20. Mordecai wrote down everything that had happened. Then he sent letters to the Jews everywhere in the provinces
21. and told them:Each year you must celebrate on both the fourteenth and the fifteenth of Adar,
22. the days when we Jews defeated our enemies. Remember this month as a time when our sorrow was turned to joy, and celebration took the place of crying. Celebrate by having parties and by giving to the poor and by sharing gifts of food with each other.
23. They followed Mordecai's instructions and set aside these two days every year as a time of celebration.
24. Haman was the son of Hammedatha and a descendant of Agag. He hated the Jews so much that he planned to destroy them, but he wanted to find out the best time to do it. So he cast lots.
25. Esther went to King Xerxes and asked him to save her people. Then the king gave written orders for Haman and his sons to be punished in the same terrible way that Haman had in mind for the Jews. So they were hanged.
26. Mordecai's letter had said that the Jews must celebrate for two days because of what had happened to them. This time of celebration is called Purim, which is the Hebrew word for the lots that were cast.
27. Now every year the Jews set aside these two days for having parties and celebrating, just as they were told to do.
28. From now on, all Jewish families must remember to celebrate Purim on these two days each year.
29. Queen Esther, daughter of Abihail, wanted to give full authority to Mordecai's letter about the Festival of Purim, and with his help she wrote a letter about the feast.
30. Copies of this letter were sent to Jews in the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of King Xerxes. In the letter they said:We pray that all of you will live in peace and safety.
31. You and your descendants must always remember to celebrate Purim at the time and in the way that we have said. You must also follow the instructions that we have given you about mourning and going without eating.
32. These laws about Purim are written by the authority of Queen Esther.