From Gallows to Glory
In the Book of Esther, a decree had been issued.
The day was chosen.
Lots were cast.
Fear settled in like a shadow.
The word Purim comes from “pur” — the lot that was cast to determine the day of destruction.
What looked like chance was not chance at all.
And centuries later, at the foot of a Roman cross, soldiers cast lots again — this time for the garments of Jesus.
Lots were cast in Persia to seal a death sentence.
Lots were cast at Calvary as redemption unfolded.
What appears random in human hands
is never random in God’s.
Annihilation was scheduled.
And yet… the story turned.
What was meant for destruction became deliverance.
What was written in law was overturned.
What was intended for death became a feast of joy.
Purim celebrates reversal.
And another decree would one day come into view.
The decree against sin.
The weight of justice.
The cost of redemption.
In Esther, the sentence was reversed.
At Calvary, the sentence was fulfilled.
Jesus did not escape the decree.
He stepped into it.
He did not overturn it.
He satisfied it.
Purim shows us that God can rewrite a verdict.
The cross shows us that God can absorb it.
And sometimes I wonder if the calendar whispers something profound:
While one community celebrates a death sentence overturned,
another remembers a death willingly embraced.
Both testify to the same truth:
Evil does not get the final word.
In Esther, God’s name is never mentioned — yet His hand is everywhere.
At the cross, heaven grows dark and silence stretches across the land.
Hidden does not mean absent.
Silent does not mean inactive.
When it feels as though the decree stands…
when the outcome seems sealed…
when the stone is rolled into place…
Resurrection is already moving.
Purim preserved a people.
If that decree had succeeded, the covenant line from Abraham would have been cut off.
No preserved lineage.
No Bethlehem.
No Messiah.
The rescue recorded in Esther was not only about survival —
it was about promise.
God was guarding the line through which redemption would come.
He was protecting the story long before the cross was raised.
Christ redeemed a world.
And perhaps that is what this season is teaching us:
Sometimes the decree is reversed.
Sometimes it is fulfilled.
But never — never — is it wasted.
The gallows did not win.
The cross did not fail.
From gallows to glory,
God has always been writing redemption.
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Reflection
Is there something in your life that feels sealed?
A verdict you think cannot be undone?
A silence that feels heavy?
What if hidden does not mean absent?
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🌿 Prayer
Father,
When heaven feels quiet and the outcome feels certain,
remind me that You are still writing the story.
Whether You overturn the decree or fulfill it,
teach me to trust that You are working toward redemption.
Give me eyes to see reversal.
Give me faith to endure fulfillment.
And give me hope that resurrection always follows obedience.
Amen.
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