MembersHistory of Israel Through the Eyes of Esther and Nehemiah

The Purim story takes place at a time when G-d’s glory was hidden from humanity. The Temple of King Solomon was destroyed by the Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar. According to American archeologist Eric Cline: “Fifty years later, Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered the Babylonian Empire, resulting in the Persians becoming the new rulers of Judea. After its annexation to the Persian Empire, Judah became the Persian province of Yehud and its people were given the name Yehudim, from which the modern term for Jews is derived. In 538 BCE, Cyrus allowed the Jews exiled in Babylon to return to their homeland.” Cyrus even issued a royal decree for the Jewish Temple to be rebuilt.

But unfortunately, when King Ahasuerus came to power, he decided to halt the construction of the Second Temple. As Ezra 4:23 states, “They went with haste to Jerusalem to the Jews and halted them with force and power. The work of the Temple of G-d in Jerusalem was thus halted and remained halted until the second year of the reign of Darius,...