Haman's rise engineered for his fall

גדל המלך כו' את המן.

"King [Achashverosh] promoted Haman" (Esther 3:1).

The Sefas Emes opens with the verse describing Haman's sudden, astonishing elevation to power.

במדרש הטעם עפ"י משל שיהי' שם למפלה שלו ע"ש.

In the Midrash the reason is given by way of a parable — that it was so that there would be a place for his downfall — see there.

Chazal explain via a mashal that Haman was raised so high precisely so that his eventual fall would be all the greater and more public.

וכזה לא מצינו שיהי' הרצון בשמים לכבוד כזה.

And the like of this we do not find — that the ratzon (will) in Heaven would be for such honor [to be given to a wicked man].

It is unusual; Heaven does not ordinarily will that a rasha be granted such glory for its own sake.

רק כי הכל במדה ובמשפט על אשר כן נהג אותו רשע כמ"ש ויבז בעיניו לשלוח יד במרדכי.

Rather, everything is by measure and by justice, on account of how that wicked man conducted himself, as it says: "and it was contemptible in his eyes to lay a hand on Mordechai alone" (Esther 3:6).

Haman's elevation was a precise, measured act of divine justice (middah k'neged middah), set in motion by his own arrogance — his scorn that drove him to seek the destruction of an entire people rather than one man.

ע"כ עלה בדעתו לאבד את כל היהודים.

Therefore it arose in his mind to destroy all the Jews.

His disdain for Mordechai swelled into a plot to annihilate the entire Jewish people.

כן הי' הנקמה ממנו לנשאהו על כל השרים והיו כל הקליפות נכנעים תחתיו.

So too was the retribution against him: to raise him above all the ministers, with all the kelipos (forces of impurity) subdued beneath him.

The very vengeance against Haman took the form of his exaltation — he was lifted above all the officials, and all the forces of impurity were gathered and concentrated under his rule.

ובמפלה שלו היה ירידה לכולם ונתרומם קרן ישראל:

And in his downfall there was a descent for all of them, and the horn (keren) of Yisrael was lifted up.

Because all the forces of impurity were concentrated in him, his single collapse brought them all down together — and through that very downfall the glory and strength of Bnei Yisrael was raised on high.

Summary: Haman's extraordinary rise was not a sign of Heavenly favor but an act of precise divine justice: he was elevated above all the ministers, with all the forces of impurity concentrated beneath him, specifically so that his downfall would topple them all at once. His own arrogance toward Mordechai set this in motion, and through his measured fall the keren of Bnei Yisrael was raised up.