Megillah

viz., that David did not kill Shimei from whom was descended Mordecai who provoked Haman. ‘And how a Benjamite repaid me’, viz., that Saul did not slay Agag from whom was descended Haman who oppressed Israel. R. Johanan said: He did indeed come from Benjamin. Why then was he called ‘a Jew’? Because he repudiated idolatry. For anyone who repudiates idolatry is called ‘a Jew’, as it is written, There are certain Jews 1 etc. R. Simon b. Pazzi once introduced an exposition of the Book of Chronicles as follows: ‘All thy words are one,2 and we know how to find their inner meaning’. [It is written], And his wife the Jewess bore Jered the father of Gedor, and Heber the father of Socho, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah, and these are the sons of Bithya the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered took.3 Why was she [the daughter of Pharaoh] called a Jewess? Because she repudiated idolatry, as it is written, And the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe in the river,4 and R. Johanan, [commenting on this,] said that she went down to cleanse herself5 from the idols of her father's house. ‘Bore’: But she only brought him [Moses] up? — This tells us that if anyone brings up an orphan boy or girl in his house, the Scripture accounts it as if he had begotten him. ‘Jered’: this is Moses. Why was he called Jered? Because manna came down [yarad] for Israel in his days.6 ‘Gedor": [he was so called] because he fenced in [gadar] the breaches of Israel. ‘Heber’, because he joined [hiber] Israel to their Father in heaven. ‘Socho’, because he was like a sheltering booth [sukkah] for Israel. ‘Jekuthiel’, because Israel trusted in God [kiwu le'el] in his days. ‘Zanoah’, because he made Israel abandon [hizniah] their inquities. ‘Father of’, ‘father of’, ‘father of’: he was a father in Torah, a father in wisdom, a father in prophecy. ‘These are the sons of Bithya whom Mered took’. Was Mered his name? Was not Caleb his name?7 — The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Let Caleb who rebelled [marad] against the plan of the spies come and take the daughter of Pharaoh who rebelled against the idols of her father's house. Who had been carried away from Jerusalem.8 Raba said: [We understand this to mean] that he went into exile of his own accord.9 And he brought up Hadassah.10 She is called Hadassah11 and she is called Esther. It has been taught: Esther was her proper name. Why then was she called Hadassah? After the designation of the righteous who are called myrtles,12 for so it says, And he stood among the myrtle trees.13 R. Judah says: Hadassah was her name — Why then was she called Esther? Because she concealed [mastereth] the facts about herself, as it says, Ester did not make known her people or her kindred.14 R. Nehemiah says: Hadassah was her name. Why then was she called Esther? All peoples called her so after Istahar.15 Ben ‘Azzai said: Esther was neither too tall nor too short, but of medium size, like a myrtle. R. Joshua b. Korha said: Esther was sallow,16 but endowed with great charm.17 For she had neither father nor mother. [And it continues] and when her father and mother died.10 Why these last words?18 — R. Aha said: When her mother became pregnant with her, her father died; when she was born, her mother died. And when her father and mother died, Mordecai took her for his own daughter.19 A Tanna taught in the name of R. Meir: Read not ‘for a daughter’ [le-bath], but ‘for a house’ [le-bayith].20 Similarly it says: But the poor man had nothing save one little ewe lamb, which he had brought up and reared; and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own morsel, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.21 Because it lay in his bosom, was it like a daughter to him? Rather what it means is like a wife; so here, it means a wife. And the seven maidens who were meet to be given to her.22 Raba said: [They were seven so that] she could count the days of the week by them. And he changed23 her and her maidens. Rab said: [This means that] he gave her Jewish food to eat. Samuel, however, said, it means that he gave her chines of pork24 while R. Johanan said that he gave her pulse, and so it says, So the steward took away their food and gave them pulse. 25 Six months with the oil of myrrh.26 What is the oil of myrrh? R. Hiyya b. Abba said, Satchet;27 R. Huna said, Oil from olives not a third grown. It has been taught: R. Judah says that anpikinun28 is oil of olives not a third grown. Why is it used for smearing? Because it removes hair and makes the skin soft. In the evening she went and on the morrow she returned.29 From the discreditable account of that wicked man we can learn something to his credit, namely, that he did not perform his marital office by day. And Esther obtained favour.30 R. Eleazar said: This informs us that every man took her for a member of his own people. So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth:31 the month when body warms up body.32 And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins.33 Rab said: If he wanted to find in her the taste of a virgin he found it; if the taste of a married woman, he found it. Then the king made a great feast.34 He made a feast for her, and she did not tell him [who she was]. He remitted taxes,35 and she did not tell him. He sent gifts,36 and she [still] did not tell him. And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, etc.37 He went and took counsel of Mordecai who said, The way to rouse a woman is to make her jealous;38 and even so she did not tell. R. Eleazar said: What is the meaning of the verse, (Tosaf.). a footing of equality with’, instead of ,t, which would have meant ‘taken along with as subsidiary’. delicatessen, v. Aruch.]