Lc-Rsons :-1. In the larger, bolder, blacker portrait of Haman is there not soma i;em~lane~ of self, when, amid opportunities and advantages innumerable, comforts and Joys !nnumerable, bright prospects and hopes innumerable, we put them all far from us Just because everything conceivable is not to our mind. 2. We aro prone to share the perverse nature of Haman when, as mere matter of fact we overlook a thousand mercies we possess in favour of keenly noticing the absende of one with- held, like Eden's a~ple, or v,ithdrawn after long enjoyment of it. 3. ,ve are prone to share the 1i11,.frm:tf11J, nature of Haman. No fact has come to be better ascertained in human life than this, that it is not those who have most who g·ive most. The greatest opportunity often witnesses the least improvement of it.-B.
Ver. 13.--Unava_ili:ng honour. "Yet all this. availeth me nothing, so long," &c. How many look with envy upon Haman as he ndes forth. His servants hasten on before him, Cl');ng, "Bow the knee, bov, the knee." Grateful to him is the reverence he receives. He cares not that it is reverence lacking respect, so long as there is out,vard obeisance. Such an one is sure to observe the least slight. His temper will not endure to see one erect head among so many bowed backs. I. THE CAUSE OF A PRIME MINISTER'S DISCONTENT. One day Haman, as he goes forth, cannot help seeing that there is one who bows not before him. He pretends not to see the slight, but with difficulty he refrains from commanding his attendants to inflict summary vengeance on the offender. Mordecai thus treated Haman not only once, but constantly. It has been suggested that as the king claimed in some sense Divine honours, so by his command be intended that Haman should have in some degree Divine honour paid to him. Knowing this, Mordecai dare not bend. Some may have called it obstinacy, but it was in reality consistency. Allurements and threats are tried upon him, but in vain. Now if Mordecai refused honour to whom honour was due, he was in the wrong. None may practise incivility. Re- ligion teaches us that we should "be courteous." .After all, what a trifle it was that vexed the mind of this grand vizier I It was the one drop of poison in the cup of his joy. It was the black cloud glooming the sunshine of his prosperity. Although he has attained an elevation that may at one time have seemed far beyond his reach, he finds that thorns bestrew his path, and even leave their sharp points on his pillow. II. MODERN INSTA..""ICES OF' SIMILAR DISCONTENT. Who that looked upon Haman as he rode forth in all the glory of purple and gold, or as he lounged on his divan in the midst of his friends, would have supposed that he had anything to cause him so much annoyance? And yet is it not always so? There is a sk(llcton in every house, the worm in every rose, sorrow in every heart. Look at thati stately mansion; see how richly it is furnished ; pictures of the choicest character deck the walls ; busts and antiques are here and there ; the velvety carpet feels like a mossy bank beneath the feet. Ask the occupants of the mansion if they are content, and per- haps the owner will tell you, "All this availeth me nothing," so long as my neigh- bour on the hill has a honse larger and better furnished. The wife will perhaps tell you that " all this availeth nothing," so long a~ a certain family is_ acco~ted as higher in the social scale than hers ; or because at a dinner-party she noticed with annoyance that some one had taken precedence of herself ; or because she had not been invited to some great gathering where certain persons of higher rank were expected. The vexa- tions of the weak-minded and exclusive are more than equal to those of the excludecl.. The petty social, fanciful annoyances oft make all comforts and possessions to " avail nothing" in the production of real happiness. Enter the shop of that trades- man. What a large business he carries on; yet he in his soul is not happy. He ie envious. He will confess to himself, if not to you, "All this availeth me nothing," eo long as a certain competitor in the same business can buy cheaper, or make money more rapidly. Go along a country road, and note some pretty homestead nestling among the trees ; surely that must be the abode of content and peace I You approach it. Meeting the occupant thereof, you congra~ulate him on the beauty of hie dwelling-place an1 on t~e charm of th~ surrounding hills ; he~ haggard and worn, only replies, "All this availeth me nothmg." L~ok at my ne1gh!1our's barn, how much larger, and his crops, how much finer than mme. So the warrior or statesman, CII. VI. 1-14.] THE BOOK OF ESTHER. 116
the preacher and the potentate, o.re often alike discontented. They are diRRatisfied successful men. The blesRin~s o.nd privileges they possess are nothing • the trifling lack or o.nnoyo.nce is everythmg. Their state is aR sinful as it is mise;able. They o.re lineo.l descendo.nts of Haman the Agagite. All the joys, honours comforts of the world are after 1111 only "o.s o. lamp that goetb out, leaving a disagr~eable smell; whereas the peace which flows from an eternal God is like a sun which shineth morn and more to the perfect day." To prefer the world to heavenly and spiritual delights is to act according to the folly of one who, being heir to a kingdom, should yet prefer some map or model to the kingdom itself. How easily might the map be torn or the model be broken I The poeeeeeion of the kingdom of heaven in the heart can never be destroyed. Those who poseees it will not make Haman's con- feeeion, "All this availeth me nothing." They will eay rather, "Seeking first the kingdom of heaven and ite righteoueneee, all other things are added thereunto. "-H.