The Victory of the Jews: The ninth chapter of Esther recounts the events that ensured Jewish victory. It begins with an emphasis on a particular day: On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar—a date that chillingly recalls the events in chapter 3 that led to this crisis. This chapter is about this day (and the next), about the victory the Jews achieved over those who hated them, and about the rest that followed. These events provide the etiology of the Jewish festival of Purim. Much of chapter 9 is devoted to explaining, in annalistic fashion, the origin of the two days that constitute the holiday and the authorization to continue its observance. It is apparent that this material has been edited. The perspective now betrays some temporal distance; the narrator relates a…