Esther 9:1, 15, 17, 19, 21

On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, the edict commanded by the king was to be carried out. On this day the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, but now the tables were turned and the Jews got the upper hand over those who hated them.

The Jews in Susa came together on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, and they put to death in Susa three hundred men, but they did not lay their hands on the plunder.

This happened on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth they rested and made it a day of feasting and joy.

That is why rural Jews—those living in villages—observe the fourteenth of the month of Adar as a day of joy and feasting, a day for giving presents to each other.

to have them celebrate annually the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar