Main Highlights
Esther reveals Haman's plot to the king, and Haman is hanged on the gallows he prepared for Mordecai.
Key Verses
So the king and Haman went in to feast with Queen Esther.— Esther 7:1
Then Queen Esther answered, 'If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted to me at my plea, and the life of my people at my request.'— Esther 7:3
And King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, 'Who is he, and where is he, who has dared to do this?'— Esther 7:5
And Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, 'Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, who spoke up for the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high.' And the king said, 'Hang him on it.'— Esther 7:9
Related Scripture
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.— Proverbs 26:27
Scholar Insight
"The reversal of fortune in chapter 7 is swift and complete. Haman, who had plotted the destruction of the Jews and Mordecai, is instead destroyed himself. The very gallows he had erected to kill Mordecai becomes the instrument of his own death. This is a powerful illustration of God's justice. - Roy B. Zuck, Holman Old Testament Commentary: Esther, Ruth (Holman Reference, 1998)"
Theological Analysis
What we learn about God
God's justice prevails. God's perfect timing.
Christological Connection
The reversal of fortune for Haman, and the saving of Esther and her people, is a foreshadowing of the salvation for all.
Systematic Theology
Divine Justice: God will ultimately judge wickedness and vindicate the righteous.
Law & Grace
The law (Haman's plot) brings death, but the grace (Esther's plea) brings life.
Personal Application
Seek justice for the oppressed and trust that God will ultimately bring about justice. 'Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.' (Isaiah 1:17)