If Only He Had Known

If Only He Had Known

Not to us, O LORD, not to us,but to your name goes all the glory.

Psalm 115:1

One of my favorite Bible stories is about Esther. This tale has all the elements of a classic story—intrigue, danger, love, a villain who’s caught, a good guy who’s rewarded, a heroine who’s saved, and a happily-ever-after ending. What more can you ask for in a story?

The villain is Haman. His biggest foible is how sold he is on himself. He thinks he is the most important man in the Persian kingdom next to the king. He thinks King Xerxes is going to honor him for being so clever and smart. He thinks he is going to get to destroy his enemies, the Jewish nation.

Due to his arrogance and self-absorption, though, Haman’s dastardly plan is discovered and destroyed when he ends up in a face-off with his worst nightmare—Esther, the queen of Persia, the king’s great love, and God’s special servant. I love how God turns the tables on Haman in the end in order to protect his chosen people from annihilation. Haman is, in fact, hanged on the very gallows he’d built for his enemy, Esther’s cousin. It’s a great “Gotcha!” moment.

People from the city come by and watch Haman’s body hanging there, decaying for all the world to see. Haman finally has the grand audience he had always wanted.

It reminds me of a politician in Illinois who died. The magnitude of his achievements was exceeded only by the size of his great ego. His funeral, quite surprisingly, was attended by nearly a thousand people.

A fellow politician said, “That many people? If he had known how big a funeral he was going to have, I think he would have died years ago!”

Forgive me, Father, for thinking I’m important rather than giving you the credit for anything you accomplish through me. May your name alone be glorified. Amen.