Weekly devotion no 25

Weekly Devotion no 25
18 September 2020

Bible reading – Esther 6[1]

That night the king couldn’t sleep. So he ordered the official records of his rule to be brought in. He ordered someone to read them to him. ² What Mordecai had done was written there. He had uncovered the plans of Bigthana and Teresh. They were two of the king’s officers who guarded the door of the royal palace. They had decided to kill King Xerxes.

³ “What great honour has Mordecai received for doing that?” the king asked.

“Nothing has been done for him,” his attendants answered.

⁴ The king asked, “Who is in the courtyard?” Haman had just entered the outer courtyard of the palace. He had come to speak to the king about putting Mordecai to death. He wanted to talk about putting Mordecai’s body on the pole he had prepared for him.

⁵ The king’s attendants said to him, “Haman is standing in the courtyard.”

“Bring him in,” the king ordered.

⁶ Haman entered. Then the king asked him, “What should be done for the man I want to honour?”

Haman said to himself, “Is there anyone the king would rather honour than me?” ⁷ So he answered the king. He said, “Here is what you should do for the man you want to honour. ⁸ Have your servants get a royal robe you have worn. Have them bring a horse you have ridden on. Have a royal mark placed on its head. ⁹ Then give the robe and horse to one of your most noble princes. Let the robe be put on the man you want to honour. Let him be led on the horse through the city streets. Let people announce in front of him, ‘This is what is done for the man the king wants to honour!’ ”

¹⁰ “Go right away,” the king commanded Haman. “Get the robe. Bring the horse. Do exactly what you have suggested. Do it for Mordecai the Jew. He’s sitting out there at the palace gate. Make sure you do everything you have suggested.”

¹¹ So Haman got the robe and the horse. He put the robe on Mordecai. And he led him on horseback through the city streets. He walked along in front of him and announced, “This is what is done for the man the king wants to honour!”

¹² After that, Mordecai returned to the palace gate. But Haman rushed home. He covered his head because he was very sad. ¹³ He told his wife Zeresh everything that had happened to him. He also told all his friends.

His advisers and his wife Zeresh spoke to him. They said, “Your fall from power started with Mordecai. He’s a Jew. So now you can’t stand up against him. You are going to be destroyed!” ¹⁴ They were still talking with him when the king’s officials arrived. They hurried Haman away to the feast Esther had prepared.

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[1] Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible , New International Reader’s Version copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflection

The egocentric king was restless and couldn’t sleep, so he decided to have his biography read to him, presumably so he could be encouraged by all the good decisions he had made! But he didn’t bargain on God ensuring that he heard the record of Mordecai saving his life. Having honoured Haman instead of Mordecai at the time, the king seeks to rectify the situation and is thinking about how to do this when he calls Haman in from the courtyard.

Haman had come to persuade the king to execute Mordecai. But first, the king asks Haman his advice on how he should honour someone. Haman, in his pride and arrogance, figures that it is he himself that the king wants to honour, so he suggests the pomp, opulence and ceremony he would desire, and which would show the people how important he was.

But then, in a cruel twist, Haman finds himself organising these things to honour Mordecai, rather than arranging for Mordecai’s execution as he had planned. How humiliated he must have felt leading Mordecai through the city.

Haman’s wife and advisers get the situation. They recognise that God is behind these events and that Haman will not be able to win this fight.

Our decisions are often coloured by the things we want to have or out of envy for someone else. We like to feel important and we value being liked by others. This leads us to put feeding these emotions as a priority in our lives. We might not end up plotting to kill someone, but we might harbour thoughts of envy and greed that fester away in us. These emotions take us away from the love we should have for others and they distract us from the love we have for God.

Haman sought all the glory for himself. He sought to be like God, determining when people should live and die. He didn’t recognise that all glory should go to God, who is the only one worthy of blessing and glory and honour and power. 

Hymn

Verse 1

Blessing and honour and glory and power,
wisdom and riches and strength evermore
give ye to him who our battle hath won,
whose are the kingdom, the crown, and the throne.

Verse 2

Into the heaven of the heavens hath he gone;

Sitteth he now in the joy of the throne;

Weareth he now of the kingdom the crown;

Singeth he now the new song with his own.

Verse 3

Soundeth the heaven of the heavens with his name;
ringeth the earth with his glory and fame;
ocean and mountain, stream, forest, and flower
echo his praises and tell of his power.

Verse 4

Ever ascendeth the song and the joy;
ever descendeth the love from on high;
blessing and honour and glory and praise,—
this is the theme of the hymns that we raise.

Verse 5

Give we the glory and praise to the Lamb;
take we the robe and the harp and the palm;
sing we the song of the Lamb that was slain,
dying in weakness, but rising to reign.

Horatius Bonar 1858 © Public Domain CCLI:69198     

Prayer

O God,

you are rich in love for your people:

show us the treasure that endures

and, when we are tempted by greed,

call us back into your service

and make us worthy to be

entrusted with the wealth that never fails.

We ask this through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Prayer Book for Australia 1995