“Now in the twelfth month, that is, the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day, the time came for the king’s command and his decree to be executed. On the day that the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, the opposite occurred, in that the Jews themselves overpowered those who hated them. The Jews gathered together in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could withstand them, because fear of them fell upon all people. And all the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and all those doing the king’s work, helped the Jews, because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them. For Mordecai was great in the king’s palace, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces; for this man Mordecai became increasingly prominent. Thus the Jews defeated all their enemies with the stroke of the sword, with slaughter and destruction, and did what they pleased with those who hated them.” Esther 9:1-5 NKJV
My regular readers might recall the subject of this post as being one I have shared before, yet I believe the circumstances we see in the Middle East at the present time suggest it be revisited. One of my favorite stories in the Bible is found in the book of Esther, which recounts the story of how God arranged for the Jewish people to be saved from annihilation. I say arranged, because in His infinite wisdom He arranges for Esther, a Jewish girl taken in captivity in the time of Nebuchadnezzar, to somehow become the Queen of Persia. It is a wonderful story of palace intrigue, corruption, and ultimate justice which is worthy of a Hollywood movie. It has always been a staple in my years of teaching and was easily one of the most favorite in the Sunday School classes I taught.
The plot, in a nutshell, revolves around the attempt by Haman, an official in the king’s court, to completely destroy all of the Jews because of a personal dislike of Mordecai, a Jew who had adopted Queen Esther when her parents were killed. Of course, Haman had no idea Queen Esther was a Jew, nor her relationship with Mordecai, which placed Esther in a perfect position to foil the plot. After Haman had tricked the King into signing a decree which called for all of the Jews to be killed, Esther revealed to the King the fact that she herself was a Jew, and exposed the entire evil plot of Haman for what it really was.
The King was incensed, and ordered Haman to be hung on the very gallows he had built to hang Mordecai on, and because he could not rescind his own decree, wrote another which allowed the Jews to defend themselves from their enemies and anyone who intended harm to come their way. The annual festival of Purim is a celebration of this deliverance of the Jews from the plot by Haman to completely annihilate them.
“And Mordecai wrote these things and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, who [were] in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, to establish among them that they should celebrate yearly the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar, as the days on which the Jews had rest from their enemies, as the month which was turned from sorrow to joy for them, and from mourning to a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and joy, of sending presents to one another and gifts to the poor. So the Jews accepted the custom which they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them, because Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to annihilate them, and had cast Pur (that [is], the lot), to consume them and destroy them; but when [Esther] came before the king, he commanded by letter that this wicked plot which [Haman] had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. So they called these days Purim, after the name Pur. Therefore, because of all the words of this letter, what they had seen concerning this matter, and what had happened to them,” Esther 9:20-26 NKJV
If you have followed my blog for any length of time, you probably understand that I find it increasingly hard to believe in coincidence in a world created by an omnipotent God. I especially don’t believe it coincidence when major events relating to the nation of Israel occur on the anniversaries of their Holy Days and festivals, which, if you have studied at all, you know have happened with great regularity throughout Israel’s history. This brings us to the subject of Purim, which is only two months away and is my reason for discussing it today.
This celebration in Israel is one of the most joyous, lasting three days which include the giving of gifts, wearing costumes, and singing, eating, drinking, and of course reading the Book of Esther in the synagogue. The fourteenth of Adar usually occurs in our month of February or March, and this year it lands on Saturday, March 23. Although the events surrounding this festival happened thousands of years ago, it appears that it might be a good idea to consider that God’s sense of timing, along with His love and protection of the nation of Israel, could well result in this being a day to watch considering Israel is currently at war with several of the nations which wish it harm, the primary one being Iran. If you haven’t guessed by now, the reason I am sharing this with you today is that the ancient country of Persia, is in fact, the modern day country of Iran.
In late 2002, the United States began a building up of forces in the Middle East with the apparent intent of deposing the ruler of Iraq, Sadaam Hussein, who was pursuing the capability of weapons of mass destruction with the stated intent of using them on the nation of Israel. I had been invited to lecture on the situation in the Middle East in early 2003 and was in the process of preparing when I noticed the Festival of Purim on my calendar was just a couple of weeks away. Reminded of the story of Esther, the first thought that went through my mind was what if history was about to repeat itself with God's sense of timing thrown in for good measure? As the world was watching and waiting, I contacted a few friends in the ministry and shared my thoughts about the possibility that an attack on Iraq could occur on the very anniversary of the deliverance of Israel some 2500 years earlier. No surprise, the festival of Purim, the 14th of Adar, occurred on Wednesday March 19, 2003, the very day the first bombs dropped on Baghdad.
I find it very hard to believe that the attack on Iraq during the exact time it happened once before in Israel’s history was simply a coincidence. Iran and it’s stated desire to wipe Israel off of the map, and the current conflict with Iran’s proxies Syria and Lebanon to the North along with Hamas in Gaza to the West, the future of Israel seems very clear. Is history about to repeat itself again with a major action, possibly against Iran itself, by Israel occurring this coming Purim? I have no idea, but I am a firm believer that where there's smoke there's fire and with the rhetoric we are seeing it would be no surprise if Israel chooses to take action. As the Bible says, we all need to watch, and pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
It seems lately that every week we are treated to more and more signs that the rapture of the Church is close at hand. If you have never made the decision to accept the gift of eternal life offered by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ I urge you to do it today. Simply tell God you accept His Son Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and turn your life over to His control.
Father, I know I am a sinner in need of salvation. I believe you sent your Son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin, and I ask you now to forgive me of my sins. I want to receive your gift of salvation so please come into my heart and help me to live and follow you as my Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Keep watching.
