The second letter concerning
the celebration of the days of Purim was written by Queen Esther and
Mordecai and distributed throughout the Persian empire. In chapter
nine and verse thirty one we see how the words of peace and truth
within this letter were written to affect the Jews who were
previously in a state of crying and fasting. We read:
To
confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed,
according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them,
and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the
matters of the fastings and their cry.
The verse begins, “To confirm these days of Purim in their times
appointed, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther
the queen had enjoined them,...” This second letter was sent to
“confirm these days of Purim” which means this letter was
to “establish, fix, validate, prove and fulfill” this date. The
Jews were to have this time of feasting “fixed” in their minds,
and they were to “persist” in the celebration of it. Both Queen
Esther and Mordecai “raised, set up, roused and persuaded them”
to continue in these yearly celebrations.
The verse goes on to say, “and as
they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matters of
the fastings and their cry.” Both
Queen Esther and Mordecai were involved in this time of victory. They
knew the importance of letting Jewish people know what God did for
them. Not only would they themselves benefit from this annual
celebration, those who were born after them would be blessed as well.
The Jews were once in a time of “fastings”
and calling out to God with “their cry”,
and now they were experiencing the power of the Almighty God. Purim
would remind them of not only this delivering power of God, but the
keeping power of God as well.
Have
we ever stopped to consider the keeping power of God? Do we realize
the value of having God watch over us daily even if we are in the
times of “fastings” and “cry”? When we consider how many
references in these last few verses of chapter nine there are to the
annual time of feasting called Purim, we might wonder why it seems to
have been written over and over again. For we who desire to hear the
voice of God in our lives, we note that when the message seems
redundant we should pay particular attention. Rather than see it as
rote, if we ponder it long enough we will hear the mighty voice of
God saying, “I'm with you. Don't forget me. I'm with you. Don't
forget me. I'm with you. Don't forget me.” And when we hear Him
speak, we would do well to not only hear, but also obey even if we
are fasting and crying about the circumstances in our lives right
now.
Next
time we will end the ninth chapter of Esther and note how it was
written, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation” and the new marriage book “So, You Want
to Be Married” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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