当哈曼央求王后救他一命时，以斯帖正靠在榻上。此时，怒火中烧的王正回到宫里来，而他所看见的，似乎是哈曼在凌辱王后！
以斯帖没有尝试向王解释，她选择让哈曼承受自己愚昧所带来的后果。不久哈曼便被挂在他为末底改预备的木架上了。
愚昧人是屡教不改的，如同箴言 26:3, 11所说，“鞭子是为打马，辔头是为勒马驴，刑杖是为打愚昧人的背。…愚昧人行愚妄事，行了又行，就如狗转过来吃它所吐的”。
与犹大人为敌的哈曼，是一个才智机灵的人。他可以精明地管理国家大事，甚至说服王下旨灭绝犹大人——而原因只是他憎恨一个犹大人：末底改。可是，哈曼这个聪明人，却也愚昧不堪，而愚昧人总是不知道何时应该收敛一下。
愚昧人过于相信自己处事的技巧。他们在各方面都深思熟虑，又很有心机地结交朋友。他们行事，就像这个世界“没有神” （诗篇 14:1）一样，他们忘记了“耶和华所造的，各适其用，就是恶人，也为祸患的日子所造” （箴言 16:4）。
当我们每天与人交往时，无论是家人、邻居、同事、还是其他人，惟愿我们都能时常以智慧行事。
主啊，感谢祢，因为基督的智慧已经胜过了世人的愚昧。奉耶稣的名祈求，阿们。
以斯帖记 7:5-10 Esther 7:5-10
5亚哈随鲁王问王后以斯帖说：“擅敢起意如此行的是谁？这人在哪里呢？”
6以斯帖说：“仇人敌人就是这恶人哈曼！” 哈曼在王和王后面前就甚惊惶。
7王便大怒，起来离开酒席往御园去了。哈曼见王定意要加罪与他，就起来，求王后以斯帖救命。
8王从御园回到酒席之处，见哈曼伏在以斯帖所靠的榻上；王说：“他竟敢在宫内、在我面前凌辱王后吗？”这话一出王口，人就蒙了哈曼的脸。
9伺候王的一个太监名叫哈波拿，说：“哈曼为那救王有功的末底改做了五丈高的木架，现今立在哈曼家里。”王说：“把哈曼挂在其上。”
10于是人将哈曼挂在他为末底改所预备的木架上。王的忿怒这才止息。
The Consequences Of Folly
As Haman begs the queen for his life, she is reclining on a couch. We know that Haman is pleading with her, but when the king returns, still fuming with anger, it looks to him as if Haman is now trying to molest the queen!
Esther does not try to correct that impression. She abandons Haman to the consequences of his folly, and he is soon impaled on the pole he has intended for Mordecai.
Fools are incorrigible: “A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools! ... As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly” (Proverbs 26:3, 11).
Haman, the enemy of the Jews, was an intelligent man. He shrewdly arranged the affairs of state, even managing to get the king to decree death for all the Jews—because he hated one Jew in particular: Mordecai. Haman was smart, but he was also a fool—and fools seldom know when to stop.
Fools confide in their management skills; they’ve got all bases covered and keep friends in the right places. They behave as if “there is no God” (Psalm 14:1). They forget that “the LORD works out everything to its proper end, even the wicked for a day of ¬disaster” (Proverbs 16:4).
As we interact with people each day—whether they are family members, neighbors, coworkers, or others, let us always seek to act wisely.
Thank you, Lord, for the wisdom of Christ that has overcome the foolishness of the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
诵读: 楚云
片头: 张妙阳
