Esther 2 אסתר ב׳

זכר את ושתי. את יפיה ונעצב:

He remembered Vashti. Her beauty, and he became sad.¹He was remorseful having realized that her refusal to appear before him was justified and the decree against her was wrong. Providence, however, had ordained her execution because she had persuaded Achashveirosh to prohibit the restoration of the Bais Hamikdosh which had been destroyed by Nevuchadnetzar, her grandfather.

ויפקד המלך פקידים. לפי שכל פקיד ופקיד ידועות לו נשים היפות שבמדינתו:

And let his majesty appoint officials. Since every commissioner is familiar with the beautiful women in his province.²Rather than appoint commissioners from Shushan, he should appoint local commissioners in his provinces because they would be more readily able to find the most beautiful women in their own provinces.

תמרוקיהן. הן דברים המצחצחין כמו ומורק ושוטף, שמן ערב ומיני סמנים ובשמים המטהרין ומעדנין את הבשר:

Their cosmetics. These are substances that cleanse [the skin], as in, “that shall be purged [וּמֹרַק] and rinsed.”³Vayikra 6:21. These are perfumed oils, various ingredients and spices that cleanse and soften the skin.⁴Maseches Megillah 13a.

איש יהודי. על שגלה עם גלות יהודה כל אותן שגלו עם מלכי יהודה היו קרויים יהודים בין הגוים ואפילו משבט אחר הם:

There was a Yehudite man. Because he was exiled with the exile of Yehudah.⁵Rashi offers this explanation to reconcile the contradiction at the end of this verse where Mordechai is described as a Binyaminite man. Targum renders איש יהודי, “a pious Jew.” Alternatively, יהוד is similar to יחוד [=unification], i.e., Mordechai publicly unified God’s Name by refusing to bow before Haman, who wore an idolatrous image. (Esther Rabbah 6:2 and see Maseches Megillah 12b-13a) All those who were exiled with the kings of Yehudah were called יְהוּדִים [Yehudites] among the nations, even if they were from another tribe.⁶Maseches Megillah 12b.

איש ימיני. מבנימין היה כך פשוטו, ורבותינו דרשו מה שדרשו:

A Binyaminite man. He was from Binyamin, that is the plain meaning. But our Rabbis expounded what they expounded.⁷Ibid.

לו לבת. רבותינו פירשו לבית לאשה:

As a daughter. Our Rabbis explained, “for a house” [i.e., לְבַת=לְבַיִת, meaning, as a wife.⁸Maseches Megillah 13a. Apparently בת here does not mean [lit.] daughter, because Esther was not his child.

ויבהל את תמרוקיה. זריז וממהר בשלה משל כולן:

He eagerly delivered her cosmetics. He was more expedient and quicker with bringing her [cosmetics] than with all the others.⁹To avoid eating non-kosher food Esther had Hagai provide her with natural uncooked food. See Maseches Megillah 13a.

הראיות לתת לה. לשרתה וכן עושין לכולן ורבותינו דרשו מה שדרשו:

Assigned to her. To serve her, and so they would do for all of them; and our Rabbis expounded what they expounded.¹⁰Ibid. By having seven maidservants Esther was able to know when it was Shabbos. She called each one on a different day of the week and when the one that was assigned for Shabbos would come, she knew it was Shabbos. Another reason for having seven maidservants, one for each day of the week, so that the maidservants for weekdays would not observe her resting on Shabbos and detect that she was Jewish. According to Targum, each maidservant’s name corresponded to a specific day’s part of creation.

וישנה. שינה אותה:

He favored her. I.e., he changed her וַיְשַׁנֶּהָ=שִׁנָּה אוֹתָהּ.

אשר לא תגיד. כדי שיאמרו שהיא ממשפחה בזויה וישלחוה שאם ידעו שהיא ממשפחת שאול המלך היו מחזיקים בה:

Not to reveal it. So that they should say that she was from an ignoble family and dismiss her, for if they knew that she was of the family of King Shaul, they would keep her.¹¹According to Targum, Mordechai feared for Esther’s and the Jews’ safety.

ומה יעשה בה. זה אחד משני צדיקים שניתן להם רמז ישועה דוד ומרדכי דוד שנאמר (שמואל א יז) גם את הארי גם הדוב הכה עבדך אמר לא בא לידי דבר זה אלא לסמוך עליו להלחם עם זה וכן מרדכי אמר לא אירע לצדקת זו שתלקח למשכב ערל אלא שעתידה לקום להושיע לישראל לפיכך היה מחזר לדעת מה יהא בסופה:

And what would be done with her. He [Mordechai] was one of two righteous men to whom a hint of salvation was given; Dovid and Mordechai. Dovid as it is stated, “Even the lion and the bear has your servant slain.”¹²I Shmuel 17:36. He [Dovid] said [to himself], “this incident did not happen to me only that I should rely on it and do battle with this one [Golyas].” And similarly, Mordechai [said to himself], “It did not happen to this righteous woman that she should be taken to a gentile’s bed only that she is destined to rise to save Yisroel.” He therefore repeatedly went around to find out what would be her fate.¹³Esther Rabbah 6:6. Accordingly ומה יעשה בה means “and what would be accomplished through her.”

תר. זמן:

Time. Time.

כל אשר תאמר. כל שחוק ומיני זמר:

Whatever she requested. Any entertainment and types of music.

אל בית הנשים שני. השני:

To the second harem residence. The second שֵׁנִי=הַשֵּׁנִי.¹⁴Those who were brought to the king were required to return to the second harem residence.

בחדש העשירי. עת צנה שהגוף נהנה מן הגוף זימן הק"בה אותו עת צינה כדי לחבבה עליו:

In the tenth month. The cold season, when one body enjoys [the warmth of] another body.¹⁵Maseches Megillah 13a. The Holy One Blessed Is He, designated that cold season in order to endear her to him.

מכל הנשים. הבעולות שאף נשים הבעולות קבץ:

More than all the women.¹⁶Ibid. The married ones; for he also gathered married women.

והנחה למדינות עשה. לכבודה הניח להם מן המס שעליהם:

He waived the colonial taxes. In her honor he released them from the tax that was [levied] upon them.¹⁷Ibid. ¹⁸Because he did not know Esther’s ancestry Achashveirosh tried to the draw the secret from her. He waived the taxes of all the provinces and she still did not tell him. However, once he was apprized of her ancestry he restored the tax; below 10:1. (Gra)

ויתן משאת. שלח דורנות להם והכל כדי לפתותה אולי תגיד מולדתה, ואף על פי כן:

And [he] lavished gifts. He sent them gifts, and everything was in order to entice her, perhaps she would reveal her nationality.¹⁹Maseches Megillah 13a. But nevertheless,

אין אסתר מגדת מולדתה. לפי שמרדכי יושב בשער המלך המזרזה והמרמזה על כך:

Esther would not reveal [the identity of] her heritage. Because Mordechai was sitting in the king’s gate; he encouraged her and hinted to her about it.

לשלח יד. להשקותו סם המות:

To assault. To give him poison to drink.²⁰Ibid. 13b. According to Targum they planned to poison Esther and to murder Achashveirosh with a sword.

ויודע הדבר למרדכי. שהיו מספרים דבריהם לפניו בלשון טרסי ואין יודעים שהיה מרדכי מכיר בשבעים לשונות שהיה מיושבי לשכת הגזית:

The matter was apprehended by Mordechai. For they were discussing their affairs before him in the Tarsian language, and they did not know that Mordechai was familiar with seventy languages, for he was one of those [Sanhedrin]²¹Ibid. Each member of Sanhedrin was familiar with all seventy languages in order to understand and hear direct testimony without the means of a translator. who sat in the Chamber of Hewn Stone [which housed the Great Sanhedrin].

ויכתב בספר דברי הימים. הטובה שעשה מרדכי למלך:

This was inscribed in the book of archives. The favor that Mordechai did for the king.²²This was recorded in the book of archives of Media and Persia, and referred to in 10:2 below.