Megillah, Daf Tet Vav, Part 6
Introduction
This section continues with Haman’s return to his home, where he tells Zeresh and his friends of his great wealth and the number of his children.
ויספר להם המן את כבוד עשרו ורב בניו, וכמה רב בניו? – אמר רב: שלשים, עשרה מתו, ועשרה נתלו, ועשרה מחזרין על הפתחים, ורבנן אמרי: אותן שמחזרין על הפתחים שבעים הויא, דכתיב +שמואל א‘ ב‘+ שבעים בלחם נשכרו, אל תקרי שבעים אלא שבעים. ורמי בר אבא אמר: כולן מאתים ושמונה הוו, שנאמר ורוב בניו, ורוב בגימטריא מאתן וארביסר הוו! – אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק: ורב כתיב.
"And Haman recounted to them the glory of his riches and the multitude of his children" (Esther 5:11).
How many were "the multitude of his children"?
Rav said: Thirty. Ten died, ten were hanged, and ten went begging.
The Rabbis said: Those who went begging were seventy, as it says, "They that were full [seve’im] have hired themselves out for bread" (I Samuel 2:5). Read not seve’im, but shiv’im [seventy].
Rami b. Abba said: In all they were two hundred and eight, as it says, "And the multitude [verov] of his sons."
But verov in gematria is two hundred and fourteen?
R. Nahman b. Isaac said: The word is written defectively.
The rabbis offer various answers as to how many children Haman had. The source of Rav’s answer of thirty is not known. The other rabbis base it on a pun. Rami b. Abba bases it on gematria, using the defective spelling. In any case, he certainly did have a lot of children. Perhaps one of the reasons for this midrash is to show that Haman’s descendants did not all die.
בלילה ההוא נדדה שנת המלך, אמר רבי תנחום: נדדה שנת מלכו של עולם. ורבנן אמרי: נדדו עליונים, נדדו תחתונים. רבא אמר: שנת המלך אחשורוש ממש. נפלה ליה מילתא בדעתיה, אמר: מאי דקמן דזמינתיה אסתר להמן? דלמא עצה קא שקלי עילויה דההוא גברא למקטליה. הדר אמר: אי הכי לא הוה גברא דרחים לי, דהוה מודע לי? הדר אמר: דלמא איכא איניש דעבד בי טיבותא ולא פרעתיה, משום הכי מימנעי אינשי ולא מגלו לי. מיד – ויאמר להביא את ספר הזכרנות דברי הימים.
"On that night the sleep of the king was disturbed" (Esther 6:1). R. Tanhum said: The sleep of the King of the Universe was disturbed.
The Rabbis say: Those above were disturbed and those below were disturbed.
Rava said: It means literally "the sleep of king Ahashverosh".
A thought occurred to him: What is the meaning of Esther inviting Haman? Perhaps they are conspiring against me to kill me? He thought again: If that is so, is there no man who is my friend and who would tell me? Then he thought again: Perhaps there is some man who has done me a good turn and I have not rewarded him; and therefore men refrain from informing me. Straightway, he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles.
The night after Esther’s invitation, Ahashverosh has trouble sleeping. Rabbis offer different interpretations of the verse. Some interpret it as if it refers to God, or at least to the angels. But Rava says that Ahashverosh himself couldn’t sleep. The reason is connected with the events that preceded chapter six. Ahashverosh feared that his minister and queen were plotting against him. In addition, he realized that maybe others were not informing him as to their plot because he didn’t properly reward those who had rescued him in the past. That is why he opened the books to check his records.
ויהיו נקראים – מלמד שנקראים מאיליהן.
"And they were read." This teaches that they were read of themselves.
The verb "they were read" is passive. The Talmud reads a miracle into the syntax the words read themselves!
וימצא כתוב, כתב מבעי ליה! מלמד ששמשי מוחק וגבריאל כותב.
אמר רבי אסי: דרש רבי שילא איש כפר תמרתא: ומה כתב שלמטה שלזכותן של ישראל אינו נמחק – כתב שלמעלה לא כל שכן?
And it was found [being] written.
It should say, a writing [ketav] was found?
This shows that Shimshai kept on erasing and Gabriel kept on writing.
R. Assi said: R. Shila, a man of K’far Temarta said: If a writing on earth which is for the benefit of Israel cannot be erased, how much less a writing in heaven!
Again, the rabbis read into the syntax of the word. Shimshai was the king’s scribe (see Ezra 4:8). He writes to the king asking him to stop the Jews from rebuilding the Temple. Shimshai hated the Jews. When Ahashverosh opened the book, Shimshai tried to erase the tale of how Mordecai saved the king. But every time he erased something, the angel Gavriel would rewrite it.