Day 260 - Esther 9-10, Ezra 4

When the whole nation of Israel was about to perish, blessed Esther defeated the tyrant’s anger simply by fasting and praying to God. By faith she changed the ruin of her people into safety. [See the commentary on Esth 4:16.] Those days are feast days for Israel; they used to call a feast when an enemy was slain or a conspiracy against the people was broken up and Israel was delivered. That is why Moses established the Feast of the Passover: because Pharaoh was killed and the people were delivered from bondage. So then, especially when tyrants were slain, temporal feasts and holidays were established in Judea. Now, however, the devil, that tyrant against the whole world, is slain. Therefore, our feast does not relate only to time but to eternity. It is a heavenly feast! We do not announce it as a shadow or a picture or a type but as the real thing—St Athanasius the Great