Esther 9:1-32

In this final section of the Book we have an account, first, of the arrival of the fateful day and all that happened thereon. It was a day when the changed conditions in the case of Haman and Mordecai were revealed throughout the whole of the provinces. Men who had persecuted the Jews and were looking for the opportunity of wreaking their vengeance by royal decree found themselves filling the places which they had intended their foes to occupy.

In memory of the great deliverance the feast of Purim was established. According to Jewish tradition, "all the feasts shall cease in the days of the Messiah, except the feast of Purim." It is a remarkable thing that while there have been breaks in the observance of' the other great feasts, and some of them have been practically discontinued, this one has been maintained. It is always a time of rejoicing. The first part of the day is spent in the study of the Book of Esther and its exposition; the second is wholly given over to keeping holiday. Whatever view we may hold of the Book, it is certain that Jewish leaders have treated it as an exposition of the method by which God wrought deliverance for His people even while they were in exile.