A current fad in collectibles is game-worn equipment – jerseys, gloves, mitts, or anything else a player actually wore during an actual game.  I was reminded of this recently at the Lansing Lugnuts store, where a rack of shirts are available for purchase.  They must have been authentic; they had grass stains on the shoulders.

It turns out this is not a new idea.  We see an example in the book of Esther, full of intrigue and God’s working at just the right time in multiple ways.  Way back in chapter 2, Mordecai the Jew, uncle of Esther, had reported a plot against the king.  The event was forgotten but recorded in the Book of Memorable Deeds – an archivist’s dream tome!  Chapter 6 begins late one night when the king couldn’t sleep and started checking out the cool deeds book; he came across the Mordecai story and determined to honor the man.

The next day, Haman the Jew hater who had created a huge gallows for hanging Mordecai because the Jew would not bow down to him, walked in to the castle just in time to hear the king’s question about what should be done to ‘him whom the king desires to honor.’  The king is thinking Mordecai, Haman is thinking himself.  Haman describes the ostentatious activities he would like, including a crown, parading on a fine horse, and being escorted by a nobleman who proclaimed the recipient’s honor to all.

In verse 8.8, the game-worn articles are included in the package: “let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden…”  You may think game gear is in the Bible, so it must be a good thing.  But remember that Haman’s ideas were generally bad, and the real hero of the story was God, who worked all things together for good for his people.