Haman [Hā'man]—well disposed. The son of Hammedatha, the chief minister of king Ahasuerus, who is called the Agagite because of his Amalekitish descent (Esther 3:1-5).

The Man Who Hated Jews

Haman, an oriental despot’s favorite, had an innate passion for elevation. He never considered principle when seeking the king’s honor. But Mordecai pricked Haman’s bubble and would not bow to him. How could he honor an Amalekite whom God had cursed (Exod. 17:14-16)! All of Haman’s tragedy is condensed in the arrestive designation—he was the Jews'enemy. As the first great anti-semite, he came to prove that they who curse the Jews are cursed of God.

Haman, the vain and fussy courtier, the vulgar and unwise upstart, the cruel enemy of the Jews, the villain of the plot, is a name still hated by the Jews. Long ago at The Feast of Purim, it was customary to hang an effigy of Haman; but as the gibbet was sometimes made in the form of a cross, riots between Jews and Christians were the result, and a warning against insults to the Christian faith was issued by the Emporer Theodosius II. The Jews, however, in The Feast of Purim still celebrate their victory from annihilation by Haman.