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9
1 On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, the king's order and decree were to be carried out. That day the enemies of the Jews had thought they would crush them, but the exact opposite happened—the Jews crushed their enemies. 2 The Jews gathered in their cities throughout the provinces of King Xerxes to attack those who wanted to destroy them. Nobody could oppose them, because all the other people were afraid of them. 3 All the officials of the provinces, the chief officers, the governors, and the king's officials helped the Jews, because they were afraid of Mordecai. 4 Mordecai had a great deal of power in the royal palace, and his reputation spread throughout the provinces as his power increased.
5 The Jews attacked their enemies with swords, killing and destroying them, and they did whatever they wanted to their enemies. 6 In the fortress of Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men. 7 This included Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha, 10 the ten sons of Haman, son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they did not take their possessions.
11 The same day, when the number of those killed in the fortress of Susa was reported to the king, 12 he said to Queen Esther, “The Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men in the fortress of Susa, including Haman's ten sons. Imagine what they've done in the rest of the royal provinces! Now what is it you'd like to ask? It will be given to you. What more do you want? It will be granted.”
13 “If it please Your Majesty,” Esther replied, “allow the Jews in Susa be allowed to do the same tomorrow as they did today, following the decree. Also, let the ten sons of Haman be impaled on poles.”
14 The king ordered this to be done. A decree was issued in Susa, and they impaled the bodies of Haman's ten sons. 15 On the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, the Jews in Susa gathered together again and killed three hundred men there, but again they did not take their possessions.
16 The other Jews in the king's provinces also gathered to defend themselves and get rid of their enemies. They killed 75,000 who hated them, but did not touch their possessions.
17 This happened on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth day they rested and made it a day of feasting and celebration. 18 However, the Jews in Susa had gathered to fight on the thirteenth and the fourteenth days of the month. So they rested on the fifteenth day, and made that a day of feasting and celebration. 19 To this day rural Jews, living in the villages, observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a day of celebration and feasting, a holiday when they send gifts to one another.
20 Mordecai recorded these events and sent letters to all the Jews throughout the provinces ruled by King Xerxes, near and far, 21 requiring them to celebrate every year the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar 22 as the time when the Jews rested from their victory over their enemies, and as the month when their sadness was turned into joy and their mourning into a time of celebration. He wrote them to observe the days as days of feasting and joy and giving gifts of food to one another and presents to the poor.
23 The Jews agreed to continue what they had already started doing, following what Mordecai had written to them. 24 For Haman, son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted to destroy the Jews, and had cast “pur” (meaning a “lot”) to crush and destroy them. 25 But when it came to the king's attention, he sent out letters ordering that the evil scheme which Haman had planned against the Jews should rebound on him, and that he and his sons should be impaled on poles. 26 (That's why these days are called Purim, from the word Pur.*“Purim” is the plural of “pur.”)
As a result of all the instructions in Mordecai's letter, and what they'd seen, and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews committed themselves to adopt the practice that they and their descendants and all who join them should not forget to celebrate these two days as set down, and at the right time every year. 28 These days were to be remembered and celebrated by every generation, family, province, and city, so that these days of Purim would always be observed among the Jews, and they would not be forgotten by their descendants.
29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, wrote a letter, along with Mordecai the Jew, giving in her letter full authority to Mordecai's letter about Purim. 30 Letters expressing peace and reassurance were also sent all the Jews in the 127 provinces of the empire of King Xerxes. 31 They established these days of Purim at their given time as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had ordered, committing themselves and their descendants to the times of fasting and mourning. 32 In this way Esther's decree confirmed these practices regarding Purim, which were entered in the official record.

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*9:26 “Purim” is the plural of “pur.”

© 2018 Dr. Jonathan Gallagher