Now in the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king’s command and edict were about to be carried out, on the very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, the reverse occurred: the Jews gained mastery over those who hated them. The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could stand against them, for the fear of them had fallen on all peoples. All the officials of the provinces and the satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the Jews, for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. For Mordecai was great in the king’s house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful. The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and did as they pleased to those who hated them. In Susa the citadel itself the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men, and Parmashta and Arisai and Aridai and Vaizatha, and also killed Parshandatha and Dalphon and Aspatha and Poratha and Adalia and Aridatha the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they laid no hand on the plunder. And the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed 500 men and also the ten sons of Haman. What then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces! Now what is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what further is your request? It shall be fulfilled.” That very day the number of those killed in Susa the citadel was reported to the king. And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this day’s edict. And let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.” So the king commanded this to be done. A decree was issued in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged. The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and they killed 300 men in Susa, but they laid no hands on the plunder. Now the rest of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also gathered to defend their lives, and got relief from their enemies and killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they laid no hands on the plunder. This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth day they rested and made that a day of feasting and gladness. But the Jews who were in Susa gathered on the thirteenth day and on the fourteenth, and rested on the fifteenth day, making that a day of feasting and gladness. Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the rural towns, hold the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a day for gladness and feasting, as a holiday, and as a day on which they send gifts of food to one another.

Sermon from September 15, 2024 by Pastor Bill Walker of Unity Bible Church, Lewiston, ME. This is our series on Esther “God Behind the Scenes.” This message from Esther 9:1-19 was entitled “God’s Judgement.”
In this message, we will consider why God determined the destruction of the Amalekites by the Jews. There is an ungirding principle that carries throughout Scripture: The proper response of the heart to the revelation of God is… FEAR! Where there is no FEAR, dread or devotion before God, the result must be destruction. Yes, the FEAR of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
At Unity Bible Church, our vision is to see God glorified through our worship of Him, building up believers, and sharing the Good News of Christ.