Esther 7:8b-8:2 — Trading Places

READ THIS: Esther 7:8b-8:2

As soon as the word left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 9 Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said, “A pole reaching to a height of fifty cubits stands by Haman’s house. He had it set up for Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.” The king said, “Impale him on it!” 10 So they impaled Haman on the pole he had set up for Mordecai. Then the king’s fury subsided.

1 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came into the presence of the king, for Esther had told how he was related to her. 2 The king took off his signet ring, which he had reclaimed from Haman, and presented it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed him over Haman’s estate.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?
 
Over and over, we have seen Haman and Mordecai trade places. First, we see Mordecai save the king from rebels, but coincidentally Haman is honored after that while Mordecai is not. Next, we see Haman think he is about to be honored, but Mordecai is honored in the exact way Haman had intended for himself. Then, Haman had built a pole for Mordecai to be killed on, but that was used for Haman's death instead. Finally, the land that was for Haman is now overseen by Mordecai. The first trade seemed like a win for Haman, but all of the rest was certainly not. 

It's kind of a weird lesson on the Golden Rule, "treat others how you want to be treated" (aka Matthew 11:12, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you...") Haman clearly loved having honor placed on him, so the Golden Rule would tell him to make sure others are honored. Instead, he does the exact opposite. He treats them in the way he least wants to be treated, which ends up being the way he is treated. All of his plans for bringing down Mordecai bring him down instead. 

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Think about someone you don't like. Now, trade places with them in your mind. How would you want to be treated standing in their shoes?
 
2. Why should we treat people the way we want to be treated? What's the value in that? Is it so that other people treat us a certain way? Or something else?

TRY THIS:

Picture the person who you are going to hang out with the most today. Do the exercise in your head from question 1. Now, go and treat that person the way you imagined being treated as them. 

SONG OF THE WEEK:
 
God trades out a whole lot of things in our lives, from sorrow to joy to death to life. Listen to this song and think about things he has traded in your life to help you! 

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