Megillah 16a — the Talmud in English

Rather,

this teaches ![](pamud.bmp "

exact location on the page")

Shamshai

the king’s scribe, who hated the Jews

would erase

what had been written in the book of records, because he did not want honor to be shown to Mordecai,

and Gabriel would write

again what had been erased .

Rabbi Asi said: Rabbi Sheila of Kefar Tamarata expounded: If even writing below, which is for the benefit of

the Jewish people

cannot be erased,

because Gabriel came from above and wrote it,

then writing above,

where Gabriel was already present,

all the more so

will not be erased! "

And the king’s young servants said to him,

“Nothing was done for him.” Rabbi Rava said: They did not say this because they loved

Mordecai

that they said so,

but because they hated Haman .

It is written: “And Haman came to the outer courtyard of the king’s palace, to say to the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that

he had prepared for him.” A tanna said: “He had prepared for him” ,

for himself .

It is written that Ahasuerus said to Haman: “Quickly, take the robe, and so on,

and do this for Mordecai.”

Haman said to him,

to Ahasuerus:

Who is

that is, who exactly,

Mordecai?

He said to him: “The Jew.”

He said to him:

There are

many men

whose name is

Mordecai among the Jews!

He said to him: “The one who sits at the king’s gate.”

Haman said to him:

Haman said:

It is enough for

Mordecai

to receive one village

a small settlement,

or even one river

from which to collect a tax.

He said to him: Give this also to Mordecai,

to Mordecai,

“Do not omit anything of all that you have said” .

“And Haman took the robe and the horse.”

He went and found

Mordecai

with the Sages sitting before him, and he was showing them

showing them

the laws of taking a handful

to the Sages.

When Mordecai saw Haman

Haman,

coming out to meet him

coming out to meet him,

with his horse prepared in his hand, he trembled. He said to the Sages: “This wicked man

is coming to kill me! Go away from him, so that you will not be burned by his coal.”

At that moment Mordecai wrapped himself and stood to pray.

Haman came and sat before them, and waited

until Mordecai finished his prayer.

He said to them: What are you studying?

They said to him: When the Temple is standing, one who volunteers a meal-offering brings a handful of fine flour—

and he is atoned for .

He said to them: The handful of flour of yours has come and displaced ten thousand talents of silver

of mine .

Mordecai said to him:

Mordecai

“Wicked man! If a slave acquires property, who owns the slave and who owns the property?!”

For it was said earlier that Mordecai acquired Haman for loaves of bread, and therefore all his property belonged to Mordecai.

Haman said to him,

Haman

“Get up, put on these garments, and ride this horse, because the king requires it of you.”

He said to him: “I cannot, until I enter the bathhouse”

to enter the bathhouse and wash,

and cut my hair

and shave my hair,

because it is not proper conduct to use the king’s garments in this manner.”

Esther sent word, and prohibited

all the bathhouses and all the barbers

barbers .

He himself brought him

Haman

to the bathhouse—

and washed him

washed him.

He went and brought scissors

scissors

from his house, and used them to cut the hair

of Mordecai .

While he was cutting

his hair,

he groaned and sighed

sighed.

Mordecai said to him:

Mordecai

“Why are you sighing?”

He said to him: “A man who was more important to the king than all his nobles, and now he is to be made a bath attendant

a bath attendant

and a barber?!”

He said to him: “Wicked man! Were you not a barber in Kefar Kartsum?!”

A tanna taught: Haman was a barber in Kefar Kartsum for twenty-two years.

After he cut his hair, he dressed him in the garments.

Haman said to

Mordecai:

“Climb up

onto the horse

and ride!”

He said to him: “I cannot

climb up,

because my strength has weakened

my strength has weakened

from the days of fasting.”

Haman bent down,

Haman

and Mordecai climbed

onto his back and onto the horse.

When he climbed up—

he kicked him

Haman.

Haman said to him:

Haman said: “Is it not written for you,

‘When your enemy falls, do not rejoice’?”

He said to him: “This applies to Jews .

But with regard to your people

the nations of the world—

it is written: ‘And you shall tread upon their high places.’”

“And he proclaimed before him: ‘So shall be done to the man whom the king desires to honor.’”

When he was holding him and walking along the path by Haman’s house, Haman’s daughter saw him

Haman’s daughter,

who

was

standing on the roof

on the roof.

She thought: This one who is riding

the horse

is my father,

he is,

and this one walking before him—

Mordecai

he is .

She took a chamber pot

an earthenware vessel

from the bathroom

and threw it onto her father’s head.

Haman lifted

the

pot to his eyes, and his daughter saw

his daughter

that it was her father! She fell from the roof to the ground

because of her distress over what she had done to her father—

and died .

And this is what is written: “And Mordecai returned to the king’s gate,”

and

Rabbi Sheshet said: He returned to his sackcloth and fasting .

And afterward it is written:

“And Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered,”

and this means:

mourning—

over his daughter

who had died,

and with his head covered—

over what had happened to him .

“And Haman told Zeresh his wife and all his friends, and so on,

and his wise men and Zeresh his wife said to him.”

They are called ‘his friends,’ and they are called ‘his wise men’?!

Rabbi Yohanan said: Whoever says a word of wisdom,

and

even among the nations of the world —

is called wise .

And this was the word of wisdom that his sages said to him:

“If Mordecai is of the seed of the Jews, etc.”

And thus

they said

to him:

There is a seed among the Jews such that, if he comes from them, you will not be able to prevail over him. For

if Mordecai comes from the other tribes

Mordecai—

you can prevail over him. But if he comes from the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh

he comes—

you cannot prevail over him .

And from where do we know that he cannot prevail over them?

Judah—

as it is written: “Your hand shall be at the neck of your enemies.”

But as for the others,

the other tribes—

as it is written concerning them: “Awaken Your might before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh.”

“For you will surely fall before him.” Rabbi Judah bar Ilai expounded: Why are these two falls mentioned?

They said to him: This nation is compared to dust, and

on the other hand

is compared

also

to stars.

For

when they descend—

they descend as far as dust. And when they rise—

they rise as far as the stars.

“And the king’s chamberlains arrived and hurried him”—

this teaches that they brought him in panic ,

and he did not have time to wash himself properly from his filth .

“For I and my people have been sold, etc., for the adversary is not worth the king’s damage.”

Thus

she said to him

Esther:

“This adversary”—

Haman—

“is not worth it”

he does not care ]

“against the damage to the king.”

For

he became jealous

he became jealous

of Vashti because of her—

and killed her. Now he has become jealous of me—

and seeks to kill me!

“And King Ahasuerus said, and he said to Esther the queen.”

These

“and he said” and “and he said”

twice

why do I need them?

Rabbi Abbahu said: At first—

he spoke with her

through an interpreter. Once she said to him: “I come from the house of Saul

I come,

and I am of royal seed,

immediately: “And he said to Esther the queen”

himself .

“And Esther said: A man, an adversary and an enemy—this evil Haman.” Rabbi Eleazar said:

Since it would have sufficed for her to say “this evil Haman,” and she also said “a man, an adversary and an enemy” —

this teaches that she was pointing

her hand

toward Ahasuerus,

and intended to say concerning him, “a man, an adversary and an enemy” ,

but an angel came and struck

the

her hand,

and turned it

toward Haman .

“And the king arose in his wrath, etc., and the king returned from the garden pavilion.” Return is compared

to rising. Just as rising was

in wrath

was,

so return was—

in wrath .

And why did he return in wrath?

For he went

to the garden

and found the ministering angels, who appeared to him as men, uprooting the trees of the garden.

And he said to them: What is your work?

They said to him: Haman commanded us

to do this .

He came to his house: “And Haman was falling upon the couch.” “Was falling”?

But

it should have said “fell”

to say!?

Rabbi Eleazar said: This teaches that an angel came and threw him upon it,

for he was falling and wanted to stand upright, and the angel threw him down.

Ahasuerus said

Ahasuerus:

Woe from within the house—

woe from outside

from outside.

“And the king said: Does he also seek to conquer the queen with me in the house?!”

“And Harbonah said

etc.

“Moreover, the tree that Haman made is standing” in Haman’s house, etc. .

Rabbi Eleazar said: Harbonah too was wicked—

in that

counsel,

to hang Mordecai—

he was involved .

Once he saw that his counsel had not been fulfilled, he immediately fled.

And this is what is written: “He casts it upon him and has no compassion,” for the Holy One, blessed be He, casts punishment upon the wicked without compassion.

And the continuation of the verse is:

“From his hand he will flee like the wind,”

for the members of the wicked person’s faction and his companions flee from him.

“And the king’s wrath subsided.”

Since it is written “subsided” with two letters kaf-heh, and not “subsided” with one kaf, it implies that two wraths subsided.

Why are these two subsiding of wrath mentioned?

One—

that of the King of the universe,

whose wrath subsided over the fact that they had bowed to the image.

And one—

that of Ahasuerus,

who had initially decreed to annihilate the Jews [Maharsha].

And some say: One—

that of Esther,

because Ahasuerus was angry over what Haman had done to Esther,

and one—

that of Vashti,

over what he had done to Vashti .

It is written concerning Joseph, when he made himself known to his brothers:

“To all of them he gave, to each man, changes of garments ,

and to Benjamin he gave

three hundred pieces of silver and

five changes.”