There are times when a hidden issue, unknown to the public, is really the underlying cause for current events.
To present an example that is happening right before our eyes; Why is the entire world focused, and even obsessed with Israel? We are a small country in size, and population, yet we greatly interest nearly the entire world, who closely follow what is going on with our war against Hamas.
There must be something deeper and even symbolic which is moving the sequence of events.
The story of Megillat Esther, read on Purim, also has a concealed issue. There is an underlying topic which is 'stirring the pot', in the story of Purim. It is not mentioned in the simple meaning of the Megillah, but perhaps every single word is related to this. This is the issue of the rebuilding of the second Beit Hamikdash.
Every figure in the Megillah has a strong connection to this, so let us go over characters and the historical facts.
King Achashverosh:
He ruled exactly 70 after the destruction of the first Beit Hamikdash (Great Temple), when the Jewish people were in exile. Rashi, in the first sentence of Megillat Esther, writes when these seventy years begin and how they are calculated. King Koresh had already approved rebuilding the Mikdash, and work started on it. However, Achashverosh ordered it stopped (Rashi, Esther 5:3). He offers Queen Esther up to "half of the kingdom" (Esther 5:3) and the Talmud in Megillah (15b) explains that Achashverosh means that the half refers to "up until but not including the Mikdash". Why would the king even mention this to Esther?
Queen Vashti:
She was the granddaughter of Nebuchadnezzar who destroyed the first Temple. She also gave her husband, Achashverosh, the advice to stop the rebuilding of the second Beit Hamikdash (Targum Esther 1:1).
Haman and his children:
Haman's children are the ones who wrote the 'Kativ Hasitna', the evil letter which led to the stopping of the building of the second Beit Hamikdash. Haman himself was responsible for sending the letter out to the Jews in Jerusalem, in the name of Achashverosh (Rashi Ester 9:10).
Mordechai:
Mordechai was a member of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem and was exiled from there by Nebuchadnezzar (Rashi: Esther 2:22) . He saved Achashverosh's life in order to get permission from him to rebuild the Great Temple, and actually requested it (see the Yalkut Shimoni, Ester, 1153) Eventually, he made aliyah to Jerusalem with Ezra (The book of Ezra 2:1), and had a position in the second Temple (Mishna, Shkalim,5,1).
Queen Esther:
As we all know, Esther and Achashverosh married as described in the Megillah. Their son was called Daryavesh, who re-approved of the building of the second Beit Hamikdash and had it completed (Rashi, Ezra 1:1).
Amazingly, every one of the main characters in the story of Purim is very relevant to the idea of the second Beit Hamikdash.
After we compile all of these historical facts brought down by our sages, we can understand in much better context the first chapter of the Megillah. That is the very detailed description of the great feast of Achashverosh in Shushan.
A celebration of what?
What exactly was Achashverosh celebrating? The simple answer is that his goal in celebrating was to strengthen his empire. According to Chazal (our Sages, in the Tractate of Megillah 11b), during this huge celebration, Achashverosh wore the special garments of the High Priest (bigdei kehuna) and used the holy vessels of the Beit Hamikdash.
The Talmud also indicates that the festival took place after Achashverosh calculated the end of 70 years of exile, which was the number that our prophets used for our return to Jerusalem. His mathematics was mistaken, to our great benefit. However, the point is he was celebrating the end of Am Yisrael's hope to return home. It was a monumental display that there was now no need for Jerusalem, with Shushan being the replacement of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. His claim was that if the Jews were not redeemed by the end of 70 years, they will never be redeemed.
The lesson for today
At times, Hashem sends us a "wake-up call". In the case of Purim, it led to our return to Eretz Yisroel and the building of the second Beit Hamikdash. Our mission, going forward, is to figure out the meaning of the call, and look at current events with this goal. To do so, we need to utilize a perspective of history and Jewish destiny, through the lens of 'Emunah' or strong confidence in Hashem. Every occasion should be seen as an opportunity for pushing the wheels of history forwards towards its goal of the final Geula and the third Beit Hamikdash. We must have faith that this war in Gaza, just like the story of Purim in the Megillah, will lead to great things and Geula.