We begin today's discussion on folio 11a, second wide line. When Resh Lakish taught from Megillat Esther, he would open the passage with a specific verse: "A lion roars, and a lion also growls. And the wicked ruler rules over a poor nation." The "roaring lion" refers to Nebuchadnezzar, the wicked king, as it is written, "The lion rose from his thicket." The "growling bear" refers to Ahashverosh of Persia. This comparison to bears is rooted in Daniel's dream, where he saw different kingdoms represented by various animals. One animal "looked like a bear," which symbolized Persia. Rabbi Yosef taught that the Persians are like bears because they eat and drink excessively, are covered in much flesh, and are hairy. Furthermore, a bear is never at peace, constantly jumping around, and similarly, the Persians had no peace. The "wicked ruler" refers to Haman, who, though not a king, acted as a ruler. The "impoverished nation" refers to the Jewish people, who, in the time of Ahashverosh, were impoverished in commandments, thus deserving punishment.
The Maharsha elaborates on this, stating that the "roaring lion" is indeed Nebuchadnezzar, who destroyed the Holy Temple during the seventy years of the Babylonian exile. The prophecy of Daniel, cited by the Gemara, describes the first image in the dream as a lion, symbolizing Nebuchadnezzar. The "growling bear" is Ahashverosh, who, like Nebuchadnezzar, played a role in hindering the rebuilding of the Holy Temple. He wrote a letter to Shlomo, ordering a halt to the construction. Thus, Ahashverosh, like Nebuchadnezzar, caused the cessation of the Holy Temple's construction during his reign. The "wicked ruler" is Haman, who sought to destroy the Jewish people.
The Gemara continues, with Rabbi Elazar opening the passage on slothfulness: "Through slothfulness the ceiling sags, and through weak hands the house becomes leaky." This means that due to laziness, the "enemy of the Holy One, Blessed be He" – a euphemism for the Holy One, Blessed be He – became "weak," as it were, unable to redeem or help us. We provide strength to God, as it were, through our commandments, as the verse states, "Give strength to God." Therefore, since we became impoverished in Torah study, God, as it were, became "weak." "Weak" refers to one who cannot afford to pay. The "roof" refers to the Holy One, Blessed be He, who is the "roof of the world," as it is said, "He roofs with water His upper chambers," referring to the upper waters. The Maharsha reminds us that this Gemara also appears in Taanit, where it states that due to the sin of neglecting Torah study, rains are withheld. This is the same homiletic interpretation: the "roof with water" refers to the upper waters, which are then unable to descend.
This leads to the famous statement of the Children of Israel: "If not for God who was with us when man rose up against us." Who is this "man"? "A man and not a king" refers to Haman, who rose up against us. The Gemara then cites Rabbah, who opened the passage with another verse: "When righteous people multiply, the nation rejoices; but when a wicked person rules, the nation groans." The "righteous people" refer to those involved in Torah study. The Maharsha makes a beautiful precise inference here. The verse initially says "the nation rejoices" and later "the nation groans." The first "nation" refers to the Jewish people, while the second refers to the other nations.
The explanation, based on the approach of the Malbim, is as follows: The Jewish people were saved because the world is judged according to its majority. When Haman issued his decree, he did not explicitly state to Ahashverosh that it was against the Jews. He only sent letters to all 127 provinces, identifying the Jews. Thus, the other provinces knew the decree was against the Jews. However, in Shushan itself, everyone was concerned, as it was unclear which nation was targeted. Therefore, "When righteous people multiply" and brought about salvation, "the nation rejoices" refers to the Jewish people and the other nations who knew the decree was against them. But "when a wicked person rules," referring to Haman, "the nation groans" refers even to the gentiles in Shushan, who feared the decree might apply to them, as the target was not initially specified there. The entire city of Shushan was perplexed, not just the Jews, but also the gentiles, who were worried about the decree. This was unlike other states where the intention against the Jews was clear. In Shushan, when the righteous people, such as Mordechai and Esther, began to bring about their redemption, "the nation rejoices" refers to the Jewish people, who realized in Shushan that the decree was against them. But when Haman, the wicked person, ruled, and it was still unclear in Shushan which nation was being targeted, "the nation groans" refers to all the nations who were in doubt. This is a beautiful precise inference.
The verse "God is close to us" is mentioned because Haman claimed that God had distanced Himself from us. But the end of the verse indicates that the Creator of the World was close to us and answered us. This verse is also used in connection with the redemption from Egypt: "And she said, 'You will be sold to your enemies as slaves and maidservants.'" Shmuel said, "I did not let them repel Me, nor did I let them be reviled, to destroy them. I did not despise them, nor did I revolt from them, nor did I destroy them." This implies a breaking of the covenant with them, which will occur in the future. Another interpretation states that regarding the Chaldeans, God gave them saviors: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Regarding the Greeks, God gave them saviors: Matityahu the High Priest and his sons. Regarding Haman, God gave them saviors: Mordechai and Esther. Some say that regarding the Romans, God gave them saviors: the disciples of Rabbi and the Sages of the generations, who protected us. However, no nation will be able to rise against the Jewish people if all the nations of the world are not killed. This refers to Amalek, who would be thorns in their side. This refers to Saul, who did not kill Amalek in the war and allowed Agag to live. Consequently, Agag procreated that night, leading to Haman. Thus, the verse indicates that this all started because they did not inherit the land as they were supposed to. Rabbi Chiya said, "What I intended to do to you" refers to what God almost did, meaning He almost destroyed us. There was destruction, but He almost did it.
This is the beginning of the Gemara that discusses the various verses the Rabbis used to interpret Megillat Esther. Now, let's turn to the Maharsha. The Maharsha explains that the verse we read daily, "If not for God who was with us," refers to the descendants of Esav, of whom Haman was a descendant. They were worse to us than any other nation. "Israel is an old nation" refers to Jacob our Father. Jacob our Father slept at Mount Moriah for twenty years while he was in Laban's house. We usually learn that he was in Shem and Ever's house for fourteen years, but here we learn he slept at Mount Moriah. However, going forward, he did not sleep during his twenty years in Laban's house. What was he doing all night? He was reading the Book of Psalms every single day. Why was Jacob our Father reading Psalms every night? Because he knew that what happened to him with Esav would happen to future generations. Jacob our Father had to run away because of Esav, signaling that the Children of Israel would always be on the run from Esav's descendants. Therefore, we must follow the path of our father. What did our father do to save himself from exile? He prayed Psalms. So we must do the same.
He said that every generation seeks to kill us. "If not for God who was with us" refers to three types of decrees made against us. First, they take away our livelihood through taxes. Second, they kill us physically. Third, they act against our religion, taking away our spiritual life. The verse "They would have swallowed us alive" refers to the first decree, where they sought to devour our sustenance, leaving us with no livelihood. "The waters would have engulfed us" refers to the second decree, where they sought to drown us, killing us physically. "The torrent would have swept over our soul" refers to the third, spiritual decree. When a person is physically killed, they lose both body and soul, as God does not take the soul out of you. However, in the last part, where they sought to destroy our spiritual life while keeping us physically alive, it only mentions one item: the soul. This signifies that we were still physically alive, but they took away our soul. The prayers of Jacob helped him get saved from Esav, and they help us too.
Therefore, he says, "Blessed be God, who did not give us as prey to their teeth." Why "teeth"? The Maharsha explains that Esav is compared to a pig. We know that a pig has one of the kosher signs: split hooves. This means its strength is in its feet, as that is a kosher sign. However, its impurity is in not chewing its cud; it does not have the teeth like regular kosher animals. Therefore, the strength of Esav against us lies in his teeth, in the part associated with impurity. That is why the verse says, "Blessed be God, who did not give us as prey to their teeth," because that is where Esav's strength lies in that sense. Whatever that strength of destruction that comes from the teeth, the devouring, God protected us from that main concern. With this, he beautifully explains the verse we always learn: "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esav." He explains it this way: The strength of Esav comes from his kosher sign. It is easy to overcome him on his non-kosher sign, the impurity. But when he comes with the kosher sign, that is his strength. So we say, "Blessed be God, we were saved from his teeth," which is easier. The verse means that when the voice is the voice of Jacob, then we only have to worry about the hands. The hands will still be there, but we don't have to worry about the teeth because we use our mouth for good. Therefore, if the voice is the voice of Jacob, we don't have to worry about the teeth of Esav, but we still have to worry about the hands. This is a good thing; it's only half the problem. We only have to worry about the hands of Esav, not his teeth. The Gemara states that the fourth beast (in Daniel's vision) does not even have a name; it is like iron, crushing and devouring everything. It is compared to a pig, which devours nations. The point is that among the Jewish people, there are not many who do not have kosher signs. Why? So that the pig cannot attack the Jewish people with its teeth, because that is the sign of impurity. But it has split hooves, so that is where its strength against us lies. At least God did not give it the strength to attack us with its teeth. Other nations are attacked by both its teeth and its feet. For us, blessed be God, since we have kosher signs, the teeth of the pig cannot come after us. This is the beautiful interpretation. If not for the voice of Jacob, which is the voice of prayer and Torah, we would also have been subject to the teeth. But since we have the voice of Jacob, it only leaves the hands of Esav. This means that because we have the voice of Jacob, it removes the teeth of Esav. However, what will still happen? We still have to worry about the hands of Esav; even through prayer, there will unfortunately be persecution. The voice of Jacob in prayer and Torah means there is no strength against the hands of Esav, which are a sign of purity. The verse "Our soul is like a bird escaped from the snare of the fowlers" refers to us being like birds, able to flee to different places, constantly running from one place to another. The other nations are compared to large birds, making it hard for them to escape.
He says, what does it mean when it says that the Day of Gathering Exiles is as great as the day God created the world? He says something beautiful: On the day God created the world, it says that God created the world with a partnership of His names, meaning there was a sweetening of the judgments. The Day of Gathering Exiles will be equal to the day God created the world, in that there will be a sweetening of the judgments against the Jewish people. Just as on the day God created the world, He sweetened the judgments, so too on that day, the judgments will be sweetened against the Jewish people. This is what it means: "Help us, God," and that will be the unbelievable, beautiful redemption. Now we will move quickly through these homiletic interpretations of the Gemara.
The Gemara continues: Ahashverosh was not the brother of the "head," meaning Nebuchadnezzar, but he had similar character traits, or the same fortune, as the "head." How do we know Nebuchadnezzar is called "head"? As it is said, "You have dreamed... you are the head of gold." So Ahashverosh had the same fortune as the "head." Nebuchadnezzar murdered; Ahashverosh sought to murder. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Holy Temple; Ahashverosh sought to destroy it. He wrote bad words against the Jews and stopped them from building the Holy Temple. Their faces became blackened like the bottom of a pot that fire blackens. Rav Yochanan said this happened either through their prayers or their fasting. Rav Yochanan also said that anyone who remembers Ahashverosh says, "Woe to the wicked!" The Maharsha learns that they either said, "Woe to us," or "Woe to him," meaning they were cursing him. Rav Yochanan said that everyone became poor in his days due to all the taxes he charged. He was wicked from beginning to end. In the beginning, he stopped the construction of Jerusalem, and at the end, he wanted to kill us. So he was wicked from beginning to end. Just as Esav was wicked from beginning to end, chasing and trying to kill Jacob our Father. Similarly, Amalek was wicked from beginning to end. In the beginning, they fought Moses our Teacher in Egypt and informed on him to the king. Then, when Korach rebelled, Amalek was part of the deed of Korach against Moses. That is why Moses points this out. So, the king was wicked from beginning to end.
Now we go the other way: Abraham was righteous from beginning to end. The Maharsha points out that Abraham began to learn Torah at the age of three, as the verse states, "Abraham lived 175 years... Abraham listened to My voice for 172 years." This means he began learning at three years old and kept the Torah all the way to the end of his life, passing it on. So he was good from beginning to end. Moses and Aaron were good from beginning to end. They made only one sin, the Maharsha points out, which was the sin of the waters of strife. David was "small," meaning humble. The Maharsha points out that he learned from Mephibosheth before he became king, humbling himself to learn. As king, he continued to study Torah, even though he learned only two laws from Mephibosheth.
What does it mean that Ahashverosh "was the king"? He wasn't really an heir to the throne; he came to power on his own. Some say this is praise, some say it is disparagement. No one was worthy to be king like him. How did he become king? He paid his way in. So he wasn't truly worthy, but money made him king. The verse says, "He was the king." The Maharsha points out that the words "from Hodu to Kush" are extra, as it already states he was king. These words come to tell us a feature of his kingdom: its extent, from Hodu to Kush. One interpretation is that Hodu is on one side of the world and Kush is on the other. We will explain this shortly. Just as he ruled over these, he ruled over the whole world. The Maharsha points out that they were next to each other. The question is how to view this: either they were physically adjacent, or they represented the extreme ends of the world. The first opinion says this gives the scope: his kingdom encompassed the entire world, 127 provinces. Hodu on one side, Kush on the other, indicating the vastness of his rule. The second opinion says it's not about the scope of his rule, but his power. Just as he could rule over Hodu and Kush, which were close, he had the same dominance even over the distant ones. It indicates the extent of his control. This is the innovation of this interpretation.
Similarly, we see this with King Solomon. Where are Tafsah and Gaza? One is at the end of the world, the other at the end of the world. Just as Solomon had dominance over the close cities, so too his dominance extended over the entire world. At his time, he was king of the entire world. Regarding Ahashverosh, when he first became king, he only ruled over seven provinces. When he married Vashti, he gained twenty more. Then he gradually reached 100. This week's Torah portion discusses how long Amram lived. Why does it ask about Amram, Abraham, or Sarah? Because for Sarah, it says "years, years, years." Of course, this is a homiletic interpretation because each "year" is a separate count. But for Ahashverosh, it doesn't say that; it just says "127 provinces." Therefore, the commentators interpret it as seven, plus twenty, plus one hundred. For Amram, it doesn't say "year, year, year"; it just says "his years." It also puts the numbers in a specific order. So we should make the same exact homiletic interpretation: first he lived seven, then thirty, then one hundred. But you can't make a homiletic interpretation on that. Therefore, we don't make a homiletic interpretation for Ahashverosh either. The only reason we do is because the verse is extra; it already tells you his location. So these are the interpretations here. The Maharsha says that we don't ask from Abraham because for Abraham, it says "year, year, year." If it doesn't say "year, year, year," we can make a homiletic interpretation. But for Amram, it doesn't. The commentators point out that in the beginning, before he became king and brought them to Israel, he ruled seven. When he married Vashti, he added twenty, and later, they added one hundred. So it was a gradual growth.
We continue with the Gemara. Our Rabbis taught that three kings ruled over the entire globe. One is Ahab, as Obadiah told Elijah the Prophet, "You are a wanted man; there is not a country in the world that Ahab did not send to find you." This implies that Ahab ruled over all countries; otherwise, how could he make them swear they were not harboring Elijah the Prophet? The second is Nebuchadnezzar, as it is written that God said any nation that would not serve the king of Babylon would be punished. This shows that every nation in the world served the king of Babylon. The third is Ahashverosh, as we already said, he ruled over 127 provinces. What about Alexander of Macedon? He might have ruled the whole world, but we have verses to prove these three. What about Solomon? The Gemara says his kingdom did not last, according to the opinion that he was king and then lost his kingdom. So we are only listing kings whose kingdoms endured. According to the opinion that he was king, then became a commoner, and then king again, his kingdom did not endure at the end. Solomon was different; he was king even over the demons. We are not discussing such kingdoms. He was king over the whole world, but his kingdom extended even further, over the upper levels, referring to the demons in different spiritual forms, but not the angels. It says that Zinari conquered the whole world, but there was one city he did not conquer: Jerusalem. And there was Daryavish, as it is written, "Daryavish the king wrote to all the nations and peoples and languages that dwell in all the earth." He wrote to all the nations of the world, but there were seven he did not rule over, even though he wrote them a letter. He only ruled over 120. He says, "God gave me all the nations of the world." Yes, Koresh was exaggerating. Don't believe him; he was a braggart. He said God gave him all the countries of the world, but it was not truly the case.
Now we come to the last part of today's topic. The verse says, "When he sat," meaning in his first year, and then it says, "in the third year." Make up your mind. In the third year, he had peace of mind. Why only in the third year? He thought his predecessor miscalculated the seventy years. Everyone knew that the Jewish people would be in exile for seventy years and then leave. He made an erroneous count of seventy years and was wrong because the seventy years were not yet up. He thought, "I will calculate, and I will not make a mistake." Basically, Ahashverosh thought that in the third year, the seventy years would be up, and the Jews would still be in exile. So he would say, "God forgot the Jewish people." Everyone knows the verse that says, "When Babylon rises up, it will be seventy years, then I will remember you," God says, "from the destruction of Jerusalem, seventy years." So do the math: Nebuchadnezzar was king for 45 years. Evil Merodach was king for 23 years. 45 plus 23 is 68. And two more years make 70. What did he do on the 70th year? He said, "The Jews are still here. I did the seventy years." He took out the holy vessels of the Holy Temple and made a masquerade party, using them. You thought you were higher than God; you were arrogant against God when you took His vessels and put them before you. You know what happened that night? He was killed. And who took over? This was the Daryavish who came before Ahashverosh. Then it says, Daryavish became king at the age of 62. Ahashverosh said, "He doesn't know how to count. He miscalculated. I will calculate, and I will not make a mistake. Don't count from when Babylon starts. You count from when Nebuchadnezzar became king." The verse says, "to Babylon," meaning to the Babylonian exile. When did the Babylonian exile happen? Eight years later. They didn't send the Jewish people into exile until eight years later. So he says he was off by eight years. How much is short? Eight. "Do the math for these changes." One year of Belshazzar, five years of Daryavish, and Koresh is two years. So, one of Belshazzar, five of Daryavish, and Koresh makes six, and then two of Ahashverosh. So in the third year of his reign, it's over; they are not getting redeemed. He thought, "I will take out the vessels." So that's how Ahashverosh made his calculation; he thought he was off by eight years.
Let's read the Maharsha here. The Maharsha says, "In the first year, he conquered Nineveh; in the second year of his kingdom, he conquered Yehoiakim." This is good. He then put Yehoiakim's son in charge. Then they told him, "What do you mean? Yehoiakim rebelled against you. Now you're putting his son in charge?" So he killed his son as well. It says, "In the thirty-seventh year from the exile of Yechoniah, Evil Merodach became king." So, 37 plus 8 equals 45. This is how we know Nebuchadnezzar ruled for 45 years. How do we know Evil Merodach ruled for 23 years? By tradition. So, the 70 years are up, and they are still here. "I did the 70 years," he thought. He took out the vessels and made a party. You thought you were higher than God; you were arrogant against God when you took His vessels and put them before you. You know what happened that night? He got killed. And who took over? This is the Daryavish who came before Ahashverosh. Daryavish became king at the age of 62. Ahashverosh said, "He doesn't know how to count. He miscalculated. I will calculate, and I will not make a mistake. Don't count from when Babylon starts. You count from when Nebuchadnezzar became king." The verse says, "to Babylon," meaning to the Babylonian exile. When did the Babylonian exile happen? Eight years later. They didn't send the Jewish people into exile until eight years later. So he says he was off by eight years. How much is short? Eight. "Do the math for these changes." One year of Belshazzar, five years of Daryavish, and Koresh is two years. So, one of Belshazzar, five of Daryavish, and Koresh makes six, and then two of Ahashverosh. So in the third year of his reign, it's over; they are not getting redeemed. He thought, "I will take out the vessels." So that's how Ahashverosh made his calculation; he thought he was off by eight years.
The Seder Olam states in the beginning of the Book of Daniel, "In the third year of the reign of Yehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar came to Jerusalem and delivered Yehoiakim into his hand." But another verse says he came in his fourth year. Was it his third year or his fourth year? He conquered him for three years. But then after three years, Yehoiakim rebelled against him. That was in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom, when he had to put him down. So he was in rebellion for three years. This means it was six years from the conquering: three years of conquest and then three years of rebellion. This finally happened in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom, when he finally conquered them. The father, Yehoiakim, rebelled against him, and then he put his son as king. There is a parable: "You don't get a good puppy from a bad dog; you get bad dogs." What did he think? Then he put Tzidkiyahu in charge. So, it was the eighth year from when Nebuchadnezzar became king, and the seventh year from when Yehoiakim was conquered, which was in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign. We will stop here.