Holy Scriptures and Israel

Guest (Male): Shalom. Holy Scriptures and Israel is a ministry designed to share with the Jewish people the good news of the Lord Jesus, Yeshua the Messiah, and to instruct Christians on the Jewish roots of their faith. And now, teaching God's word from a Hebrew Messianic perspective, here is Gideon Levytam.

Gideon Levytam: Shabbat Shalom. Now you can open your Bibles to Esther chapter 9, verses 1 to 32, but also chapter 10 and verses 1, 2, and 3. And with this, with the help of the Lord, we can say that we studied together the whole book of Esther. So please follow me in these readings that I would like to do, so listen up as we are following the 9th and the 10th chapter of the book of Esther.

Guest (Male): And we read. Now in the twelfth month, that is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of that same, when the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put in execution, in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, though it was turned to the contrary, that the Jews had rule over them that hated them, the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, to lay hand on such as sought their hurt. And no man could withstand them, for the fear of them fell upon all people.

And all the rulers of the provinces, and the lieutenants, and the deputies, and officers of the king helped the Jews because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them. For Mordecai was great in the king's house, and his fame went out throughout all the provinces. For this man Mordecai waxed greater and greater. Thus the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of the sword, and slaughter and destruction, and did what they would unto those that hated them.

And in Shushan the palace, the Jews slew and destroyed 500 men: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. The ten sons of Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, slew they, but on the spoil laid they not their hand. On that day, the number of those that were slain in Shushan the palace was brought before the king.

And the king said unto Esther the queen, "The Jews have slain and destroyed 500 men in Shushan the palace and the ten sons of Haman. What have they done in the rest of the king's provinces? Now what is thy petition? And it shall be granted thee. Or what is thy request further? And it shall be done." Then said Esther, "If it please the king, let it be granted to the Jews which are in Shushan to do tomorrow also according unto this day's decree, and let Haman's ten sons be hanged upon the gallows."

And the king commanded it so to be done, and the decree was given at Shushan, and they hanged Haman's ten sons. For the Jews that were in Shushan gathered themselves together on the 14th day also of the month of Adar and slew 300 men at Shushan, but on the prey they laid not their hand. But the other Jews that were in the king's provinces gathered themselves together and stood for their lives, and had rest from their enemies and slew of their foes 75,000, but they laid not their hand on the prey.

On the 13th day of the month of Adar, and on the 14th day of the same, rested they and made it a day of feasting and gladness. But the Jews that were in Shushan assembled together on the 13th day thereof, and on the 14th thereof, and on the 15th day of the same, they rested and made it a day of feasting and gladness. Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the 14th day of the month of Adar a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions one to another.

And Mordecai wrote these things and he sent letters unto all the Jews that were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both nigh and far, to establish this among them that they should keep the 14th day of the month of Adar and the 15th day of the same yearly, as the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies, and the month which was turned unto them from sorrow to joy, and from mourning into a good day, that they should make them days of feasting and joy, and of sending portions one to another and gifts to the poor.

And the Jews undertook to do as they had begun, and as Mordecai had written unto them, because Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur, that is the lot, to consume them and to destroy them. But when Esther came before the king, he commanded by letters that this wicked device which he devised against the Jews should return upon his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.

Wherefore they called these days Purim after the name of Pur. Therefore for all the words of this letter, and of that which they had seen concerning this matter, and which had come unto them, the Jews ordained and took upon them and upon their seed, and upon all such as joined themselves unto them, so as it should not fail, that they should keep these two days according to their writing, and according to their appointed time every year.

And that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city. And that these days of Purim should not fail from among the Jews, nor the memorial of them perish from their seed. Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew wrote with all authority to confirm this second letter of Purim.

And he sent the letters unto all the Jews, to the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with words of peace, shalom, and truth, emet, to confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them, and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matter of fasting and their cry. And the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim, and it was written in a book.

Chapter 10 and verse 1. And the king Ahasuerus laid a tribute upon the land and upon the isles of the sea. And all the acts of his power and of his might, and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai whereunto the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? And Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people and speaking peace, that is shalom, to all his seed.

Gideon Levytam: It is very interesting, brothers and sisters, that this book of Esther is included in the canon of scripture. It happened historically away from Jerusalem, in Persia. Away from the temple, but in Shushan the palace, the capital city of Persia. Away from the promised land, far away in what is known today as Midopersia, in this pagan land away from the land of Israel.

And yet God, by divine design, have allowed this book to be included in the canon of the word of God. And you and I, of course, would ask this question, as we would ask it right from the beginning of the study up until now: Lord, what do you teach us as we study such a book as the book of Esther? Why is it that even when your name, God, and prayer, God, and the name Jehovah is not mentioned in this book, why is it such an important book for us to learn, and why is it that God have allowed it to be included in the canon of scripture?

And of course, the answer is rather clear for those of us who understand the whole scope, in some small measure, of the word of God. The lesson is that while those Jewish people were far away from the promised land, yet they were still the chosen people of God. And even though they were not in the right spiritual state, yet God does care for his own people.

The application for believers today, those of us who believe in Yeshua the Messiah, is simply this: everyone that have accepted Yeshua the Messiah belong to the Lord Yeshua Jesus the Messiah. And even though it's not right to be away from him, even though it's not right to live a life that is far away from a relationship with him, God does care. And God loves us, and he will reach wherever we are to try to restore his people into a healthy spiritual relationship with him.

That's the lesson. And even though at a time when we are far away from the Lord as believers, and we are ashamed to speak of the name of Jesus because we know our lives is not right with the Lord, yet the Lord care for us, and he stirs us up, and he seek to restore us. He challenges us and he says, "Is that the life that you want to live away from the Lord, away from me? Come back, be restored to me, and enjoy me and be used by me to serve me here in this world."

Esther is this great lesson for us: the sovereignty of God, that God is sees all things, he knows all things, he works everywhere. Nothing is hidden from the heart of God, from the knowledge of God. He wants his people to be close to him. And so the lesson is here in Esther chapter 9 and chapter 10, that we learn that there is a victory that God provides for his people, even though they were far away from him. And that victory that he provided is always in view of restoring them back to himself.

So you remember how we have concluded the end of the 8th chapter. The end of the 8th chapter was that now the Jewish people that had a decree against them to be killed on the 13th day of the month of Adar, because Haman the wicked, the hater of all the Jewish people, have decreed that. Now the King Ahasuerus gave a second decree, and that second decree was that the Jewish people can protect themselves against the enemies of the Jewish people on the very same day, the 13th day of the month of Adar. Adar is the last month in the Jewish calendar, and it is the 13th day of the month of Adar.

So in the 8th chapter, we learned that there are two eternal laws that we find in the word of God. The first law is called the law of sin which lead to death, Romans 8 and verse 2. And then the second law is the law of the Spirit of life, and this is through the person of Yeshua the Messiah. This is the lesson that we learn, beloved brothers and sisters, in the previous meeting on the 8th chapter of the book of Esther: that the two laws, sin lead to death, and listening to the voice of the Spirit of God through Yeshua the Messiah, it leads us to life.

And it is very important principle for the unbelievers. If they will continue in sin and reject the Lord Yeshua the Messiah, it will lead them not only to physical death, but also to the eternal death. But if they will listen to the voice of the Spirit of God, embrace Yeshua Jesus the Messiah, it will grant them life, not only spiritual life, but eternal life. And John 3:16 is very clear, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."

So the day have arrived. Now we find ourselves in chapter 9, and the 13th day of the month of Adar have finally arrived. And so there are two decrees. The one decree is the enemies of the Jews waiting to kill all the Jewish people in the Persian Empire. On the other hand, the second letter that was sent by King Ahasuerus through Mordecai is that the Jewish people could rise up and protect themselves.

And you see, beloved brothers and sisters, in the first 10 verses of chapter 9, we see the victory of the Jewish people. Of course, we know is with the help of the Lord, in the very same day where their enemies hoped to destroy them. You see, look at this. We read in verse 1, "Now in the twelfth month, that is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of the very same month, when the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put into execution."

Notice that. It said in that second half of verse 1, "in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, though it was turned to the contrary, that the Jews had rule over them that hated them." Now notice that, brothers and sisters. I just want to make this thought here. You see the enemies of the Jews, according to verse 1, hoped to be successful to fulfill the law that was given to them by King Ahasuerus to destroy all the Jewish people on the 13th day of the month of Adar. In other words, that was their wish.

And you know, brothers and sisters, just like Hamans of old, throughout the generation of the Jewish people, there is always rise someone who hope to destroy the Jews, to put them away, who hope to finally get rid of these Jewish people as if they are the source of all the problem here in this world. We had Hitlers, we had Hamans, we had Pharaohs, we had Nebuchadnezzar. And even in the present day, 2500 years later than the book of Esther was written, there are still today those who desire to destroy the Jewish people. In fact, even in present-day Iran, Ahmadinejad, if you remember a few years ago when he was the president of Iran, have declared that we must erase the Jewish people, we must put an end to the Jews.

But spiritually speaking, it's a picture of Satan and those who follow him, who want to destroy both the Jewish people and the future of the Jewish people and also the body of Messiah, seeking to destroy the Ecclesia, the church of the living God. And notice they hoped for that. They were waiting eagerly, "When will the 13th day of the month of Adar will come because we cannot wait for the day that we can finally get rid of all the Jews?"

But God is sovereign. And while the name of God is not mentioned, as we mentioned many times, even once in the book of Esther, you see the hand of God protecting the Jewish people. A second decree was given, and that decree gave a right to the Jewish people to protect themselves. And here we find out in verses 2 and 3 how the Jewish people were united in that time. And notice that, it says in verse 2, "The Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, and they lay hand on such that sought their hurt."

You see, they didn't just lay hand on anyone. They didn't go and attack anyone, but they sought to attack back those that have hurt them, those that hated them according to verse 1, those that hoped to destroy them according to the first verse of chapter 9. And so it said, "no man could withstand them, for the fear of them was upon all people." God has somehow in a supernatural way, in his providence and divine design, put fear upon the enemies of the Jewish people.

Just like he have done it in history, he have done it throughout history, whether it is in the time when Israel came out of the land of Egypt, or whether it is the time in the whole human history, he put fear on the enemies of the Jewish people in order to stop them from continuing what they have intended to do. It says in verse 3 that even the rulers have helped the Jewish people. It said, "and all the rulers of the provinces, and the lieutenants, and the deputies of the officers of the king, they helped the Jews because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them."

Remember, Mordecai now became prominent. And now he became second to the king. Haman is already have been killed and hung on a tree, this wicked man. But now we find Mordecai becoming prominent, and there was a fear of Mordecai. In verse 4, "Mordecai was great in the king's house, and his fame went out throughout all provinces. For this man Mordecai waxed greater and greater." We read in Hebrew, it says, "Haish Mordecai holech v'gadol." He became greater and greater and greater, not in himself because he sought for that, but God in a supernatural way have placed him in that position.

And of course, it remind us so wonderful of Yeshua the Messiah that we read in Philippians chapter 2, "Therefore God have highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, of Yeshua, every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that Yeshua Hamashiach is Lord to the glory of God the Father." And you see what we learn here, that the Lord in a supernatural way have elevated Mordecai, protected his people, the Jewish people, and placed fear upon those that hoped to destroy the Jews, those that became the enemies of the Jews, that hated the Jewish people and sought their hurt.

It says in verse 5, "Thus the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of a sword, and slaughter and destruction, and did what they would unto those that hated them." In other words, if the Jewish people will not get the help of the Lord and the help of the leaders of the Persians, they will not be able to succeed. They will be the one who will ultimately end up to die. But by divine design, the Lord have helped them against their enemies.

Notice from verses 6 to 10 of chapter 9 of Esther, the slaying of 500 men in Shushan the city, and all of Haman's ten sons. Now that is very interesting. It says in verse 6, "And in Shushan the palace," Shushan is the capital city of Persia, "all the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men." And then it give you the list in verse 7, 8, and 9, the names of the ten sons of Haman: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, Vaizatha.

All the ten names that you have here, apparently those ten names had ten meanings. There's a meaning to every one of these names, and the meaning of those names are definitely speaks of pride, speaks of selfishness, speaks of the flesh that is existing in the heart of mankind. In verse 10, it says, "The ten sons of Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the enemies of the Jews, they slew." And now notice what it says, a clause here that you must get a hold of. It says at the end of verse 10, "but on the spoil laid they not their hand."

It is repeated again in verse 15 at the end, "but on the prey they laid not their hand." It repeated once again in verse 16 at the end, "but they laid not their hand on the prey." Now immediately you start to ask the question, wait a minute. They have been successful in killing Haman, they have been successful in slaying his ten sons, and yet they could take all their possession and all what is it's called here the spoil, but they didn't want to touch it. They didn't lay their hand on it.

Three time is repeated in this 9th chapter of the book of Esther, and immediately the question is rising: Why? Why is it that the Jewish people of the time that they were in Persia did not want to touch anything that belonged to Haman the Amalekite, and even though they killed him and they killed his sons, they didn't want to touch all the spoil that they could take in their hands for themselves, for their possession? Now remember, think with me for a moment if we know biblical history and if we know Jewish history. If you remember, beloved brothers and sisters, that Haman is a descendants of Amalek.

Guest (Male): You have been listening to Holy Scriptures and Israel with Gideon Levytam. Gideon teaches God's word from a Hebrew Messianic perspective. For more information about this ministry, write to Holy Scriptures and Israel, Box 1411, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, L0S 1J0, or visit our website at holyscripturesandisrael.com. You are also invited to Gideon's weekly Bible teaching on Fridays at 11:00 AM and 7:00 PM and Saturdays at 1:00 PM at Willowdale Christian Assembly Hall, 28 Martin Ross Avenue in Toronto. Holy Scriptures and Israel is made possible by your prayers and financial support. If you would like to support the program, visit holyscripturesandisrael.com. God bless you. Shalom, Shalom.