Haman had devised a wicked and evil plot. He was so filled with pride that he could not live with himself as long as Mordecai the Jew would not bow down to him! It was eating him up. His thoughts grew more and more insidious until he conjured up a means to not only rid himself of Mordecai, but all the Jews throughout the kingdom! Haman, through sanction of the king, instituted a policy of genocide and set aside an entire day to be dedicated to the slaughter of the Jews! From India to Ethiopia, Jewish men, women, and children would be executed.
For the Jews, this was an inescapable situation. Where would they flee? The kingdom was much to big. They would never make it. They would go into hiding for fear of their lives. They would be separated from family, home, and friends. They would become destitute. And most of them would die, by the thousands! But God is much bigger than Haman!
The book of Esther ends much different than it begins. It begins with Haman plotting the death of the Jews. It ends with Haman dying! It begins with the Jews facing certain death. It ends with the Jews being favored. It begins with Haman calling the shots and manipulating circumstances. It ends revealing who is really in control of all things, even Haman, Almighty God!
“The Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the poor” (9:22).
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