Est 3:5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.

Five years had passed by since Esther was crowned queen of Persia (Esther 2:16; 3:7). In this chapter, we see a man named Haman. Haman, an Agagite, obtained favour in the eyes of Ahasuerus, and was promoted to the second place in the kingdom (v.1). For reasons not mentioned, the king also commanded everyone in the kingdom to bow down to Haman and pay homage to him. All obeyed the king’s command except one man - Mordecai the Jew. Well, Haman wasn’t too happy about it; in fact, he was full of wrath (v.5). And when he found out that Mordecai was a Jew, he knew that killing only Mordecai was not enough; every Jew in the whole kingdom had to be killed (v.6). What kind of a person was Haman? 1. Pride. He enjoyed when people bowed down to him; he was full of anger when Mordecai did not. The reason is pride. Haman was so proud that he could not take it when someone would not bow down to him. Many sins started with pride. We see how Haman’s pride led him to commit more sin. No wonder the first evil that God hates is pride (Proverbs 6:17). Haman had a massive ego. Are you proud? 2. Hate. Haman’s heart was filled up with hatred for Mordecai and the Jews. It was a lot of hatred. Do you know anyone whose heart is filled with hatred? I know some. The hatred in their hearts is scary. It makes me wonder if they are children of God or children of the devil. True children don’t hate anyone because they know the commandment (John 13:34, 35). They know hating a brother is the same as committing murder and John says those who hate are children of the devil: “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother” (1 John 3:10). If one is not of God, it means he is of the devil. Haters are children of the devil. 3. Unforgiving. Proud people are the least forgiving people. Proud people see the “evil” in others and are blind to their “good”. They pick on small petty things. You can’t believe the small little things they choose to remember which cause them to hate a person. What about the much good which that person has done? Well, they choose to forget and ignore. Pride causes us to refuse to forgive those who have hurt us. It causes us to gossip behind folk’s back. Pride does not care who gets hurt as long as it has its revenge. Here is a warning: Unforgiving people will not be forgiven in the Day of Judgment: “But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:15). We have been warned! How can we get rid of a prideful spirit? Be sober-minded. Paul tells the proud person: “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith” (Romans 12:3). The proud person thinks too highly of himself. The sober-minded person has a realistic view of himself. Haman would not have come to a tragic end if he had contained his pride: “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). Destroy that pride or it will destroy you!