God’s Providential Lot of Purim

Esther 9:18-32

   18 But the Jews who were at Shushan assembled together on the thirteenth day, as well as on the fourteenth; and on the fifteenth of the month they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. 19 Therefore the Jews of the villages who dwelt in the unwalled towns celebrated the fourteenth day of the month of Adar with gladness and feasting, as a holiday, and for sending presents to one another.

    20 And Mordecai wrote these things and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, 21 to establish among them that they should celebrate yearly the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar, 22 as the days on which the Jews had rest from their enemies, as the month which was turned from sorrow to joy for them, and from mourning to a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and joy, of sending presents to one another and gifts to the poor. 23 So the Jews accepted the custom which they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them, 24 because Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to annihilate them, and had cast Pur (that is, the lot), to consume them and destroy them; 25 but when Esther came before the king, he commanded by letter that this wicked plot which Haman had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.

    26 So they called these days Purim, after the name Pur. Therefore, because of all the words of this letter, what they had seen concerning this matter, and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews established and imposed it upon themselves and their descendants and all who would join them, that without fail they should celebrate these two days every year, according to the written instructions and according to the prescribed time, 28 that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city, that these days of Purim should not fail to be observed among the Jews, and that the memory of them should not perish among their descendants.

    29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, with Mordecai the Jew, wrote with full authority to confirm this second letter about Purim. 30 And Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews, to the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with words of peace and truth, 31 to confirm these days of Purim at their appointed time, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had prescribed for them, and as they had decreed for themselves and their descendants concerning matters of their fasting and lamenting. 32 So the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim, and it was written in the book.

The Feast of Purim was the lot cast by God to put Esther in such a place and time as to deliver her people, God’s people, from destruction.  It was the providence of the LORD, not a random throw of dice in our present day equivalent of casting lots.  The Jews cast lots to take their own hand out of a decision so that God would move the lot to align with His will of sovereign providence.  The deliverance by the LORD using Esther to be made queen, to leverage the uncovered plot which Mordecai brought to her attention to the king, and the turn of retribution on the adversary’s own head - these things are the lot God cast for each player in the unfolding story of sovereign grace.  The people were saved from annihilation at the evil enemy’s actions and intents, nullifying a murderous law born out of hatred and slander by a providential counter action law to defense and deliverance for God’s and Esther’s    people, the remnant of Judah called Jews.  Their deliverance turned to jubilation in a celebration of life and giving of gifts to remember God’s greatest gift of life in the face of a certain death.  The enemy of God’s people, Haman, the enemy of all Jews, had plotted to annihilate them, and had cast Pur (that is, the lot), to consume them and destroy them, but God’s lot was cast from the beginning of time to keep their times in His hand (Psalm 31:15).  The festival is aptly named to remember the lot of man is no match for God’s providential lot which falls to us all for His glory and our good (Romans 8:28).  The decree therefore to perpetually keep these days of remembrance as Purim went out by Queen Esther and Mordecai to all the Jews, to be passed down to their descendants as a memorial to fast and lament, as well as to celebrate life given by God’s hand of providential grace and mercy to His chosen people.  We who are in Christ are also His people, kept in Him providentially in sovereign grace as well, and celebrate our deliverance from the Adversary and Enemy (1 Peter 5:8) of our souls because we have the testimony of Jesus the Christ (Revelation 12:17).  We rejoice not only that examples like Purim are recorded for our encouragement and understanding of grace, but also for our understanding of our deliverance from a certain death and suffering in the lake of fire at the Adversary’s hand since the garden when we fell from grace as a people.  We celebrate the deliverance, our salvation, with the lot God cast for us from the beginning of time (Ephesians 1:4-5, 2 Timothy 1:9, 1 Peter 1:2).  Our destinies do not lie in governments or laws, but in His mighty omnipotent hand of sovereign and providential grace.  Our lot is cast by the Lord Jesus Christ.  Perfect love casts out fear of punishment along with fear of man (Psalm 118:6, 1 John 4:18), because we know our times have always been in His hands.  The account of Purim reflects this grace of God in Christ.