We are rapidly approaching a lesser known, and yet still important Holiday for the Jewish people, the day known as Purim. This year, Purim falls on March 10/11th, 2020 (Adar 14 on the Jewish Calendar). Purim is a joyous holiday that commemorates the survival of the Jewish people in the 5th Century, BC, who had been marked for total annihilation by the Persian rulers. This Holiday is particularly poignant to the Jewish people because of the frequency that the current Iranian (Persian) regime threatens to “wipe Israel off of the map”. Purim, a Biblical feast from the book of Esther….
2025: March 13-15
2026: March 2-4
2027: March 22-24
2028: March 9 and 11-12
2029: February 28 – March 1
Let’s take a look at the story behind Purim to see what important truths we can glean for our lives today. The story behind Purim is located in the Old Testament book of Esther. It is really an awesome, and frankly an exciting and TRUE story, about love, betrayal, and intrigue. This story involves kings and kingdoms, young beautiful maidens, righteous heroes, and evil villains. Like all the stories in the Bible, Esther is one of the greatest stories ever told. It is the stuff that blockbuster movies are made of.
One unique aspect of the book of Esther is that it is the ONLY book of the Bible that does NOT directly mention God…ever. God’s Name remains absent, along with references to worship and prayer, yet His Hand is undeniably present throughout this narrative.…as an integral part of HIS STORY.
What is the story of Esther all about? First, let’s set the stage.
The Setting for the book of Esther….
In the 5th Century, at the time that the Persians had conquered Babylon as the new Global power, Israel was still living in the Diaspora. The Diaspora is a description of the dispersion of the Jewish people outside of the land of Israel.
About 150 years earlier, in the 6th Century BC, Israel had been divided into 2 separate nations. Israel was located in the north of the land of Canaan (otherwise known as Ephraim) and Judah in the South (Jerusalem). Due to continued sin, and in conjunction with the agreed upon penalties for breaking the Mosaic Covenant that had been clearly laid out in the days of Moses (Deuteronomy 28:64), both Israel (Ephraim) and Judah (Jerusalem) were eventually sent into exile. The punishment of exile is always the final and most severe punishment for rebellion against God.
Exile of the Northern Tribes of Israel (Ephraim)
The ten northern tribes of Israel were exiled into Assyria c 722BC and the vast majority of the Israelites were eventually spread to the 4 corners of the earth. The book of Hosea describes their fate as “swallowed by the Gentiles as a cake not turned” (Hosea 7:8, Hosea 8:8). The identity of the northern ten Tribes of Israel (Ephraim) has been lost, completely absorbed by the Gentile nations. The Kingdom of Ephraim never returned to the Promised Land; however, some of the poorest members did remain, mixing with the Assyrian Gentiles to become the much-hated Samaritans of Jesus’ day.
The identity of those who were scattered all over the world will remain a mystery until God fulfills Ezekiel 37. We, at this blog, believe that the hidden identity of the mysterious northern tribes of Ephraim may be somewhat explained through the Gentile Church, entering back into Covenant with YHWH via the NEW COVENANT (Messiah Jesus). This is not to say that every member of the New Covenant Church has biological ancestry that points to the lost 10 Tribes of Israel, but clearly in Hosea and Romans, these are in some way connected. (Hosea 1:10, Romans 9:25-26).
Exile of the southern tribes of Judah
About 150 years after Israel was exiled into Assyria, the southern Kingdom of Judah (Jerusalem) was exiled into Babylon. Unlike the northern tribes who never returned to the Promised Land, Judah was able to return seventy years after they were conquered by Babylon.
Judah’s opportunity to return to her homeland, seventy years following her conquest by Babylon, emerged as a result of Persia’s victory over Babylon, establishing itself as the new ruling power. Ultimately, Persia permitted the Jews to return and resettle in their ancestral land. Nonetheless, in the interim, the Jewish people remained in captivity, subjected to Persian authority.
During the period of Judah’s exile in Babylon, now ruled by Persia, the book of Esther is set. Within this narrative, King Ahasuerus is identified as the sovereign of Persia. Most scholars agree that King Ahasuerus corresponds to Xerxes I of Persia.
The primary “Plot” or “Events” in the book of Esther
In this story, Persian king Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) became angry at his defiant wife, Queen Vashti. Queen Vashti humiliated the king in front of his subjects by refusing to come and dance for him at one of his banquets. There are numerous banquets in the book of Esther. The king therefore decided to send Vashti away, meaning that he was going to divorce Vashti.
After a prolonged absence of a queen, King Ahasuerus found himself burdened by loneliness, yearning for a female companion. Regret consumed him for having exiled Vashti, whose beauty he still cherished. In response to his plight, a few of the king’s advisors proposed a solution: a beauty contest. This suggestion resonated with the king, who approved the plan to summon young virgin maidens from the realm, each to spend “one night with the king.” Following their “interviews,” he would select his queen. In contemporary society, we may recoil at such an outdated expression of “sexism,” yet it appears this was the custom of the time. The narrative implies that the young maidens embraced the opportunity to “audition” for the esteemed role of queen of Persia.
Before each of the virgin maidens were brought before the king, they would have to undergo a year of beauty treatments.
Esther 2:12: Now when the turn of each young lady came to go in to King Ahasuerus, after the end of her twelve months under the regulations for the women—for the days of their beautification were completed as follows: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with spices and the cosmetics for women—
According to some, the initial six-month treatment with oil of myrrh was meant to purify each maiden. They say that oil of myrrh was commonly used for antiseptic and anti-fungal purposes and as a deodorant. Therefore the first six months of their preparation were for cleansing, healing and purification. Once they were certain each maiden was free of disease they spent the next 6 months maximizing their beauty. So the idea being conveyed in Esther is that purification precedes beautification. After a year of treatments, the maidens were ready to go before the King.
Esther was a beautiful, young Jewish woman living in Persia during this time. Her Hebrew name was Hadassah. Esther is a Persian name that was given to her. An orphan, Esther was being raised by her Uncle Mordecai, who taught her Jewish customs. However, for some reason Mordecai had advised Esther early on to go by her “Persian name” (Esther) and to hide her true identity as a Jew.
This picture of Esther’s secret and hidden identity could possibly be a “spiritual “type” of God’s “hidden ones” (Psalm 83), possibly those from the Northern 10 Tribes of Israel who are now living in the world with no idea as to their “true identity”, being “hidden” from the ever watching evil eyes of the enemy who desires to completely annihilate everyone who has any connection to the 12 Tribes of Israel.
Esther, obedient to her Uncle Mordecai who was like a father to her, stayed silent about her true identity as she was brought before the king. As it turns out, God made sure that Esther found favor in the eyes of all those administering beauty treatments and among those who were in charge of taking care of the “beauty contestants”. Out of all the myriads of beautiful young maidens, king Ahasuerus chose Esther to be his queen. Esther was being put into the THRONEROOM for “such a time as this”.
For those with discernment, it becomes evident that while the king acted with apparent “free will” in selecting his queen, Divine Providence undeniably favored Esther. God meticulously ensured she possessed the ideal appearance, demeanor, background, and preparation, along with the essential “favor” of those in positions of influence to guarantee her selection. Although these details are not explicitly articulated, they resonate with our understanding as believers. There are no coincidences in God’s design.
What happened next? Enter the evil villain Haman. Haman, the son of an Aggagite, hated the Jewish people living in the Diaspora with a passion, particularly Mordecai. Haman, masquerading as an “angel of light” was an advisor to king Ahasuerus. Haman TRICKED king Ahasuerus into believing that a “particular group of people” living under the king’s “rule” were rebellious and untrustworthy and would attempt to overthrow the king if he didn’t do something about it.
Haman persuaded the king that this insurrectionary “group of people” violated the king’s laws and warranted extermination. 😱The same spirit exemplified by Haman is evident in contemporary society, embodying an antichrist spirit that disseminates falsehoods into the minds of the masses, labeling Christians as “narrow-minded,” bigoted, homophobic, unloving, unkind, and exclusive, as if adhering to a “different set of rules.”
Esther 3:8: Then Haman said to king Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from those of all other people and they do not observe the king’s laws, so it is not in the king’s interest to let them remain.
9 If it is pleasing to the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who carry on the king’s business, to put into the king’s treasuries.”
10 Then the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 The king said to Haman, “The silver is yours, and the people also, to do with them as you please.”
13 Letters were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces to destroy, to kill and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, women and children, in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to seize their possessions as plunder
The king placed his trust in Haman, granting him authority to use the king’s signet ring to seal the decree ordering the extermination of every Jew in Persia. Once an edict bore the mark of the king’s signet ring, it became irrevocable, binding even the king to its terms.
This, too, is a shadow of a spiritual truth. God wrote into His immutable laws of the universe eons ago that the soul who sins will die. This is signed and sealed with the signet ring of the King of the Universe, the Lord Jesus Christ. For this reason, sin cannot be simply overlooked or brushed under the rug…sin demands a penalty. God will not go against His Word, there is always a penalty for sin.
Let us read further into Esther to see the king’s solution once he recognizes that he has been deceived by the evil Haman.
King Ahasuerus did NOT realize that Haman was a LIAR and a DECEIVER! He had no idea that his beloved Queen Esther was a member of “this supposedly rebellious group”. He had no idea! Likewise, the evil Haman had no idea that the king’s beloved Queen Esther was a Jew!
Esther’s uncle Mordecai became aware of Haman’s sinister plot to annihilate all of the Jews and urgently appealed to Esther to take action. He laid bare the dire circumstances, revealing that her entire people were in peril—her own life was at stake. Esther was extremely distressed. She felt compelled to approach the king and plead for her people’s survival; however, a grave caution loomed. Even the Queen was forbidden from appearing before the King without a summons. Queen Esther had not been summoned by the king for an entire month. Should she approach him uninvited, she risked her own death.
Esther 4:11: “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that for any man or woman who comes to the king to the inner court who is not summoned, he has but one law, that he be put to death, UNLESS the king holds out to him the golden scepter so that he may live. And I have not been summoned to come to the king for these thirty days.” 12 They related Esther’s words to Mordecai.
Mordecai’s response was significant. He conveyed to Esther that if she chose to remain silent, her life would likely be forfeit, and God would undoubtedly raise another individual to deliver His people. Mordecai possessed “spiritual insight” and recognized that with God, there are no mere coincidences. Though the name of God is not explicitly mentioned, those with “perception to see” can discern that it was indeed God Almighty who placed Esther in that Throne room.
Esther was born with beauty, found herself in the “right place at the right time,” concealed her “Jewish identity,” and earned the favor of those around her, particularly the king! It was no coincidence that Esther arrived in the EXACT LOCATION at the EXACTLY RIGHT MOMENT to provide God’s people a fighting chance against this dire plot. There are no accidents, no coincidences with God.
God meticulously orchestrates events over centuries, decades, and years to prepare the circumstances as they must be for the fulfillment of His Divine purposes…and He accomplishes this WITHOUT compromising our FREE WILL. This is truly remarkable!
Esther 4:13: Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not imagine that you in the king’s palace can escape any more than all the Jews.
14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?
Esther summoned her handmaids to observe a three-day fast in preparation for her unsummoned approach to the King. She famously declared, “If I perish, I perish.” After the three days of fasting, which can be presumed to include prayer, Esther donned her royal garments and steadfastly approached the King. The King, who cherished Esther deeply, was deeply moved by her presence. His heart softened as he witnessed his courageous queen walking across the throne room toward him. In recognition of her bravery, the King extended the golden scepter and offered Esther anything she desired, even up to half of his kingdom. This exemplified the depth of the King’s love and affection for Queen Esther.
Esther 5: 2: When the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, she obtained favor in his sight; and the king extended to Esther the golden scepter which was in his hand. So Esther came near and touched the top of the scepter.
3 Then the king said to her, “What is troubling you, Queen Esther? And what is your request? Even to half of the kingdom it shall be given to you.”
At this point, Queen Esther invited the king and Haman, to a series of banquets where she would ultimately disclose to the king her true identity as a Jew and also Haman’s evil plot to destroy her and her people.
It’s a very exciting and intriguing series of events, and the “big reveal” is not disappointing. The king was furious with Haman, and ordered Haman to be hung on the same gallows that Haman had prepared for Mordecai. But still, the edict that had been sealed with the king’s signet ring remained…the Jews were slated to be killed, destroyed annihilated. Although the king could not revoke the edict, he decided to issue a NEW EDICT and seal it with his signet ring. The New Edict basically gave every Jew in his province the RIGHT to DEFEND THEMSELVES against any and all aggression.
Esther 8:14: The couriers, hastened and impelled by the king’s command, went out, riding on the royal steeds; and the decree (NEW EDICT) was given out at the citadel in Susa.
Esther 9:1: Now in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on the thirteenth day when the king’s command and edict were about to be executed, on the day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews themselves gained the mastery over those who hated them. 2 The Jews assembled in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm; and no one could stand before them, for the dread of them had fallen on all the peoples.
Because the Jewish people had been FOREWARNED and PREPARED through the 2nd edict, they achieved a great victory over those who sought to kill them. After this great victory, Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews in all 127 provinces obliging them to celebrate the 14th and the 15th of the month of Adar annually because the Jews were able to rid themselves of their enemies. It was a month that was turned from sorrow to gladness and from mourning to a Holiday, a day of feasting and celebration. To this day, the Holiday of Purim is celebrated on the 14th of Adar each year. This year, Purim falls on March 10/11, 2020.
Now let’s look again at the “sin problem” in humanity and the lessons that we learn from the book of Esther. Similar to the edict by Persia’s king Ahasuerus’s, our Sovereign Father God signed and sealed a permanent edict, one that cannot be revoked even by the King Himself that the soul who sins will die. This is written into the immutable laws of the universe and cannot be changed, even by the King Himself.
It is also a fact that every human being on the face of the earth since the FALL of MAN stands before our Holy God GUILTY because ALL of us (Jew and Gentile) have been born with a SIN NATURE. There is literally NOTHING we can do about this.
But…God, the KING of the UNIVERSE, in His Incredible Mercy and Grace issued a NEW EDICT, the substitution principal. Yes, the soul who sins will die, this is WRITTEN and cannot be changed, and ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and are therefore deserving of the death penalty. But because of the “New Edict” (New Covenant), God will ACCEPT the life of the INNOCENT in exchange for the life of the GUILTY!
The new edict states that our Sovereign God will accept an innocent one to pay the penalty for sin in exchange for the guilty one. This was also written into the immutable laws of God. The innocent One who CHOSE to pay the penalty for ALL SIN is none other than GOD HIMSELF wrapped in the LIKENESS of human flesh, our Messiah, Lord and King…Jesus Christ! ✝️
Jesus Christ is the ONLY ONE who COULD pay the price for our sin because HE was the ONLY ONE without sin. Fully human, fully GOD, born of a VIRGIN WITHOUT original sin, Jesus Christ was the only One QUALIFIED to be the propitiation for all sin!
Hallelujah, Praises be to Jesus!!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻
The most intriguing thing about the book of Esther is that even though God is never mentioned in the book of Esther, it is clear that HIS Sovereign and Invisible Hand was working behind the scenes to bring about His Divine purposes. If we have “eyes to see”, then we should also be able to recognize that this same Sovereign Hand of Providence is always working in each of our lives, and also in our nations today.
I definitely see God’s Divine and Sovereign Hand of Providence working in the world today. For the longest time, the United States had a President (actually many Presidents) who were slowly portioning out this country to the international community in order to facilitate the New World Order. The New World Order is the coming Global government that will ultimately be headed up by the antichrist. In the Climate Change agreement, it was decided that nation states must be willing to give up some of their sovereignty in order to participate in the agreed upon globalist agenda.
America, along with other nations, was being eagerly handed over to the shadow government of the world. The pace of advancement towards the Biblically prophesied Beast Kingdom in Daniel (New World Order) was rapid and picking up steam.
However, in walks “the Trumpet” (Donald Trump), with a forehead like flint, and a deep pocketbook. “The Trumpet” is not your normal, every-day, greedy politician. Born at exactly the right time and in the right place, given the ability to make vast sums of money so that he cannot be “bought” or “corrupted” by powerful lobbyists, gifted with the ability to negotiate, and granted favor in the eyes of millions of American citizens, God placed the Trumpet “in the throne room” for such a time as this”.
In my entire life, I have never seen one single individual stir up so much hatred and wrath as this one man. The only other time in HIS STORY that this extreme hatred for a single individual has existed, is the time of Jesus. Only Jesus Christ, our Savior, God, and King, stirred up a similar level of hatred in the world.
We are NOT saying that “The Trumpet” is a Messiah or Messianic figure, OR Savior, but we do think that he was raised up and put in the Throne room for “such a time as this”.
Will the New World Order, a global dictatorship with tentacles like a vice grip, ultimately rear its ugly head? Absolutely it will. It is prophesied; it will happen. But God is clearly showing us that He alone is in control of the timing! At the same time, God is using “the Trumpet” and others to separate the sheep from the goats…those who want God and His Ways from those who reject God and His Ways.
John 15:18: “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you
Our Gracious God is constantly working behind the scenes on our behalf to ensure that all things work for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purposes. He does this with His Sovereign Hand of Omnipotence and Omniscience, knowing way in advance what the enemy will do and what needs to transpire in order for God to bring about His perfect Will. He does this without ever impacting mankind’s free will.
I have personally seen God’s unseen Sovereign Hand working behind the scenes many times in my own life. I have seen things “come together” in ways that I would not have thought possible. As we grow spiritually, we begin to recognize that these things are NOT a coincidence. Many times, we only “see” God working “after the fact”. As they say, “Hindsight is 20/20”, meaning that we often only realize that God has been working on our behalf AFTER a situation has resolved.
As in the case of Esther, sometimes we realize that God has been working behind the scenes for YEARS, even DECADES, in order to prepare us for a particular purpose that He had planned since the beginning of time. As I look back and recognize the many situations in which God’s sovereign hand of protection, provision, and reconciliation has brought many difficult situations in my life to some sort of conclusion, and as I see the result as either obviously positive, or as having brought spiritual growth to either myself or another, the more that I TRUST that He is always working on our behalf.
The more that I grow in Grace, recognizing that God is NOT unaware, unconcerned, or uncaring about our individual circumstances, the more I receive of His supernatural peace that surpasses all understanding. It is very comforting to know that our God is completely in control, regardless of how tumultuous our individual circumstances may seem. There is NOTHING that takes God by surprise, and God has a way of making lemonade out of lemons, of bringing something good out of even the worst and most horrifying situation.
Esther was born, raised up, and placed in the Throne room at exactly the right time and place to intercede for the Jewish people, who had been slated for complete annihilation. In a similar way, God’s Gentile Church has been raised up and placed in the Throne room of God, to make intercession for each other and for our Jewish brothers and sisters who do not yet “see” (recognize) their Messiah Jesus. The enemy desires to wipe out ALL of Israel, which includes both Jew and Gentile, the Israel of God. God’s Church, His New Covenant people, have direct access to God through our risen Savior and High Priest, Jesus. Through the blood of Jesus, we can now go BOLDLY into the Throne room of God to intercede for a people who are partially blinded, and who the enemy has again slated for complete annihilation.
As you look back at your own life, perhaps with new eyes, consider how God has been actively working behind the scenes to bring about His purposes and plans, which are always GOOD. Things you may have thought of as “coincidence”, perhaps now SEE with new eyes. Although we cannot physically SEE God working, we need to understand that He is not silent, He is not “on vacation”, and He is not asleep. God is not dead, He is surely alive and active…and His plan is LOVE.
God Bless!
