The festival Purim is celebrated to remember the rescue of Jews from a plot devised by which villain?

• A. Nebuchadnezzar
• B. Pharaoh
• C. Pontius Pilate
• D. Haman

Answer: (D)

Purim centers on the rescue of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire from a plot devised by Haman. Haman, who serves as an advisor to King Ahasuerus, convinces the king to issue a decree to destroy all Jews. Esther, who is Jewish and becomes queen, bravely reveals her identity to the king and pleads for her people. The king allows a reversal, and though Haman is ultimately punished—executed on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai—the Jews are saved. That victory and the reversal of the plot are what Purim celebrates. Nebuchadnezzar and Pharaoh belong to different biblical narratives, and Pontius Pilate is from the New Testament; they are not connected to Purim.