We Were Born To Win This War

But for us Jews, this isn’t the first time that Iran has threatened to annihilate our nation. 2200 Years ago, King Achashverosh and his wicked Prime Minister Haman attempted a genocide of Jews. What resulted was the joyous festival of Purim that celebrates the sudden reversal of the decree, as our enemies were hanged on a tree. When we explore the reaction of the Jews to the threat then, we can learn how we should respond now as well, in order to secure the same victorious result.

The Purim story happened in Persia—what is today Iran. There were no open miracles in the Purim narrative as the setting was one of a relatively modern civilization, just like ours today. There are two critical lessons we can learn from the successful response of our Persian ancestors. The first is their ability to replace their natural fear with a powerful faith in G-d’s salvation:

The Midrash (Esther Rabbah 7:17) relates that when the letters ordaining the decree against the Jews had been duly sealed by the king and delivered to Haman’s hands, Haman and all his comrades went strolling with jovial hearts and encountered Mordechai.

Just then Mordechai had caught sight of three little boys on their way home from school. He hastened towards them, and Haman and his band followed him so that they could hear what he was going to ask them.

When Mordechai caught up to the young pupils he said to one of them: “Recite me your verse!” The little boy promptly recited the verse he had just learned at school: “Do not fear sudden terror, nor the destruction of the wicked when it comes.”

The second little boy spoke up and said, “I studied Scripture today, and this is the verse I just reached at school: ‘Contrive a scheme, but it will be foiled; conspire a plot, but it will not materialize, for G‑d is with us.’”

And the third little boy said: “To your old age I am [with you]; to your hoary years I will sustain you; I have created (the problem) and I will carry you (through it); I will sustain you and deliver you.’”

The Midrash proceeds to relate that when Mordechai heard these responses, he smiled with a happy heart.

Haman asked him: “What makes you so happy about what these children said?”

Replied Mordechai: “I am happy because of the glad tidings they told me — that I should not be afraid of the evil plot that you contrived against us.”

Hearing these words, the wicked Haman flew into a rage and declared: “The very first ones whom I will destroy shall be these children!”

The three verses recited by these children are so critical to our success that they are the very last words that we recite at the end of each of our three daily prayers. As we emerge from the safety of the spiritual sanctuary to the challenges of the outside word, the Torah is urging us to recall that we should not be afraid of the troubles we face because G-d, the Creator of all, is merely testing our faith. If we can register just this truth and nothing else, we will have what we need to overcome our problems.

A second critical lesson we can learn from the reaction of the Jews to the Persian threat of annihilation is the study of Torah. The Talmud (Megillah 16) tells us that when Mordechai heard of the terrible decree, he gathered 22,000 Jewish children and studied Torah with them. The power of Torah study is so great that the Torah promises us:

“If you follow My statutes (toil in my Torah study—Rashi) and observe My commandments and perform them,”

I will give your rains in their time…… and you will live in security in your land. 

And I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you]; I will remove wild beasts from the Land, and no army will pass through your land; You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you; Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. I will turn towards you, and I will make you fruitful and increase you, and I will set up My covenant with you.” (Leviticus Chapter 26: 3-9)

Along the same lines, we’d like to encourage you to study Torah in order to draw G-d’s Divine protection upon our Land and upon the People of Israel. Since we stand today in the days leading up to Tisha B’Av, when both our Temples were destroyed, it’s customary to study about the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. We’ve prepared a special website where you can learn all about the future Temple that will soon be rebuilt in Jerusalem, with the coming of Moshiach.

Visit JewishGardens.com/Temple to explore the Holy Temple through video, audio and written study.