Who Was Haman in the Bible — Meaning Explained

Haman was an Agagite — a descendant of Agag, king of the Amalekites whom Saul had failed to destroy. King Ahasuerus promoted Haman above all his other officials and commanded everyone to bow before him. But Mordecai the Jew refused. Enraged, Haman determined not merely to punish Mordecai but to destroy all the Jews throughout the Persian Empire. He cast lots (purim) to choose a date and convinced the king to issue a decree of genocide. Haman even built a gallows fifty cubits high on which to hang Mordecai. But through Esther's courage and the king's favor, the plot was exposed. Haman was hanged on the very gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. His ten sons were also executed, and his estate was given to Esther. Haman stands as a biblical type of the ultimate enemy of God's people — proud, anti-Semitic, and self-destroyed by his own schemes.