8:1-2). Not only so, but what poetic justice is seen in Esther placing Mordecai over the house of Haman. What irony! Haman hated the Jews and Mordecai in particular, yet Mordecai would rule over all his wealth as Esther’s custodian.

Haman’s life was like a shadow or an image in a mirror. He labored all his life, accumulating all his wealth only to have it taken from him (cp. Psalm 39:6) and given to Esther, a hated Jew! What a loathsome thought for an antisemitic! He worked all his life only to find that he was nothing more than a servant, a slave to his enemy, who would use everything he had accumulated, not according to Haman’s wishes, but according to the will of the very folks he hated (cp. Ecclesiastes 2:19)! What a pointless life, that of Haman! He had power; he had wealth, but he was a fool, and all his labor throughout his life was ultimately consumed by another person, managed by his most hated enemy! The words of Jesus come to mind at this point in our study of the Book of Esther:

“Do not lay up stores of wealth for yourselves on earth, where the moth and wear-and-tear destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But amass wealth for yourselves in Heaven, where neither the moth nor wear-and-tear destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-20).

Perhaps, as an aside, we could consider Haman’s life as a something not to emulate, and that would be the good he left behind. I don’t mean the obvious moral issues of being an antisemitic or using his high office to fondle his bigotry. These are the obvious takeaways. Rather, how foolish it is for us to keep accumulating more and more wealth only to leave what we labor for all our lives to someone else, someone, whom we have no idea that he would use the fruit of our labors wisely or according to matters we’d approve. Instead, we should use the fruit of our labor in such a manner that it pleases both us and the God we serve.

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[1] The idea that Jesus never owned property is largely due to a false idea propagated by One Solitary Life by Dr. James Allan Francis, in which he mentions Jesus “never owns a home,” but this statement is unbiblical. See my earlier study: Inspired – But Not Without Error!