Purim represents more than costume parties for kids and eating triangular cookies filled with fruit (called “Haman’s Ears”). The holiday remembers the historical event in the book of Esther where the Jews survived a plot to exterminate them.
(Photo: Hand-written scroll of the Book of Esther in Hebrew. By Chefallen. Own work. CC-BY-SA-3.0, via Wikimedia)
My favorite part of the modern celebration of Purim includes the reading of the book of Esther. Amazingly:
- Esther is the only book in the Bible that never mentions God.
- It never speaks of prayer.
- It has no miracle.
- And yet it’s Scripture.
The story of Esther is built on a growing series of seeming coincidences, all of which play essential to the story.
God is never seen or spoken of—yet He works quietly behind the scenes, orchestrating His sovereign will.
Just like in our lives.
Never Mentioned, But Ever-Present
Mordecai spoke these words to Queen Esther to urge her to appeal to the king on behalf of her people.
Do not imagine that you in the king’s palace can escape any more than all the Jews. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this? —Esther 4:13-14
Mordecai’s question presupposes that providence placed Esther in a place of influence for a specific purpose. When I think of the land of Israel, I see Mordecai’s principle written large.
A Place of Providence
The land of Israel sat in a strategic position as the only intercontinental land bridge between the superpowers of the ancient world.
- The strategic International Highway—sometimes called the Great Trunk Road or the Via Maris (“Way of the Sea”)—ran the full length of the land of Israel. This vast artery of transport stretched from the Fertile Crescent all the way to Egypt.
- Israel stood at the crossroads of three continents—Asia, Africa, and Europe—and the surrounding seas and desert forced all who traveled to Egypt by land to traverse Israel.
Israel remained for millennia the crossroads for international imperialism, war, and trade.
(Photo: The Holy City of Jerusalem. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
A Place of Influence
I find it fascinating that when world powers traveled through Israel during biblical days, God’s people would either influence these foreigners or be influenced by them.
- Because of this influence, Israel’s central position among the nations proved to be a double-edged sword.
- The Prophet Ezekiel recorded how God lamented that Jerusalem’s general placement as “the center of the nations” had borne no fruit of obedience (Ezekiel 5:5).
- Ironically, God’s people had been swayed by the very nations He intended them to influence. Total reversal of His intention.
Purim in Israel and You
As in Esther’s story at Purim, we often don’t see God explicitly involved in our lives. At times, it’s like He’s not even there. But we see in Esther God silently working behind the scenes through seeming coincidences.
Esther found herself in a place of influence, providentially placed to do what was right in a culture dead-set to do wrong.
God has placed you where you are—wherever that may be—to accomplish the same thing.
Tell me what you think: Why do you think God has placed you where you are? To leave a comment, just click here.