This was Haman’s response to the king when he asked how to honor one of his subjects. Haman outlined the highest royal recognition possible because he thought the king intended to honor him.

To be allowed to ride the king’s horse while dressed in a royal robe that had been worn by the king himself was almost as great a privilege as to sit upon the king’s throne. And to be paraded through the streets of the capital city so everyone could see how important you were made the recognition even sweeter.

Did this honor involve wearing the king’s crown? Probably not. The reference to the “crown royal” in the King James Version is probably to the royal crest engraved on the bridle or headdress of the horse. The New International Version translates this passage as “a horse the king has ridden, one with a royal crest placed on its head” (Esther 6:8).

The irony of Haman’s suggested recognition is that it was carried out to the letter-but it was accorded not to him but to his enemy, Mordecai the Jew. And Haman was assigned the responsibility of seeing that it was done (Esther 6:10-11).

Esther 6:8-9 – Let the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to wear, and the horse that the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head. . .array the man withal whom the king delighteth to honor, and bring him on horseback through the streets of the city.