The spiritual battles going on in the palace were hidden from most people. In the same way the story of Esther neglects the details of the reactions of the Jewish population. In 4:3 we are told that the announcement of destruction led to fasting and mourning by all the Jew of the Persian empire. But how would I have reacted to the announcement of a death sentence in 11 months? Yet when we consider the time line as events unfolded it was less than a week between the first announcement and the second. The reaction of the Jews to the second announcement is shared in 8:16-17. How many realized that their prayers and fasting had moved God into action so quickly? Would I have seen God’s hand at work? In that year there were two feasts of Purim; one in the first month, and the second in the twelfth month. God had turned a tragedy into his triumph.
Stuart
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