Remember Amalek!?

The shabbat before Purim is called Shabbat Zachor in traditional Judaism. Zachor זכור is a commandment to remember. Remember what? - Remember the attack of Amalek against the children of Israel. We are actually commanded to remember that attack in Deuteronomy 25:17-18. Those verses are read out loud in the synagogue.

Why is this read before Purim? The answer is that the evil Haman is a descendant of Agag, king of the Amalekites. Agag was pardoned by King Saul before being executed by Samuel the Prophet. Mordechai is listed as a descendant of Kish, of the family of King Saul. In effect this remembrance connects three different events:

1. Attack of Amalekites in Exodus 17

2. Attack of Agag in I Samuel 15

3. Attack of Haman in Esther 3.

The conclusion drawn is that this is a continuing and repeated attack. The spiritual warfare did not cease with those three events but continues till today. We are in the same warfare they were. So, let’s “remember.” Let’s be aware that we are in a spiritual war and that our warfare is not primarily military, political, or racial. It is spiritual. The weapons of this war are spiritual, and our enemies are not people but demonic forces (Ephesians 6:11-12, II Corinthians 10:3-5).

There has been much conflict in Israel recently: increased terrorist attacks, rioting, demonstrations, divisiveness between left and right, attack in the media and international diplomatic circles, and a new wave of persecution against Messianic Jews. If we are feeling these battles here in Israel, it is likely that the same conflict rages in almost every nation. Perhaps you are feeling intense pressure on your soul on the inside and difficult situations around you on the outside.

One of the messages of the book of Esther is for each one of us to rise up in the image of Mordechai and Esther. You are called to be a Mordechai or an Esther through the grace of God in Yeshua the Messiah. The tension around you can forge you to be strengthened in faith. Just as they were, you are called to the kingdom for such a time as this (Esther 4:14).

At the end of the scroll of Esther, all is suddenly changed from bad to good, from defeat to victory, from sadness to joy. I pray the same for you:

• To become more like Mordechai and Esther,

• To have your battles turned from defeat to victory,

• To have sadness and depression turned to joy.

There is special grace and power for this prayer to be answered in this season.

In Yeshua’s love,

Asher