Esther · chapter 6 of 10
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Esther 6 tells how King Ahasuerus cannot sleep and has the book of the chronicles read to him, where he finds that Mordecai was never rewarded for exposing a plot. When Haman arrives to ask for Mordecai's hanging, the king asks him how to honor a man he delights to honor; Haman assumes it is himself and proposes great honors, and the king orders them given to Mordecai. Humbled, Haman is taken to Esther's banquet.
In chapter 5 Haman ordered a gallows prepared for Mordecai, and Esther's petition is still pending at the second banquet. Esther 6 is the center of the book: with no one planning anything, a series of seemingly accidental events changes the course of the story. The chapter is one of the best displays of God's quiet providence.
That night the king cannot sleep and orders the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, to be brought and read to him. There he finds it written that Mordecai exposed Bigthana and Teresh, the eunuchs who planned to kill him. The king asks what honor or distinction was given for this, and his attendants answer that nothing was done for him.
At that moment Haman has just entered the outer court to ask the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows he prepared. The king has him brought in and asks what should be done for the man the king delights to honor. Haman, thinking the king means him, proposes that the man be dressed in royal robes, set on a horse the king has ridden, with a royal crown on its head, and that one of the noblest princes lead him through the city square proclaiming that this is done for the man the king delights to honor.
The king orders him to do all this for Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king's gate, leaving nothing out. Haman obeys, dresses Mordecai, sets him on the horse and leads him through the square. Mordecai returns to the king's gate, and Haman hurries home, mourning and with his head covered. When he tells his wife Zeresh and his friends everything, they say that if Mordecai is of Jewish descent Haman cannot prevail against him but will surely fall. While they are still talking, the king's eunuchs arrive and hurry Haman to the banquet Esther has prepared.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
That night the king cannot sleep and orders the book of the chronicles read to him. A detail as small as insomnia becomes, in the story, the turning point.
The king discovers that Mordecai never received honor or reward for exposing the plot. The forgotten good deed of chapter 2 comes back to light at exactly the right time.
The king asks what should be done for the man he delights to honor, and Haman thinks to himself that the king means him. His pride leads him to propose the honors he will end up giving to his enemy.
Haman's wife and wise men tell him that if Mordecai is of the Jews, he will not prevail against him but will fall. Even Haman's pagan advisers recognize that something greater than he is at work.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: He ordered the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, to be brought and read to him. — Esther 6:1
Answer: That Mordecai had exposed the plot of Bigthana and Teresh to kill the king. — Esther 6:2
Answer: That nothing had been done for him. — Esther 6:3
Answer: To ask the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows he had prepared. — Esther 6:4
Answer: Royal robes, a horse of the king's with a royal crown, and being led through the city square by a noble prince proclaiming the honor. — Esther 6:7-9
Answer: Mordecai the Jew, who sat at the king's gate. — Esther 6:10
Esther 6 encourages those who serve without anyone noticing. Mordecai saved the king's life and went years without recognition, but God did not forget him and his good deed surfaced at the right time. In a small group you can talk about serving faithfully without seeking applause and trusting that God sees and rewards in his own way and time.
The chapter also warns against pride. Haman thought all the honor was for him and ended up honoring his enemy. Whoever puts himself at the center of everything risks having life give him a lesson in humility. Let us ask whether we seek recognition or are willing to serve where no one sees us, and remember that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Esther 6 ends with a humbled Haman rushed to the queen's banquet while the gallows still stands ready at his house. In chapter 7 Esther will finally reveal her petition and her identity before the king.
The book does not name God and does not say it was supernatural. But the sequence of events, from the insomnia to that very passage of the chronicles being read and Haman arriving at that hour, leads many readers to see here God's providence working quietly.
The text only says that his report was recorded and that no one honored him. It does not explain why it was forgotten. In the story, that silence lets the reward arrive at the most significant moment.
They told him that if Mordecai was of Jewish descent, Haman would not prevail against him but would surely fall. They probably knew the story of a people that had survived many enemies and saw in this reversal a bad omen.