The ultimate trap = The Haman Principle

Scripture Read: Esther 7:5-10 Then King Ahasuerus asked Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who would presume to do thus?” ⁶ Esther said, “A foe and an enemy is this wicked Haman!” Then Haman became terrified before the king and queen. ⁷ The king arose in his anger from drinking wine and went into the palace garden; but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he saw that harm had been determined against him by the king. ⁸ Now when the king returned from the palace garden into the place where they were drinking wine, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was. Then the king said, “Will he even assault the queen with me in the house?” As the word went out of the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. ⁹ Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs who were before the king said, “Behold indeed, the gallows standing at Haman’s house fifty cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai who spoke good on behalf of the king!” And the king said, “Hang him on it.” ¹⁰ So they hanged Haman on the gallows which he had prepared for Mordecai, and the king’s anger subsided.

Application: Self destruction brought on by “the Haman principle” is thorough and complete and in this case final. Once trapped the end in inevitable, and when we try to get out of it ~ it becomes worse. What would have happened if Haman had fallen before King, the person really in charge, and admitted his evil and begged for mercy? We will never know. In his panic and perhaps desperation, he instead appeared to be aggressively attacking the Queen, exasperating the situation. With the King’s anger pushed to the limit – nothing Haman could do at that point would save him now. 

The scene is quite a difficult one to imagine – as something was put over Haman’s face to cover him and quiet him before the King. The King would no longer have to look upon him. That’s an angry king! Imagine the fear and terror in Haman’s heart as he realized the last thing he was going to see was the material that was covering his face. Yet consider how many times in this story Haman could have had humbled himself and he could have changed the direction of his actions. We can learn from “The Haman principle” and what it can lead to when we plot evil and persist in it – we can push the situation until God just turns us over, then we will not be able to stop it. How many times did Judas have a chance to stop his plan and repent? He might have paid a heavy price with the Jewish leaders but he would have gained his soul. How many times could King Saul have yielded to God’s direction and seen his family still blessed by God, just not as King? My heart aches for Haman and what he must have felt as he dropped for so long before that rope around his neck ended his life! Yes, he deserved it, but as a sinful human I cannot escape the fact that You oh Lord extended me grace and mercy when I deserved the same sentence. Help us Father to learn the futility of evil plans and living, so that we will escape “the Haman principle”. Let us live close to You and allow us to refuse to join the plans of others when they plot evil.

Meditation Questions: When you are wrong what do you do? If you are caught doing evil what do you think is the best thing to do? Why? How often to you bring your plans before the Lord before you move? What does that show? If you do wrong and have to pay the price, what is the safest thing you can do? Why? Is it wrong to ask for mercy when your actions caused the problem? What does your answer show you believe?