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What is the Meaning of PURIM?

The festival of Purim, found in the book of Esther, occurs on the fourteenth day of Adar which corresponds to February or March on the Roman calendar. Although the book of Esther is the only book of the Bible that never mentions the name of God directly in the text, the name is found encoded in acrostic form in the text four times because "I will surely hide my face" (Deut. 31:18). YHWH appears in Esther 1:20 as the first letters of four consecutive words when read backward: "Hi v'chol h'nashim yitnu," "It, and all the women will give." In Esther 5:4 these letters appear at the beginnings of four consecutive words when read forward, "Yavo hamelech v'haman hayom," "and let the king and Haman come today." Again in Esther 5:13 the YHWH is formed by the final letters of four consecutive words when read backward: "zah ainenu shoveh li," "This gives no satisfaction to me." Once more the tetragrammaton is seen in Esther 7:7 by the final letter of four consecutive words read forward: "ki chaltah ailav hara'ah, "that his fate had been determined." Esther is a prophecy about the False Messiah and his hatred for the Jews. King Ahasuerus was most likely Xerxes of history because each had a large banquet with many nobles during their third year as monarch. Each is a ruler of numerous provinces. In the third year of his reign, Xerxes began his campaigns with the Greeks which lasted until his seventh year, at which time he returned to Persia in order to develop his kingdom. It is during this same seventh year that Ahasuerus takes Esther as his queen. Xerxes' Persian name was Khshayarsha which the Greeks translated Xerxes. Notice that Esther becomes the king's bride and queen in the seventh year of his reign, picturing the Messiah and his bride in the Millenium. Just like Christ (Mal.3:16), Ahasuerus had a book of remembrance of Mordecai's good deeds.

Throughout the Bible, the same theme plays out again and again: It is Israel versus Amalek, a grandson of Esau. First in the form of Esau versus Jacob. Then Moses and Joshua versus Amalek in Rephidim (Ex.17:8-16). Then Saul, son of Kish, versus Agag the Amalekite (1 Sam.15:9; 2 Sam. 1:8-10). Then Esther and Mordecai, son of Kish, versus Haman the Agagite (Esther 3:1). Then as Herod the Edomite (Esau) (Ant. 14:1:3) versus Christ. "The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be" (Eccl.1:9). Amazingly, counting from the first letter (Ayin) in the word Amalekites in Genesis 14:7, through all the Hebrew letters until the last letter (Kuf) of Amalek the second time it appears in scripture, Genesis 36:12, is exactly 12110, which is the number of Hebrew letters in the book of Esther. From their beginning to their end is one theme of the book of Esther. Just as God says, "I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek under heaven" (Ex.17:14; Num. 24:24), so also at the Festival of Purim, Jews use noisemakers during the reading of the book of Esther whenever the name of Haman is mentioned in the text. The King had commanded that everyone was to bow before Haman. Bowing is not contrary to Jewish law (2 Sam. 14:22). But a tradition of the ancient rabbis teaches that Haman had an image of an idol attached to his belt just like the Antichrist will make an image of himself (Dan.9:27; 11:31; 12:11; Matt.24:15; Mark 13:15; Rev.13:14-15). Also like the Antichrist (Dan.7:25; Rev.13:7), he hates the Jews and wants to destroy the Jewish race (Esther 3:5-6) who become followers of Jesus Christ (Ez.39:22; Isa.10:12,20-23; Rom.11:25; Rev.12:13-17). Pharaoh, Antiochus Epiphanes IV, Herod and Hitler all tried to destroy the Israelite nation as types of the coming Antichrist.

Notice that the law was written "on the thirteenth day of the first month" (3:12) or Nisan 13 since the twelfth month is said to be Adar, just before Nisan. Esther and the Jews fasted for three days from Nisan 14 to 16 (Esther 4:16). Just as Christ was in the grave for three days and nights, but then was resurrected to be with God, so Esther, Mordecai and the Jews were resurrected from their death sentence on Nisan 17 after three days of fasting. Esther went before the King Ahasuerus on Nisan 16 (Esther 5:1-2). The King and Haman had a banquet that same day (Esther 5:4). Then Mordecai is crowned and honored as a king of the Jews picturing Christ's acceptance by the Father in heaven as the king of the Jews (Dan.7:13-14). Then the King and Haman have another banquet on Nisan 17 (Esther 5:6-8) and Haman is hanged (Esther 8:10) just as the Antichrist will be killed. Just as the false Messiah has ten kings under him (Rev.17:13), so Haman's ten sons were killed. Later comes the war between the Jews and their enemies just as Christ's return with the army of saints will be a time of war (Esther 8:10-12; Zech 12:4-9). Jews receiving the festival of Purim after a victorious war with Haman is equated to the Jews receiving the Torah on Mount Sinai after a victorious war with Amalek and Jews receiving Christ after a victorious war against the nations of the world. After the Nazis tried to destroy the Jewish race, the Nuremberg War Trials took place, and eleven men were sentenced to death by hanging on October 16, 1946 which was Tishri 21st that year according to "Distant Suns." But Hermann Goering ("Haman") committed suicide two hours earlier by ingesting cyanide poison, leaving ten men (his "sons") to be executed. Yes, "man is judged on Rosh haShanah, sealed on Yom Kippur, and executed on Hoshana Rabbah" (Yerushalami Rosh haShanah 84.8). If Antichrist stops the daily sacrifice in the Temple on Purim, which occurs 30 days before Passover, and then on Passover is assassinated and revives (Rev.13:3-8,15-18), the 1290 days of Daniel 12:11 will end on the Feast of Trumpets.

 

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