On the thirteenth day of the month Adar.
A national memorial
This national memorial--
I. Was established by supreme authority.
II. Was approved by a grateful people.
III. Was sanctioned by the marvellous nature of the events celebrated.
IV. Was hallowed by the manner of its celebration.
V. Was preserved by a wise method.
VI. Is perpetuated with good result. (W. Burrows, B. A.)
The memorial
It would--
1. Keep in remembrance an interposition of the Almighty, without which the Jewish nation and religion had been in a great measure, if not wholly, extinct in the world.
2. Mark a striking fulfilment of prophecy in the destruction of the Amalekites, who were the hereditary enemies of the Jews.
3. Stimulate confidence in God in the most critical circumstances, and refusal to pay such homage to the creature as is due to God only.
4. Foster that recognition of God in history and providence which men are ever liable to overlook and forget. In these respects it was an institution which should prove as advantageous to after-generations, and even more so, than to the people of God who were then living. “The Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” (T. McEwan.)
Memorial days, their obligation and manner of observance
I. Take a view of the reasons here assigned for the establishing the observation of the days mentioned in the text.
1. They were delivered from the entire extirpation of themselves and their religion out of the dominions of the Persian king.
2. The destruction with which they were threatened was in all human appearance inevitable.
3. The Jews might plainly discern a special hand of God in the deliverance which was granted them.
4. As this was a signal instance of God’s special favour towards them, so it was but one instance among many others which they continually had from one generation to another.
II. Consider the manner in which the Jews are here commanded to observe their festival. It includes three parts.
1. The natural. Feasting, rejoicing, etc.
2. The religious. Thanksgiving and praise.
3. The charitable. Sending portions one to another.
If our gratitude to God on memorial days be sincere, we shall go on to express our sense of great deliverances.
1. By living as becomes those who have received such great favours from the hands of God.
2. We shall be zealous to maintain and secure the inestimable blessings hitherto continued to us. (Samuel Bradford.)
A national memorial
The feast instituted by Mordecai was designed to be--
I. A memorial of rest.
II. A memorial of joy.
III. A memorial of triumph. (J. S. Van Dyke, D. D.)
The Feast of Purim
Looking at the establishment of Purim, we are struck--
I. With the historical value of a feast of this sort.
II. There is also an educational value in such a feast. All the education of a child is not comprised in what he receives at school. He learns much in the home. He is greatly affected by what he sees on the streets. Dr. Andrew Reid tells us how profoundly he was moved by the sight of the statue of John Howard in St. Paul’s Cathedral, and traces to that the benevolent purpose of his life, which ended in the establishment of so many asylums for orphans and imbeciles. So we ought to be careful what sort of men those are whom we allow to be honoured in that way. For every one who looks upon a statue is moved to ask, “Whose is it? what was his character? what was his history? and why has he been honoured thus?” And the answers will be a part of the education of those who put the questions, stirring their ambition or firing their enthusiasm. It is the same with national holidays. The Passover, etc. (W. M. Taylor, D. D.)
Different means of commemorating great events
Different means have been employed by different nations and in different ages to perpetuate the memory of great events. We are told (Genesis 31:45): “Jacob took a stone and set it up for a pillar.” Again (Genesis 35:14). Achan and his family. The king of Ai. Absalom. Alexander the Great caused a tumulus to be erected over the grave of his friend Hephaestion, costing million and a half of dollars. Virgil makes mention of memorial stones, as does also Homer. Standing-stones, or “menhirs,” were also erected in memorial of particular events; and stone circles, constructed with the same design most probably, were so numerous that they may be found even yet in almost every country--in the Orkneys, in Russia, in Hindustan, in Africa, in Greenland, in America, in all parts of Europe. The most remarkable are Stonehenge and Abury, in England. As a means of transmitting events to succeeding generations, a simple ceremony committed to those who sympathise with the cause in which the observance originated is far more effective than even the most imposing monumental structure which art has devised, strength erected, or wealth adorned. The latter is dumb; the former has loving hearts and living tongues to perpetuate the memory of deeds that once stirred human souls and distilled blessings upon the world. The celebration of the 4th of July is likely to prove more satisfactory, as a memorial of a national birthday, than any other monument which the energy and liberality of the American people could have reared. In the rites connected with the Feast of Purim, Mordecai and Esther have a more enduring monument than the Egyptian monarch who erected the pyramid of Gizeh, or the Pharaoh who constructed the marvellous labyrinth. In confirmation of the theory that ceremony is more effective as a memorial than dolmens, cromlechs, etc., I have only to remind you that the touching incidents connected with the life and death of Christ have been conveyed to the human family in a most remarkable way by the Eucharist. (J. S. Van Dyke, D. D.)
And that these days should be remembered.
Days to be remembered
I. Our birthdays.
II. Days of awakening and conversion.
III. Days of darkness.
1. Days of bereavement.
2. Days of mental depression.
3. Days of perplexity.
IV. Days of deliverance.
V. Times of refreshing and seasons of communion with God.
VI. The day of death and the day of judgment. (J. Bolton, B. A.)
A memorial day
In these words we have an account of the founding of the Jewish national memorial day. It was not so much a religious as a national memorial day. It celebrated a day of victory and triumph; and they made it memorable by annual observance.
I. Let us think of it as a memory day. There are those who think it unkind to recall the memory of the dead, or even to speak to the bereaved of their losses. There are some who think that the only way to console is by diverting the thoughts from all memory of that which occasioned pain. There is no more mistaken treatment for the human heart than to prescribe oblivion for its cure. The very memory of the loved one blesses us and makes us more gentle and tender toward the living. It is neither manly nor womanly nor human to be either hard-hearted or forgetful. Then, do you think that the heart of our nation is softened, and that sympathy, sensibility, and true greatness are promoted by our observance of a national memorial day?
II. That our memorial day is a day with very important lessons.
1. It teaches Christian patriotism. Love of country is not only a natural sentiment in every true heart, but it is right in the sight of God. No man can ignore his relation to his country and not sin against God.
2. Again, our memorial day teaches the value of peace. Memorial day is a constant reminder of the terrible price paid.
3. The day also brings lessons of gratitude and hope. Memory is the mother of gratitude. So when we recall our national blessings how much cause we have for gratitude to God! “The Lord hath done great things for us whereof we are glad.” (Southern Pulpit.).