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Category: Identity Celebrations

A Purim Allegory

By Michael and Sharra Badgley

The Megillat Esther 1 is read every year during the festival of Purim and shares the same unique quality as the rest of God's Word; it has many degrees of depth and meaning within its pages. For instance, the book of Esther can be read as both an historical account, and as a prophetic story. Hidden within the narrative of the Megillat Esther, we find not only the hand of God at work to deliver His people, but also a clever politically written satire (or metaphor) to demonstrate both the human folly and vices of the Persian kingdom and the people of Israel.

While not dismissing the historical side of the account, this article will focus on the allegorical elements of the story, and by looking closely, we will see within the Megillat Esther a message for the generation of Israelites due to return to the Land after captivity, which actually speaks to those of us in this generation as well. But before delving into the underlying themes of the story of Purim, let's quickly review its historical background.

In 587 BCE, the Babylonian army breached the walls of Jerusalem and the Holy Temple was destroyed. The Kingdom of Judah was exiled to Babylon under the authority of the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar. This period of exile was prophesied by Jeremiah to last for 70 years:

Those who had escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon; and they were servants to him and to his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. All the days of its desolation it kept Sabbath until the seventy years were complete. (2 Chronicles 36:20-21)2

When the length of years in exile began to come to an end, the people of Judah were largely uninterested in returning to their Land. Sadly, they had, according to Psalm 137, hung their harps by the rivers of Babylon because their...

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© 2009 First Fruits of Zion. All rights reserved. We encourage you to share this material with your friends for further personal study. However, This material may not be republished, in print, electronically, or any other form without our prior permission. Adapted from Messiah Magazine #94 .

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