Biblical Significance of the Month of Adar (5786)

Adar is the twelfth month of the biblical calendar, falling in late winter. It was the month in which the Second Temple was completed. Spiritually, Adar represents completion after delay, restoration after exile, and the finishing of what God promised.

In Ezra 6:15 (NKJV), we read:

“Now the temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.”

It is significant that the Temple - the symbol of God’s dwelling - was completed in the final month of the year. In Hebrew thought, this suggests fulfillment before a new beginning, as the new year begins with Nisan.

Adar is also central to the story of Esther. In Esther 3:7, the enemy casts lots to determine the timing of destruction, and the lot falls on the twelfth month - Adar. The enemy chose Adar as the appointed time for annihilation. Yet God reversed it. The day meant for destruction became the day authorized for defense. Adar became the month of great reversal.

Adar carries powerful covenant meaning. It is the month of reversal - what was decreed for destruction becomes deliverance. It reveals hidden providence - God’s name is never mentioned in Esther, yet His hand governs the entire story. It is a month of completion - the Temple was finished in Adar. And it is associated with joy after threat. In rabbinic tradition it is said, “When Adar enters, joy increases.”

When we look at Adar in Scripture, we see something very specific. It is not only a month of celebration. It is a month where things long delayed finally come into completion. The Second Temple was finished in Adar. The decree of destruction in Esther was reversed in Adar. It is a month marked by fulfillment after tension.

But this raises a deeper question: what set that fulfillment in motion?

The Temple did not suddenly appear in Adar. Completion always has a backstory. Breakthrough has an unseen history in prayer. When we trace the story backward, we do not begin in Ezra. We begin with an intercessor in exile. We begin with Daniel.

The completion of the Temple in Adar was not an isolated historical moment. It was the visible outcome of an invisible process. Before restoration in Jerusalem, there was repentance in Babylon. Before the Temple was finished in Adar, Daniel was on his face in prayer and fasting decades earlier.

This reveals a key biblical principle: God completes in public what is first contended for in secret.

In Daniel chapter 9, we meet a man who understands the timing of God. The first thing he tells us is that he understood by the books the number of years spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. Through Jeremiah’s prophecy, Daniel realized the exile was nearing its end. Yet instead of assuming restoration would happen automatically, he began to pray and fast.

What is striking is that Daniel did not pray for personal breakthrough. He prayed for covenant fulfillment. He carried the burden of a nation.

Daniel’s prayer began with revelation. He did not pray his own ideas - he prayed the Word of God. True intercession always begins there, not informing God but aligning with His decrees and His heart.

Then he humbled himself. He fasted, wore sackcloth, and confessed the sins of his people. This is identificational repentance. He stood in the gap, saying, “Lord, we have sinned,” even if he personally had not committed those sins. He was not accusing his nation - he was interceding for it.

Next, Daniel focused on the character of God. He declared, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and mercy.” He did not magnify the failure of the people - he magnified the faithfulness of God. True intercession focuses on the nature of God, not the size of the problem.

Finally, Daniel prayed for restoration, that God’s name would be glorified among the nations. The pattern is clear: he understood Scripture, humbled himself in repentance, declared who God is, and called forth the destiny God had spoken.

Then heaven responded. The angel Gabriel appeared and brought one of the greatest prophetic revelations in Scripture - the vision of the seventy weeks. Daniel 9 shows us that priestly intercession opens the heavens. When we stand in repentance and covenant faith, God releases prophetic revelation and angelic movement.

That prayer, offered in exile, became the catalyst for everything that followed. A king was moved. A decree was released. A remnant returned. The rebuilding began. And decades later, the Temple was completed in Adar.

Adar reveals what Daniel birthed. It is a prophetic window where heaven finishes what intercession started.

As we enter the month of Adar, we are not only celebrating reversals. We are stepping into a season that asks a question: what has God promised that still needs to be carried in prayer? Adar reminds us that heaven finishes what intercessors refuse to abandon.

Throughout Scripture, every great turning point is marked by intercessors - men and women appointed by God with the spiritual character required for partnership with Him. The month of Adar reminds us of the reversal of the plans of the kingdom of darkness and calls us to take our place as intercessors.

Daniel stands as one of the clearest biblical models. He was a prophet, but also one of the most powerful examples of an intercessor. An intercessor is someone willing to pay the price - someone with a determined, single-hearted devotion to see God’s purposes established on earth as they are in heaven.

Scripture gives many examples of intercessors: Abraham at the beginning of a people, Moses at the birth of a nation, Samuel at the emergence of the kingdom, and Daniel at the return from exile.

Daniel received insight into the Word of God through the writings of Jeremiah. Through fasting and prayer, the Lord gave him revelation and understanding of the timing. What others saw as distant, Daniel saw as near. The Spirit of God revealed that the prophesied return was closer than many believed.

Yet revelation did not lead Daniel into passivity. It led him into partnership. Instead of relaxing, he prayed even more. He positioned himself in alignment with God’s Word and prayed toward Jerusalem daily, fully committed to see the promise fulfilled.

His intercession was so significant that the enemy attempted to stop it. Through political manipulation, a plan was devised to silence his prayer. Yet Daniel continued, standing on the Word of God even under the threat of death. What the enemy meant for destruction was turned back upon itself. Those who sought to stop the intercession ultimately fell into their own trap. Once again, we see the pattern of reversal.

Daniel’s life gives us clear takeaways. First, God reveals His purposes, but He invites partnership. Revelation is not a call to observe - it is a call to intercede. Second, true intercession carries the burden of God’s heart. Daniel prayed for the destiny of his people, not for personal comfort. Third, intercession provokes opposition, but obedience releases reversal. When darkness rises against prayer, God turns the plans of the enemy back on themselves.

Fasting is a key part of this partnership. Biblical fasting is not abstaining from food - it is positioning the heart before God. The Lord desires hearts fully turned toward Him. In this place of surrender, He gives insight and revelation so we can pray effectively.

The fast described in Isaiah 58 reveals God’s heart - to loose the bonds of wickedness, break yokes, care for the oppressed, and walk in righteousness. When fasting aligns with God’s heart, light breaks forth, healing comes, and ancient ruins are rebuilt. God promises guidance, strength, and restoration.

As we reflect on the month of Adar, we are invited to ask the Lord how we should respond. Adar is not only a celebration of past reversals - it is an invitation into present partnership. It reminds us that God still moves through those who pray, fast, and stand in covenant alignment with Him.

Adar teaches us this: heaven finishes what intercession begins.