Commentary on Ezra Nehemiah Ester Job and Psalms, Commentary 3 · Chapter 6
CHAP. VI. Verſe 1. On that night]
THat very night before Mordecai ſhould have been hang'd on the morrow morning, and ſo early that Eſther could not have begged his life, would ſhe never ſo faine. God will appeare for his poor people. foreign, in the nick and opportunity of time, 1 Pet. 5.6. He will be ſeen in the Mount, he will come as out of an Engine.
Could not the King ſleep] Heb. the Kings ſleep fled away, and, like a ſhadow, it fled away ſo much the faſter, as it was more followed. Sleep is beſt ſolicited by neglect, and ſooneſt found, when we have forgotten to ſeek it. They are likelieſt for it, who together with their clothes can put off their cares: and ſay as Lord Burleigh did when he threw off his gown, Lie there Lord Treaſurer. This, great Ahaſhuerus cannot do at preſent, (for Crowns alſo have their cares, thiſtles in their armes, and thornes in their ſides) Lo, he that commanded one hundred and twenty ſeven Provinces cannot command an hours ſleep; how ſhould he when as ſleep is Gods gift, Pſal. 127.2? And it was he that at this time kept him awake for excellent ends; and put ſmall thoughts into his heart for great purpoſe, like as he did into our Henry the eighth, when the Biſhop of Baion (the French Ambaſſadour) coming to conſult with him about a marriage between the Lady Mary and the Duke of Orleans, Life and dea… of Card. Wo… ſey, 65.caſt a ſcruple into his mind, which rendred him reſtleſſe. Whether Mary were legitimate, &c. If it were his ſurfetting and drunkenneſſe the day before that hindred Ahaſhuerus from ſleeping,…lin. (habent enim hoc ebrii, ut neque dormiant, neque vigilent) Gods goodneſſe appeareth the more, in turning his ſinne to the good of the Church. Venenum aliquando pro remedio fuit, ſaith Seneca, He can make of a poiſonful viper an wholeſome treacle: and by an Almighty Alchymy draw good out of evil.
And he commanded to bring the book of records] Perhaps ſome ſpecial Notes or Commentaries,foreign. written for the Kings own uſe; as M. Aurelius had his foreign. Julius Caeſar had his Commentaries written with his own hand, and for the help of his own memory.Turk. hiſt. Tamerlane had the like book, wherein he read a great part of the night, before the mortal battel between him and Bajazet.
Of the Chronicles] Perhaps, beſides the former book of remembrances, or elſe the ſame; Librum Commentariorum, Chronica, as Tremelius rendreth it, the book of Commentaries, even the Chronicles; but the Vulgar and Tygurine make them ſeveral books.
And they were read before the King] Perhaps as a Recipe, to bring on ſleep, or at leaſt to deceive the time; and yet it may he too for a better purpoſe, viz. to better his knowledge, and to rub up his memory, that dignity might wait upon deſert: as it did in Tamerlanes time, who kept a catalogue of their names who had beſt deſerved of him,Turk hiſt. 227. which he daily peruſed, oftentimes ſaying, that day to be loſt, wherein he had not done ſomething for them. This Ahaſhuerus had not yet done for Mordecai, who therefore haply held with the Poet. Omnia ſunt ingrata nihil feciſſe benignè eſt. But God was not unrighteous to forget his work and labour of love, Heb. 6.10. though men were unthankful.…et us gratia …ormite. Pind. …er rar ò grati …periuntur. Cic.
Verſe 2. And is was found written] It was God who directed the Reader to that very place: like as he did the Eunuch to Eſay 53.7, 8. where reading of the meekneſſe of Jeſus Chriſt, he was transformed into the ſame image; as was likewiſe Johannes Iſaac a Jew, converted by reading the ſame chapter. Hoc ego ingenuè profiteor, ſaith he, Caput illud ad fidem Chriſti me adduxiſſe. This I confeſſe ingenuouſly, that lighting upon that chapter, I was brought thereby to the faith of Chriſt. Auſtin thought he heard a voice, ſaying, Tolle, lege, take up the Bible and reade: accordingly he took it up, and opening it, fell upon that text in the Romanes, chap. 13.14. which was the main meanes of his Converſion.
That Mordecai had told of Bigthana, &c.] See chap. 2.21.
Verſe 3. And the King ſaid, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this?] Lyra ſaith that he had waited ſix yeares for a reward, and had none. In Princes Courts men are ſure to meet with two evils, foreign and foreign, not ſo in heaven. The Butler forgate Joſeph. Solomon ſpeaketh of a poor wiſe man, who by his wiſdome delivered the City, yet no man remembred that ſame poor man, Eccl. 9.15. This is merces mundi, the worlds wages. Mordecai had ſaved the Kings life, and yet is unrewarded. The Kings of Perſia uſed to be very bountiful to thoſe that had well deſerved of them,…erod. l. 8. or of the Common-wealth: calling ſuch Oroſangae, and ſetting down both their names and their acts in the Chronicles, as Herodotus teſtifieth. Among the reſt he mentioneth one Phylacus, Qui inter benè de rege meritos aſcriptus eſt, & multo tractu ſoli donatus, …erod l. 3.who was put upon record for his good ſervice to the King, and rewarded with a great deal of land given him. Others had great ſtore of gold and ſilver, and a gallant houſe, as Democedes Crotoniates the Phyſician, who cured Darius, had at Suſis. It is well known out of Xenophon, what rich gifts Cyrus gave to his friends and followers, chains of gold,…ib 8 Cyro…ed. armelets, bridles boſſed with gold, Perſian Stoles, called Dorophoricae, &c. Herodotus telleth us, that this Ahaſhuerus (alias Xerxes) gave Megabyzus for his good ſervice at Babylon, a golden Mill weighing ſix talents. Plutarch writeth, that he gave Themiſtocles above two hundred talents, and three Cities beſides, (viz. Magneſia, Lampſacus and M…untis) to finde him food,…lut. in Themiſt. and for clothing and furniture two more, viz. Percos and Palaeſcepſis. How came it then to paſſe that good Mordecai was ſo forgotten? Surely it was a great fault in this ungrateful King, but Gods holy hand was in it, that Mordecai ſhould not have no preſent recompence, but that it ſhould be deferred till a fitter opportunity, when God might be more glorified in the preſervation of his people, and deſtruction of their enemies. Let us not therefore be weary of well-doing: for (however men deal by us) we ſhall be ſure to reap in due ſeaſon if we faint not, Gal. 6.9. God beſt ſeeth when a mercy will be moſt ſweet and ſeaſonable. When his people are low enough, and the enemy high enough, then uſually it appeareth, that there is a God that judgeth in the earth, and a rich reward for the righteous. Men may neither remunerate nor remember the good turnes we have done them: but there is a book of remembrance written before the Lord for all them that feare him, and that think upon his name, Mal. 3.16. See my Treatiſe on that text, called, The Righteous mans Recompence, annexed to my Comment upon the Small Ptophets.
Then ſaid the Kings ſervants] The Eunuches or Gentlemen of the bed-chamber: ingenuous men they were, and not diſaffected to Mordecai, whom yet they could not but know to be a great eye-ſore to Prince Haman. Si juvenes iſti vulgari invident… morbo laborâſſent, ſaith Lavater. If theſe young men had been ſick of that common diſeaſe of envy, they would have extenuated his good ſervice, and have ſaid, Mordecai is a deſpiſed Jew, a ſtranger, a captive. If he revealed the conſpiracy, he did but his duty, and provided thereby well for his own ſafety. Is it not reward enough that he lives, and at Court, where he hath a place, an office, &c? Courtiers, we know, love not to have others come over their heads, but think all loſt which themſelves acquire not,Q…icquid no… acquititur dan… num eſt. foreign: Xen. Cyrop. l. 8. Ep. Praeſ. Enarr. in Hoſ. as Seneca ſaith Sejanus did. We know how it was in the Courts of Pharaoh, Saul, Herod. That's a rare commendation that is given by Xenephon of Cyrus his Courtiers, that though a man ſhould ſeek or chooſe blindfold, he could not miſſe of a good man. Davids Court might very well be ſuch, Pſal. 101. and Queen Elizabeths, and George Prince of Anhalts, of whom Melancthon writeth, that his chamber was Eccleſia, Academia, Curia, a Church, an Univerſity, and a Court, Palaeſtra pietatis & literarum, as Tremelius ſaith of Cranmers family, a School of Piety and Learning.
There is nothing done for him] And yet the Apocryphal Additions, chap. 12. ver. 5.6. ſay otherwiſe.
Verſe 4. And the King ſaid, Who is in the Court] Joſephus ſaith, that he firſt asked, What a clock it was, and underſtanding that it was morn-light, (for ſo long he had heard his ſervants reade, and till then it was not that Mordecai's matter was mentioned, Haman being now ready to get a warrant for his execution) he asked, Who's there without? as deſirous to proceed by counſel in a buſineſſe of that conſequence.
Now Haman was come, &c.] He was early up, (and at Court for a miſchief) but never the nearer, ſave only to his own utter ruine.
To ſpeak to the King to hang Mordecai] Which till it were done, he could neither ſleep in quiet, nor eat with comfort. Little conſidered he how the Gallowes groaned for himſelf. The righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked cometh in his ſtead, Prov. 11.8.
Vivit adhuc Chriſtus, regnat, regnabit & uſque:
Atque hoſtes omnes ſub ditione premit.
Verſe 5. Behold Haman ſtandeth in the Court] For into the Preſence he might not come uncalled. And to be thus called in he held it no ſmall happineſſe; but was ſoon confuted. He came into the room (as men come to a Lottery) with his head full of hopes, but he went thence with his heart full of blanks.
And the King ſaid, let him come in] See here, ſaith Merlin, a ſweet and ſpecial Providence of God in this, that Ahaſhuerus ſhould take advice about honouring Mordecai, and not of his ſervants that attended upon his perſon, but of Haman then preſent, (though for another purpoſe) and, concealing the man he meant, ſhould make Haman ſay what was fit to be done, and then do it accordingly. Neither the King nor his ſervants likely, would ever have thought of doing Mordecai ſo great honour as Haman preſcribed. See here, as in a mirrour, how the Lord by a ſecret Providence bringeth about, and over-ruleth the wiles of men, their affaires, times, counſels, words and ſpeeches, to the fulfilling of his own Will and Decree; and this, when they think leaſt of doing Gods Will, or ſerving his Providence.
Verſe 6 So Haman came in] Merry and jocund, but went out ſad and heavy-hearted. Theſe hoaſts (profit, pleaſure and preferment) though they welcom us into our Inne with ſmiling countenances, yet if we watch them not, they will cut our throats in our beds. It is obſerved of Edward the third, that he had alwayes faire weather at his paſſage into France, …peed. Walſingham.and foule upon his return. Pharaoh had faire weather till he was in the heart of the red ſea. The Sun ſhone-faire upon the earth that morning that Lot came out of Sodom, but ere night there was a diſmal change. He that lives in the height of the worlds blandiſhments, is not far from deſtruction.
And the King ſaid unto him, What ſhall be done, &c.] Though the King knew of no difference betwixt Haman and Mordecai (ſaith a grave Interpreter) yet he ſuppreſſeth Mordecai's name: and thus the Lord by his Providence brought it about, that even Haman himſelf ſhould,Mr. Jackſon. to his greater vexation, appoint the honours that ſhould be done to Mordecai, and that at a time when he was come to deſire of the King that he might be hanged, and with full aſſurance that he ſhould have obtained his deſire.
Now Haman thought in his heart] Heb. ſaid in his heart; the language whereof God very well underſtood: and here uttereth, to the perpetual ſhame of this monſtrous Ambitioniſt.
To whom would the King delight to do honour more then to my ſelf?] Ambition (as they ſay of the Crocodile) groweth as long as it liveth; and ſelf-love, like to a good ſtomack, draws to it ſelf what nouriſhment it liketh, and caſts off that which offends it. It maketh men unreaſonable, and teacheth them to turne the glaſſe to ſee themſelves bigger,Herod. l. 8. others leſſer then they are. Herodotus reporteth, that after the Greeks had got the better of this Xerxes and his Perſians, and came together to divide the ſpoile, when it was put to the queſtion, who of all the Commanders had deſerved the beſt and chief reward? none would yield to other, but every man thought himſelf beſt deſerving, and ſecond to none.Aen. Sylv. In the battel at Belgrade, where Mahomet the great Turk was beaten and driven out of the field, Capiſtranus and Hunniades were the Chieftaines there. And whereas both of them wrote the relation of that dayes work, neither of them ſo much as once mentioned the other, (though both of them had done their parts gallantly,) but each one took the whole praiſe of it to himſelfe. Haman, though altogether unworthy of the leaſt reſpect, yet holds himſelf beſt worthy of the greateſt honours, and therefore will be ſure to be no niggard in adviſing thoſe ceremonies of honour, which he preſumes meant to his own perſon.
Verſe 7. And Haman anſwered the King] After a ſhort pauſe, he had his anſwer ready; but making a bridge of his own ſhadow, he ſoon fell into the brook. Ambition rideth without reines, and like thoſe horſes, Amos 6.11. runneth upon the rocks, where firſt ſhe breaks her hoofes, and then her neck. It ſeemeth by that which followeth, that Haman aſpired to the Kingdome: why elſe did he ask the Crown-royal, and the Kings horſe, &c? When David would declare Solomon his ſucceſſour in the Kingdom, he ſet him upon his own mule, 1 Kings 1.33. But Haman little thought that thoſe his high hopes ſhould end in a rope. So did Hanno's the Carthaginian, and Roger Mortimers in King Edward the ſecond his time, and the falſe Edrick in King Knute's dayes: and laſtly Hadrian de Caſt…llo, an Italian Legate, made by King Henry the ſeventh, Biſhop of Hereford, who conſpired with Alphonſo Petruccio, and other ſacred Cardinals, to murther Pope Leo the tenth, induced thereunto by the ſuggeſtion of a witch, who foretold him, that one Hadrian an old man, of mean Parentage, of great learning and wiſdome, ſhould ſucceed in the Papacy;Paul. Jovius. the man (Haman-like) thought it muſt needs be himſelf: but another Hadrian Schoolmaſter to Charles the fifth proved to be the man: and this our Hadrian loſt by deprivation all his promotions whatſoever, (for his life could not be come at) for his nefarious attempt.
For the man whom the King delighteth to honour] Heb. In whoſe honour the King delighteth. And what will not delight do whether in good or evil? See the Note on Micah 7.18.
Verſe 8. Let the royal apparel be brought, &c.] This was very glorious and gorgeous;Xenoph. l. 8 Plut l. 11. defort Alex. Luc de navig. Dion. …rat. de … & lib Curt l. 3. & 6. as is to be ſeen in Xenophon, Plutarch, Lucian, Dion, Chryſoſtome, and other good Authours. The Perſian Kings wore on their heads an upright Tiare or Turbant very ſumptuous; a Diademe alſo made of white and purple colour. On their bodies a rich purple Stole, or robe of State, reac… down to the heeles: this Curtius calleth pallam Perſicam, a Perſian Pall, beſet with gold and precious ſtones, great ſtore, and the pictures of wilde creatures and ſoules of the aire. Curtius deſcribing Xerxes his royal apparel, ſaith, that golden hawkes encountring one another with their beakes adorned his robe made of cloth of gold. Beſides, they wore a rich Caſſock (called Candy) bound to them with a golden girdle, breeches alſo of ſcarlet, reaching to their knees;Ep. ad Fabi… called therefore by the Greeks, foreign, as Hierome teſtifieth.
And the horſe that the King rideth upon] The King of Perſia did alwayes ride, either on horſeback, or in a charet, and had one ſpecial horſe proper to himſelf, as had alſo David, 1 Kings 1.33. Alexander, Julius Caeſar, &c. At this day the better ſort in Perſia fight, buy, ſell, confer, and do all on horſeback.Cort…r. trav… 63. The difference between the Gentleman and the Peaſant is, that the Peaſant never rides, the Gentleman never goes on foot.
And the Crown-royal that is ſet upon his head] This was monſtrous ambition: appoint him the Kingdom alſo, might Ahaſhuerus have ſaid. Lyra noteth here, that Haman aſpired to the Kingdom, becauſe none but the King could have the Crown-royal ſet upon his head: wherefore the King alſo in anſwering to the things propounded by him, ſaith, Take the robe and the horſe as thou haſt ſaid, but of the Crown he maketh no mention. Some of the Hebrews by head here underſtand the horſes head; Nam apud Perſas ſolebat equus deferre diadema regni, the Kings horſe was wont to carry the royal Crown. Vatablus thinks this ſenſe not unlikely, becauſe the Crown is not mentioned, verſe 11. and this might alſo peradventure be the cuſtome and faſhion of Perſia, ſaith Diodate. Merlin noteth here, that Haman maketh no mention of rewards or gifts to be conferred upon him, becauſe he had wealth enough already, and deſired only more honours, inſtancing the utmoſt that could be done to any ſubject, in ſeeking whereof he miſerably failed.
Verſe 9. And let this apparel and horſe be delivered, &c.] All muſt be done in ampleſt manner: and if it had been done to himſelf as he deſired,Fortè ampli… …uiſſet, niſi v… ri…as eſſet re… ſuſpicione n… tiquàm care… Lavat. what had all that been but a magnum nihil, as one ſaith, a great nothing, a glorious fancie, a rattle to ſtill his ambition for a while? He, ſimple man, had wrought himſelf into the fooles paradiſe of a ſublime dotage, like as the Spaniards have in their dream of a Catholick Monarchy, divinitus debita, ſaith one, ſed in Ʋtopia. They were laughed at a good by Captain Drake, and his company, when they took Sancta Domingo. Anno 1585. and in the Town-Hall found the King of Spaines armes, and under them a Globe of the world, out of which aroſe a horſe with his fore-feet caſt forth with this Inſcription, Non ſufficit orbis. Pyrrhus, that ambitious King of Epirotes, had the like thought; but was ſlain at laſt with a tileſtone thrown upon his head by a woman. And a like evil end befel Caeſar Borgia, who in imitation of Julius Caeſar, would needs be, aut Caeſar, aut nullus, and ſoon after proved to be Et Caeſar, & nullus. Had Haman but contented himſelf with his preſent condition (too good for ſuch a Caitiffe) he might have lived in the worlds account happily, and have called himſelf as that French King did Treſheureuſe, thrice bleſſed, but that inſatiable thirſt after honour, that gluttonous exceſſive deſire after more and more greatneſſe undid him. So true is that Proverb of the Ancients, Turdus ipſe ſibi malum cacat, Of the black birds dung is made the lime wherewith he is taken, ſo out of the dung of mens ſinnes doth God make his lime-twigs of judgement to take them withal.
To one of the Kings moſt noble Princes] Principibus majoribus paratimis. This would be no ſmall addition to the honour of the man, and ſplendour of the day, like as it was here in England, when Henry the ſecond, at the Coronation of his eldeſt ſonne, renounced the name of a King for that day, and, as Sewer, ſerved at the Table.
That they may aray the man withal] Setting him forth to the greateſt advantage: as our Henry the ſixth did, when he crowned the Lord Beauch…mp King of the Iſle of Wight, and as Xerxes did Demaratus, Sen. l. 6. de…when for honours ſake he granted him to enter into Sardis, the chief City of Aſia, arayed like himſelf, with a ſtraight Tiare upon his head, which none might wear but Kings only.
Through the ſtreet of the City] Of Suſa, that he might be ſeen and cried up by mamy, for Honor eſt in honorante. As the Meteor liveth in the aire, ſo doth honour in the breath of other men. Plato reckoneth it among thoſe dei ludibria quae ſurſum ac deorſum ſub coelo feruntur, like tennis-balls bandied up and down from one to another.
Verſe 10. Then the King ſaid to Haman] The King had no intent herein to enſnare Haman, or croſſe his humour, but God had a hand in it for the effecting of his own ends, which cannot but be ever exceeding good, ſith his will is not only recta but regula.
Make haſte, and take the aparel, and the horſe, &c.] Here was no time left him of deliberation, or liberty of contradiction, diſpute he muſt not, but diſpatch what was given him in charge. Had he had but the leaſt breathing-while, that ſtepping out of the preſence he might have conſidered with himſelfe, or conſulted with his friends, he would either have fained himſelf ſick, or found ſome other excuſe, that he might not have done his enemy this honour. But God had ſo ordered it, and the King commanded it to be done forthwith; it was not therefore for Haman, vel reſponſare, velrepugnare, to chat or chafe, unleſſe he would run the hazard of all; for, Where the word of a King is, there is power; and who may ſay unto him, What doſt thou?
And do even ſo to Mordecai the Jew] This word ſtabb'd Haman to the heart, who had run many great hazards doubtleſſe to dominere in his undeſerved dignities; and now muſt perforce honour him whom he had hoped to have hanged; cloath him whom he hoped to have ſtripped; help him up to his horſe, upon whoſe grave he hoped to have danced; prepare a triumph for him, for whom he had prepared a tree; make Proclamation before him as a Crier lead his horſe as a Lacquey, do all offices for him as a ſlave or underling: Oh what a cut, what a Cordolium was this to a man of his metal and making! It was wonder his heart burſt not, as did Achitophels, for pride ſo ſwelleth the ſoul many times, that it breaketh the caſe, the body I mean, and endeth the life: but this had been here to have ſaved the Hangman a labour. But baſe ſpirits will buckle, and fall down to riſe, crouch and creep to mount, &c.
That ſitteth at the Kings gate] There you ſhall have him, and ſee that you miſtake him not. Haman knew him well enough by his ſtiffeneſſe and ſtoutneſſe, and wiſhed him of all the men in the world out of the world.
Let nothing faile of all that thou haſt ſpoken] Perquàm hoc durum eſt, ſed ita lex ſcripta eſt, ſaith the Civil Lawyer, this was an hard ſaying, and as hard meat to Hamans ſtomack that would ill go down, but there was no help for it, himſelf had adviſed it, and muſt therefore ſpeedily execute it. Lata negligentia dolus eſt, ſayes the Lawyer: remiſſeneſs is a kinde of perfidiouſneſſe. Excuſes would have been conſtrued for refuſals, delayes for denials, &c.
Verſe 11. Then took Haman the aparel, &c.] Full ſore againſt ſtomack be ſure, But how could he help it? Thus God compelleth the devil and his limbes ſometimes, though againſt their wills, to ſerve him and his ſervants, Canes lingunt ulcera Lazari: Saul pronounceth David more righteous then he; Judas and Pilate give teſtimony to Chriſts innocency. Theſe are the ſervants of the High God, which ſhew unto us the way of ſalvation, ſaid the Pythoniſſe concerning Paul and his companions, Acts 16.17.
And arayed Mordecai] Whoſe heart he could rather have torne out, and eaten it with ſalt. But Courtiers are uſually notable Diſſemblers, cunning Politicians, &c. How buſie is Haman now about Mordecai to aray him, to mount him, and to attend upon him, whom yet he hated and inwardly curſed to the pit of hell? Cavete ab oſculo Iſcariotico, ab officio Hamanitico. Beware of men, Matth. 10. Joſephus telleth us, that when Haman came to do theſe things to Mordecai, he (thinking that he had mocked him) anſwered with indignation, Thou moſt wicked man, doeſt thou thus inſult over the miſerable. But when he had told him, that indeed it was the Kings pleaſure, he ſuffered him to do it. But what ſhall we ſay to reconcile thoſe croſſe paſſions in Ahaſhucrus? Before he ſigned that decree of killing all the Jewes, he could not but know that a Jew had ſaved his life: and now after that he had enacted the ſlaughter of all the Jewes as rebels,…. Hall. he giveth order to honour a Jew as his Preſerver. It were ſtrange (ſaith a right Reverend Writer hereupon) if great perſons in the multitude of their diſtractions, ſhould not let fall ſome incongruities.
And brought him on horſeback] Whom before he could not endure to ſee ſitting at the Court-gate. A great trouble it was to Haman to lead Mordecai's horſe, which another man would not have thought ſo, the moving of a ſtraw troubleth proud fleſh, &c.
Thorough the ſtreets of the City] Where all men were now in an amazement at that ſudden glory of Mordecai, and ſtudy how to reconcile this day with the thirteenth of Adar.
And proclaimed before him] Not without an honourable mention made of his loyalty and fidelity to the King, the cauſe of that great honour. This Haman was forced to proclaim, and that on foot as a ſervant: when Mordecai as a Prince in his ſtate was on horſeback. It is probable, that Haman thought within himſelf, that he ſhould ſhortly have his penniworths of that vile varlet, whom now he thus far honoured, and that haply ere night yet, at the feaſt, he might prevaile with the King to do by Mordecai, as once he did by his Steerſman, when he came back with ſhame and loſſe from his warres with Greece. He was forced, ſaith the Hiſtory, to flie back in a poor Fiſhers boat: which being over-burdened had ſunk all, if the Perſians by caſting away themſelves had not ſaved the life of their King: the loſſe of which noble ſpirits ſo vexed him, that having given the Steerſman a golden Coronet for preſerving his own life, he commanded him to execution as a Co-Authour of the death of his ſervants.
Verſe 12. And Mordecai came again to the Kings gate] No whit over-joyed of his new honour, or puffed up thereby (as many would have been, a ſmall winde bloweth up a bubble) only he conceiveth hope thereby of a better condition, and taketh every former mercy for a pledge of a future: this experience breedeth confidence. He doth not ruſh into the Court at his return, and reach after an higher room, but came again to the Kings gate, where his office was, and his buſineſſe lay: he took up alſo, as ſome think, his old habit again: (the Kings apparel and horſe being reſtored to the right owner, he had as little delight in it, as David once had of Sauls armour;) but it is rather probable, ſaith an Expoſitour, that he now left that off, being full of hope, that as God had heard his prayers, to bring him out of danger, and to high honour: ſo he ſhould now, be able to help his brethren the Jewes out of theirs alſo. Mean-while he doth not envie his ſuperiours, inſult over his inferiours, trouble his equals, threaten his enemies, &c. but committeth himſelf and all his affairs to Gods good pleaſure and Providence and this is the guiſe of a godly man, Pſal. 131.1, 2.
But Haman haſted to his houſe mourning] Or, vexed at heart, fretting within himſelfe, that he was ſo very much diſappointed. Merrily he made account to have gone to the Queens feaſt, when he had firſt truſſed up Mordecai. Of which not only miſſing, but made to do him publike honour in that ſort, and that by his own direction, this gall'd him and grieved him above meaſure; ſo bladder-like is the foul of an unregenerate man, that filled with earthly vanities, though but winde, it growes great, and ſwells in pride: but if prick't with the leaſt pin of piercing grief, it ſhriveleth to nothing.
And having his head covered] With his cap pulled over his eyes, as aſhamed to look any one in the face. See, 2 Sam. 15.30. Jer. 14.4.
Verſe 13. And Haman told Zereſh his wife, and all his friends] Expecting comfort and counſel from them, but they read him his deſtiny, and adde to his grief and deſparation: letting him know, that his ſtate was ſuch, as that there was neither hope of better, nor place of worſe: a juſt hand of God upon ſuch an hard-hearted wretch, that had plotted the ruine of ſo many innocents. And this his wife and friends, had they done well, ſhould have minded him of, and ſtirred him up to repent of his wickedneſſe againſt God, the cauſe of his preſent wretchedneſſe, to be reconciled to Mordecai, whom he and they plainly ſaw to be Gods Favourite, and now the Kings alſo) to take down that ugly Gallowes, (that there were no further notice taken of it) the evidence and enſign of his inſufferable pride, and their unſavoury counſel, to get the decree for the Jewes Maſſacre reverſed or countermanded, &c. But not a word find we of any thing this way tending. Graceleſſe people neither have God in their heads, Pſal. 10.4. nor hearts, Pſal. 14.1. nor words, Pſal. 12.4. nor wayes, Tit. 1.16. but ſtand in a poſture of diſtance, nay defiance: walking contrary to him, and therefore he alſo to cry quittance, walketh contrary to them, Lev. 26. ſhewing himſelf as froward as they for the hearts of them, Pſal. 18.26.
Every thing that had befallen him] The ſad accidents of that day, nothing now (as once, chap. 5.11.) boaſteth he to them of the glory of his riches, and multitude of his children, and how the King had advanced him above all his other Courtiers. Hamans …rowing was now turned into crying, &c.
Then ſaid his wife men] Wizards haply, ſuch as he made uſe of when he caſt Pur for a luckie day, and into whoſe mouthes the devil might put this anſwer. It is his uſe to bring his impes into the briars, and there to leave them, as he did Saul, (whoſe Funeral Sermon he preached, and Judas, Julian, Valens and others.
And Zereſh his wife ſaid unto him] She is noted for a prudent woman; but here ſhe proves as cold a comforter, as before ſhe had been an evil counſellour.
If Mordecai be of the ſeed of the Jewes] A Nation noted for dear to God, often delivered by him, and that had alſo the faculty of gaining the good-will of Princes, by their excellent vertues, as it had been ſeen in Daniel and his companions, in Jechoniah, Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and the whole Nation, ſo graciouſly licenſed by Cyrus to return into their own Countrey. It is a good Note that one gives here, A Jew may fall before a Perſian, and get up and prevail: but if a Perſian, or whoſoever of the Gentiles begin to fall before a Jew, he can neither ſtay nor riſe, &c.
Thou ſhalt not prevaile againſt him] But why did they not tell him this before, ſith they knew as well as Haman, that Mordecai was of the ſeed of the Jewes, and therefore adviſed him to prepare ſuch a huge Gallowes? Surely, he that had ſo flattered himſelf, deſerved to be ſo flattered and undone by others: he that had given ſo evil counſel to the King againſt the Jewes, deſerved by ſuch evil counſellours to be caſt into ſtraits, and have no hand to help him out; they lead him to his bane, and there leave him: as familiars do their witches, when they have once brought them into fetters.
But ſhalt ſurely fall before him] Thus is Haman judged of all, condemned by all, and this with ſo great aſſurance of ſuch an event, as if they had ſeen it. Ʋtique coram eo concides. Thou ſhalt ſurely fall before him, and that irrecoverably: as Eli fell, and as thoſe idolaters are threatened, Amos 8.14. The Hebrew is, falling thou ſhalt fall, viz. to the loweſt and utmoſt ebbe of diſgrace and miſery, foreign.
Verſe 14. And while they were yet talking with him] But could not yield him one word of comfort. He hoped haply that they would have found out for him ſome good occaſion, ſome mean of ſupplanting Mordecai, now his Corival and Counter-factioniſt, and of incenſing the King againſt him, that he might build upon his ruines. But the hope of unjuſt men ſhall periſh, Prov. 11.7. (Etiam ſpes valentiſſimo perit, ſo ſome render it,) and themſelves with it. As Haman had not one to ſpeak for him, when the King frowned upon him: ſo here he hath not one to ſpeak to his heart, or to ſhoare him up, now that he is upon the fall.foreign. 1 Cor. 3.19. Thoſe that before took crafty counſel againſt Gods people, and conſulted againſt his hidden ones, Pſal. 83.3. are now at their wits end, as ſeeing themſelves taken (as wilde beaſts in a ſnare,) in their own craftineſſe, yea, they are mad for the ſight of their eyes, which that day they ſhould ſee, Deut. 28.34.
Came the Kings Chamberlaines, and haſted to bring Haman Heb. and hurried and headlonged in a turbulent manner: for it may be the King and Queen tarried for him. Could he have been any way excuſed, he had no ſuch minde to have gone. For his ſtomack was full, and what if he ſhould meet Mordecai the new Favourite there, and ſee him ſet above him? But now it is no time to conſult further with friends, or caſt perils by himſelf.Lib. 1 l. c. 6. Harbonah haſteneth him, having firſt taken notice of the lofty Gallowes, and (as Joſephus ſaith) asked of one of the ſervants of the houſe what it meant, and for whom it was prepared? See chap. 7.9.
Ʋnto the banquet that Eſther had prepared] That fatal feaſt, Ʋbi manducaret quod apud inferos digereret, Au…guſt.where his meat in his bowels was turned, it became the gall of aſpes within him, Job 20.14. why then ſhould any Saint envy the wicked man his fed bits, his murthering morſels? is not his meat ſawced, his drink ſpiced with the bitter wrath of God? Adoniah's feaſt ended in horrour: the eares of his gueſts were filled, (becauſe their bellies had prepared deceit, Job 15.35.) with the ſound of thoſe trumpets, which at once proclaim Solomons triumph, and their confuſion. Ever after the meale is ended, comes the reckoning; but at this banquet of Eſther it came before, chap. 7.2. And Haman ſped not ſo well as Caeſar Borgia's Nobles, whom he invited to a feaſt, and after they had well d…ned, he cut off their heads.