Or, Setting Ourselves Reminders to Trust in the Lord
Scripture: Esther 9:20-10:3
Date: November 2, 2025
Speaker: Sean Higgins
I chose to preach through Ezra-Nehemiah-Esther for such a time as this. We started thirteen months ago, just two months more time than the Jews had between when the lots were cast for their destruction until that very day when, by God’s providence, the reverse happened. It’s time to finish the book of Esther, and to wrap up our study of all three books.
The main character, the “hero,” of all three of these books is God. It’s the greatest irony of Esther in particular that God’s name isn’t used even once, but there’s no way all these things just happened without a divine author, one with a great sense of justice and faithfulness to His people and of humor. All these books center on God fulfilling His promise to the covenant people, that He would protect them in exile and bring (many of) them back to the promised land.
The whole of the Esther story happens between Ezra 6-7. Esther herself is living in the capital city with Ahasuerus, also called Xerxes. Around 40k Jews already returned under Ahasuerus’ grandfather, Cyrus. Another 12k are still to return with Ezra and then Nehemiah.
We’ve met big Bible names in these books: Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, as well as Mordecai. All of them were committed to lose it all, at least at crucial times. It was “for such a time as this.” God gave the people “a mind to work,” and they worked. They gathered to hear the Law and then they committed to doing it. In Esther’s case she gradually realized that she had to be willing to give up her life for sake of more lives. And the blessing of God brought them joy on schedule.
In verses 1-20 the Jews were in a fight for their lives. In the last parts of the book the Jews establish a feast as part of their annual liturgy.
The last long chapter explains why the story of Esther was written. The Jews had been holding an annual feast called Purim, and the author has been in the process of telling us why.
Mordecai was the prime minister. He was the second most powerful official in Persia, and he makes the remembrance official. He recorded these things, put them in some sort of journal, and then sent letters…both near and far, covering around 1500 miles both east and west from Susa. He wrote down Haman’s rise and fall and the Jew’s dangers and deliverance. There was to be a yearly two-day feast, days to remind them all of when the Jews got relief from their enemies. These were to be days of feasting and gladness, for sharing food and gifts. Those who did not have resources were to be provided for.
Mordecai formalized what the Jews had already started to do. They called the holiday Purim. That’s the Hebrew plural ending added to the Persian loan word, pur, meaning lot or dice. This story started with a lottery. Hamam meant the purim for evil but God meant it for good (think of Joseph’s comment to his brothers in Genesis 50:20). The day the gods of fortune destined for destruction became the very day the evil plan of Haman was returned on his own head.
Naming is always interesting. What would be equivalent for us, Lotto Ball Day? Card Day? Dart Board Day? Chicken Bone Day? What didn’t kill them made them stronger.
This holiday was to be recognized without fail (verse 27). They firmly obligated, parents with their kids, to be remember these days throughout every generation, in every clan, province and city. The Feast of Purim is still observed among Jews to this day (and like our Easter, the exact day changes year to year. In 2025 it was March 14, in 2026 it will be March 3. They read the entire book of Esther. They also give kids noisemakers called groggers, a kind of rattle, so that whenever Haman’s name is mentioned the kids make a lot of noise “blot out” his name and signify his defeat).
There is a lot of work in this sort of scheduled joy. Did families have rules that you couldn’t sing Purim (observed in March) songs before Hanukkah (observed in December) was over? Did they have budgets for Purim gifts? Are you tired just thinking about advent? Advent?! We’re still eating Reformation Day candy!
The Queen adds her stamp of approval in words of peace and truth. This suggests that there was perhaps some disagreement and even division among the people about the propriety of the Purim partying. If she adds anything other than her affirmation it’s the part about their fasts and their lamenting (verse 31). Of course her own consecrated agency began with three days without food for sake of praying for God’s help.
The bookend finishes with reference to Ahasuerus again, who was the first character we met in chapter 1. In God’s providence good came to the king because of the good done by his wife and his new top man. His kingdom stretched from sea to shining sea, out to the coastlands. As for the subjects, even with the imposed taxes, better is a living tax-payer than a dead one.
The final comment is about Mordecai, who sought the welfare of his people. And the people loved him.
Let’s do three levels of wrap up: 1) to this section we’ve just studied, 2) to the Esther story overall, and then 3) to the Ezra-Nehemiah-Esther trifecta.
First, it’s good to set reminders to trust in the Lord. Scheduled joy works not just because we decide we just want to have joy on a particular day, but because we have reasons to rejoice. Dice that determined the when of destruction turns out, by God’s providence, to be the very day of deliverance? It’s true history and theology.
So, second, the whole book of Esther, without mentioning God’s name once, helps us to fight the temptation to live as if God’s existence is irrelevant. Not only do we look for God’s “invisible hand” turning events how He wants, we trust Him. The crazy cultural context of this story remind us that unfavorable conditions aren’t new and that reversals of evil plans are a frequent because it’s one of our God’s favorite plot points.
For that matter, if there is no Esther there’s no eschatology. Haman’s aim was the end of all Israel. Without Mordecai there is no Messiah. No feast of Purim no propitiation for our sins (John 4:22).
What good does it do for a modern Jew to celebrate Purim apart from faith in Jesus as the Christ? It does the good of increasing their accountability, similar to having the promises and the patriarchs (Romans 9:4-5). But remembering this great story of deliverance won’t save them. It should, by God’s grace, point them to God’s grace and salvation in His Son. But apart from Christ they are looking at destruction worse than anything Haman had planned.
And third, for final “tips” from the three books together, I have none. But if I wanted to give the big idea: God rules, so His people should trust Him. And when His people trust Him, His people risk.
Remember, as Augustus Strong defined it: “Providence is God’s attention concentrated everywhere.” We see it especially in some of these bigger examples:
Particularly for the Jews, Ezra and Nehemiah show God’s providential rule to bring the many Jews back to the land of Israel, and Esther shows God’s providential rule to care for those still outside the land.
But God’s providence encourages, and uses, the consecrated agency of persons. Just some of the bigger examples:
Putting it all together, God’s people set joyful reminders of God’s faithful rule to stimulate and sustain their risks of faith.
As Christians reading all this, we aren’t trying to rebuild Jerusalem, we aren’t sending our daughters to sleep with kings to gain political power, we haven’t given our kids rattles to drown out Haman’s name. But, we are trying to build a culture that honors Christ as Lord, we are praying for kings/presidents that we could live godly lives, and we do schedule feasts for our kids that they would enjoy the blessings of those who fear the Lord. Advent/Christmas, Reformation Day, the Lord’s Table, are part of our routine for sake of remembering, rejoicing, and risking.
Trust in the Lord, down to the roll of the dice.
These stories have set a foundation for some messages that are going to come up the next few weeks as we talk about our own church, where we have come from, how we have grown, and then some of the next steps that we need to take together for sake of our work in this time in this place. We are not done. TEC is almost 15 years old, with 15 year-old kinds of problems. We also have a similar need to learn to take responsibility, and step up even more for sake of being able to reproduce.
God has blessed us, and we pray for Him to bless us even more. These books have set us up for taking individual risks by faith, and they have, Lord willing, set us up to consider as a church what some of our opportunities and responsibilities are for blessing His name in these days.
The “omnipotent faithfulness” (Jobes) of God works for our good, but the joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). As those who confess that Jesus is Lord, and anticipate His return as King, He put us here for such a time as this.
Remember that Jesus is building His church. He has given You His Word and His Spirit, the truth of the gospel, that you would learn to observe everything He commanded. Remember His providence and His promise to fill the earth with His glory. Give yourself to the same purpose.
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. (1 Peter 4:12–13 ESV)