Esther 5:11-13
And Haman recounted to them the splendor of his riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had honored him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. Then Haman said, “Even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate.”
Subject: The cost of bitterness
Haman had become a bitter man. He was second in command in the royal palace. He had everything any man of his age would want. He was a man of great financial means (he personally was willing to fund the destructions of all the Jews). He was a man of great power and prestige in the kingdom. He had it made ... if it wasn't for that Jew, Mordecai. Mordecai, perhaps remember the example of the three Jewish boys tossed into the fire by King Nebuchadnezzar, also refused to pay homage to Haman. Although Haman had it all, he did not have the respect of one Jew. It is amazing how ego can lead to anger and how anger can lead to bitterness and how bitterness can lead to revenge. Haman will die from his ego, anger, bitterness and revenge. The trap he set for others he will fall into himself:
Proverbs 26:27
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
A famous leader once said, "Being angry at someone is like drinking poison and hoping they will die as a result." Haman was drinking poison but it wasn't Mordecai who died. Allowing our ego to produce anger and, eventually, bitterness is a sure way to die from the inside out.
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