Esther 7:1-6, 9-10. Menstruation; the menstruant woman; ritual status of the menstruant woman. One school of thought takes the numerical value ofHadassah= 74 (or 75, including the name itself as a unit) to determine Esthers age(Gen. Rabbah39:13; see below: Esthers Age). With great courage, Esther fasts for three days, arranges a banquet with the king and Haman, then pleads with the king to save the Jews. Esther remained passive and allowed the King to rape her repeatedly. One tradition asserts that Esther used a resorbent, that is, she employed a contraceptive device to prevent any pregnancy by Ahasuerus. According to the Bible, Mordechai was a Jew who lived in the Persian city of Susa, the modern-day city of Shush, Iran. Rabbah8:7; the passage is taken from Josippon). In reference to her lineage, the Rabbis state that she continued the way of the members of her tribe: Rachel, Benjamin, and Saul(Gen. Rabbah71:35; see below: Esther Does Not Reveal Her Origins). Another tradition compares Esther, who ruled one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, toSarah, who died at the age of one hundred and twenty-seven(Gen. Rabbah58:3). According to one tradition, she was forty years old, while another places her age at seventy-four, which is the numerical value of the name Hadassah (Esthers second name), or, according to another calculation of this numerical value, seventy-five (see above). When she relayed Mordecais information to the king, she attributed it to Mordecai(Esth. Corrections? Mordecai would walk about in front of the harem in order to rule for Esther regarding menstrual spotting; another exegetical exposition has Esther showing the spotting from her menstruation to theTorah she-bi-khetav: Lit. Rabbah6:4). In the Erez Israel tradition, she miscarried the fetus she bore in her womb (the offspring of Ahasuerus) (Esth. She was able to use the jar to communicate her innermost thoughts and feelings to those around hershowcasing her strength, resilience and defiance in the face of her oppression. This means she had been married to the king for approximately 40 years at the time of her death. We see, however, that this was a stratagem on Mordecais part, so that Esther would not be frequently summoned to the king. 10:3) was able to have interceded for the welfare of all his kindred (Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer, chap. Dont miss the latest essays from TheTorah.com. Something went wrong while submitting the form. The Funeral of Queen Victoria by Wiliam Lionel Wylie (c) National Maritime Museum. She died in her sleep at the Royal Lodge, Great Windsor Park, which is now the main residence of her grandson. It is a remarkable moment in Jewish history, in which we can see one of the times when Jews were connecting to each other from Jerusalem to the Diaspora and establishing the holidays that we take for granted today. Esther also spoke of her merit for observing the womens commandments of the taking ofDuring the Temple period, the dough set aside to be given to the priests. She was Jewish but never revealed her nationality or family background as Mordecai had. A teacher walks into the Classroom and says If only Yesterday was Tomorrow Today would have been a Saturday Which Day did the Teacher make this Statement? Similarly, her son Benjamin knew about the sale of Joseph, but remained silent and did not tell his father. She and her cousinMordecaipersuaded the king to cancel an order for the extermination of Jews in his realm, plotted by the kings chief minister, Haman. The more prevalent Rabbinic opinion is that Hadassah was Esthers second name, with a plethora of interpretations built on the similarity of the myrtle (hadas) to Esther: Esther was so called because she was righteous, and the righteous are called myrtles; she was of average height, like a myrtle, which is neither short nor long; she had a greenish (sallow) complexion, like a myrtle (BTMegillahloc. Mordecai remained a close confidant to Esther and played a pivotal role in helping her save the Jewish people. He also appointed her as queen of the Persian Empire and gave her a royal medal of honor. The short answer is that we'll never know. [8]Once there, she does not plead for help but carefully petitions the king, setting in motion a plan to undermine Haman and save the Jewish people.[9]. See Ilana Pardes,Countertraditions in the Bible: A Feminist Approach(Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1992), 126 ff. [2] See Ilan,Integrating women, 127, commenting onJewish War1.71 andJewishAntiquities13.302. The Book of Esther, which does In conclusion, yes, Mordechai was indeed Esthers cousin. She was compared to a hind, for just as a hind has a narrow womb and is as desirable to her mate at all times as at the first time, so, too, was Esther as desirable to Ahasuerus at all times as at the first time. Rabbah 6:5; BT Megillah 13a). Esther would then be aged18 when she wins the beauty contest, 22 when she becomes queen (Esther 2:16-17), and 27 when she helps to defeat Haman's genocide scheme. Jewish Women's Archive. Seeing the Letter Tet in a Dream: 9th Anniversary, Study the Torah with Academic Scholarship, By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use, Jewish Queens: From the Story of Esther to the History of Shelamzion, https://thetorah.com/article/jewish-queens-from-the-story-of-esther-to-the-history-of-shelamzion. Queen Esther is a biblical figure from the Hebrew Bible who was the Jewish Queen of the Persian King Ahasuerus. The best. Rabbah6:11). Once upon a time a Jewish queen ruled the land. Hatach and Esther. Laying the scene atSusa, a residential city of the Persian kings, the Book of Esther narrates thatKing Ahasuerus deposed his first wife, Queen Vashti, after she refused to display her beauty to the people and nobles at the kings feast. Queen Elizabeth II has died today aged 96. Esthers first husband was Mordecai. We may assume, therefore, that she was about 14 years of age when she succeeded to the throne. In post-Temple times, a small piece of dough set aside and burnt. Rabbah6:5; BTLit. Why did she stay with him, rather than restart her life? In another exposition, she was given this name by the Gentiles, after the celestial body Istahar (BTLit. Persian King would have probably not been interested in a 35 year Esther eventually won the heart of the king and his servants, and she was selected to become the new queen of Persia. Shelamzion became sole heir to the Hasmonean kingdom when her husband, King Alexander Janneaus (King Yannai in rabbinic sources), who reigned from 10376 BCE, died. This status completely changed when Esther went to Ahasuerus of her own free will, in order to persuade him to cancel Hamans decree(Esth. Her reign lasted less than a decade but still longer than a two-term presidency. A type of non-halakhic literary activitiy of the Rabbis for interpreting non-legal material according to special principles of interpretation (hermeneutical rules). One advantage to welcoming Shelamzion back into Jewish memory is making space for a role model of diplomacy and peace. cit.). She was expressing her inner strength and her ability to survive and even to thrive in difficult circumstances. The outraged king ordered that Haman be hanged on the gallows built for Mordecai and that Mordecai be named to fill Hamans position. Despite her hiding her identity, Esther still maintained contact with Mordecai. He wished Queen Vashti to be brought to the feast so that he may flaunt her wonderful beauty. When Esther was taken captive, her emotional world was completely destroyed. [11] According to the colophon to Greek Esther, a delegation of Jews from Jerusalem went to Egypt with the translation of the story of Megillat Esther and asked the Jews of Alexandria to begin celebrating the festival of Purim. assumed in to the next King's harem (also possiblealthough a The Jews receive permission to defend themselves against their oppressors, and many of the enemies of the Jews are killed. (Viewed on March 4, 2023) . She she fasts for three days, she goes to the king, enduring many obstacles while traveling through the palace but protected by angels. The Queen was the oldest monarch to have reigned in Britain before she passed away in September 2022, aged 96. Esther 4:11-16. Esthers jar was a tangible expression of her emotional devastation, her loss of hope, and her feelings of utter helplessness. Esther standing in the Inner Court. The night of their union, Ahasuerus loved Esther "above all women" and made her the Persian Empire's Queen. We rely on the support of readers like you. After Esther was crowned queen, Mordecai held an important position at the palace and worked closely with the Queen in all matters. She trusted in the goodness and power of God, and in the end He delivered her and her people, the Jewish people, from destruction. Queen Shelamzion Alexandra reigned as queen of Judea from 76 to 67 BCE. A new decree to save the Jews. By merit of this, Mordecai(Esth. So, we know that Daniel was dead long before Esther was born and [4] Tal Ilan devotes a chapter to discussing the name Shelamzion inSilencing the Queen, 259ff. As the Queen died on the Isle of Wight, her body was carried on board the HMY Alberta with several yachts taking the mourners and King Edward VII to Gosport in Hampshire and then by train to Victoria station in London. Then the king made a great feast of Esther, for all his . Another view cites the verse (9:27): the Jews undertook and irrevocably obligated themselveswhat they took upon themselves below was confirmed above (BTMegillahloc. cit.). During the . In addition, she serves as an example of how to effectively use your voice and influence to make a difference. her death is not known. Rabbah8:3). Since the king had commanded Haman to have Mordecai dressed in the kings clothes, Esther ordered the bathing attendants not to work that day, so that Haman would be forced to serve Mordecai himself (Lev. 2:22): and Esther reported it to the king in Mordecais name, from which the Rabbis learned that whoever properly attributes a statement brings redemption to the world, since, by merit of this act, the king wished to give honor and advancement to Mordecai, which began Hamans downfall (Codification of basic Jewish Oral Law; edited and arranged by R. Judah ha-Nasi c. 200 C.E.Mishnah Avot6:6). Queen Esther and Mordecai were given Haman's estate. Haman, having become incensed thatMordecai, aJew, held him indisdainand refused obeisance, convinced the king that the Jews living under Persian rule were rebellious and should be slaughtered. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[336,280],'coalitionbrewing_com-box-4','ezslot_5',147,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-coalitionbrewing_com-box-4-0');In the biblical book of Esther, Queen Esther is a young Jewish woman who becomes queen of the Persian Empire, thanks to the intervention of King Ahasuerus advisor, Mordecai. Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women. Mordechai discovered a plot to kill King Xerxes and foiled it by informing the King through his cousin Esther. According to other traditions, her bowels were loosened (BTMegillahloc. Esther was a young Jewish girl taken into the palace of the king of Persia, King Ahasuerus. He killed Haman in 473BC, when he was 45 ( Esther 3:7 ). It is believed that Mordecai was married before the events of the book, as the King of Persia issues a decree for all unmarried women to come to the palace for beautification treatments. Esther was the heroine and central figure in the Biblical book of Esther. Mordecai is mentioned inEsth. This understanding of the Book of Esther is linked to the perception of Esther as a prophet: she is included in the list of seven women prophets(BTMegillah14a; Seder Olam Rabbah21). In the Book of Esther, Mordecai plays a major role in the events leading up to the deliverance of the Jewish people from their enemies. The Jews honored God and knew that one should not bow down to Haman, or any of his gods, for it was a sign of idolatry and would directly break the command of God. Like many Jews today, she had two names, one Hebrew and one Greek. In order to recognize Mordecais efforts, the king made him his minister and gave him a royal robe and princely apparel. The beginning of the psalm: My God, my God, why have You abandoned me? is what Esther asks when she wants to know why the spirit of divine inspiration has left her: was this because she went to Ahasuerus of her own free will, or because she disparaged him, and called him a dog (following the text of the psalm)(BTMegillah15a)? to be fictional. Rabbah8:6). As Tal Ilan has suggested, this moment is also crucial because it shows us that the decision to promote the book of Esther could well be associated with the coronation of Shelamzion Alexandria and that it may have been part of a larger literary campaign designed to promote the leadership of women through dialogue with other contemporary points of view which were hostile to the idea of women in power (as Josephus was, for example). 5). book of Nehemiah began, although her husband, King Xerxes was If her queenship was unprecedented in the second temple period, it was not unprecedented in the Jewish imaginationQueen Esther had made it possible to imagine a Jewish queen positively. She should know better to try to fool God who said to her, "No, but you did laugh . cit.). The Rabbis include Esther among the seven most beautiful women in the world (BT Megillah 15a). 25:49) because she was the niece of Mordecai and Israel was delivered through her (Esth. . Esther was a good queen. Mordecai did not bow to Haman because he was a Jew and Haman was an Agagite, the enemies of Gods chosen people. She was alone, alone with her grief and trauma. Esther's Origins and Her Adoption by Mordecai. The Rabbis add that Esther found favor in the eyes of both heaven and humans (Esth. Her son Charles, 73, is now king. Furthermore, because of her passivity, her life with Ahasuerus was not thought to entail illicit sexual intercourse (a grave sin, for which one should be killed rather than transgress")(BTSanhedrin74b). Abase him before me, for You abase the proud (Esth. 726. In the midrashic reenactment, Esther sent a message to Mordecai in which she asked him whether Israel had transgressed one of the commandments of the Torah. This exegesis casts the Biblical narrative in a different light. Queen Esther died in 473 BCE, so she was likely in her late fifties or early sixties at the time of her death. When word of the planned massacre reachedEsther, she risked her life by going uninvited to the king to suggest a banquet that Haman would attend. Esther risked her life to save the Jews, thus, she became an example of unselfishness and faithfulness. She was the second daughter of Laban, Rebekah's brother, making Jacob her first cousin. The Babylonian tradition (according to which she was Mordecais wife) understands this apprehension as her awareness that she would thereby lose her status as one compelled [a married woman living with another man against her will] and become a woman who does so freely. It was Mordecai who helped Esther win the favor of the King, who then chose her to be his queen. Esther is also compared to a wolf, to the moon (see below: Esther as the Deliverer of Israel) and to a stove on which everyone places his pots (Midrash Tehilim, onPs. Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, was born in 1900 and would give birth to the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1926. Those were the good old days, the rabbis say, the days of Queen Shelamzion. Rabbah15:6). The king held a party in his honor one day. Ahasuerus consulted with Mordecai how to discover Esthers secret, and Mordecai advised him to arouse Esthers jealousy by inviting other women to him, thus motivating her to disclose her secret (BT Megillah 13a). It can also be assumed from the story that Mordecai was well aware that bowing to Haman may compromise his loyalty to the Jews and God, and thus put him in a dangerous situation. But she does not reveal her Jewish heritage to the king and learns of a plan to kill all Jews by the kings advisor, Haman. Another tradition has Mordecais wife nursing the infant (Midrash Tehilim, onPs. She remained passive to the moody King and obedient to her authoritarian uncle, Mordecai. The monarch of Persia, King Ahasuerus, was wealthy and powerful. Browse 35 queen esther bible stock illustrations and vector graphics available royalty-free, or start a new search to explore more great stock images and vector art. Historians say there never was a Queen Vashti of Persia. Persians are modern day Iranians and they are not Jews. In response, Esther tells him that, like him, she is the offspring of royalty (Midrash Abba Gurion, para. Along with Queen Shelamzion Alexandra, Queen Esther shows that skills at the negotiating table should be just as valued as skills in the field of war. 7:6): The adversary and enemy, she first pointed to Ahasuerus, but the king moved her hand in Hamans direction. He also arranged for the Jews to gather and fast for the protection of their lives. Themidrashrelates that Esther hid from Ahasueruss agents who sought women for the king. All Her . Later, when Queen Vashti refused to appear before Ahasuerus (in Esther ch.1), Memuchan, a Persian royal adviser, advised King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) to remove Vashti from being Queen of Persia, and King Ahasuerus agreed to his advice. In Jacobs blessing to his sons, he blesses Benjamin(Gen. 49:27): Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he consumes the foe, and in the evening he divides the spoil, which the Rabbis applied to Mordecai and Esther. Fear strikes in the hearts of many, including Mordecai, as he realizes Hadassah will be taken. Mordecai held a position inside of the king's palace, and he went their every day to perform his duties. Their relationship was instrumental in saving the Jews from extermination and is one of the main themes of the Book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai then obtained a royal edict allowing Jews throughout the empire to defend themselves on the day set for their extermination. Even after she becomes queen because of the disobedience of Queen Vashti, Esther remains modest and down-to-earth. Rabbah10:13). Esth. 2). [7] See Elsie Sterns reading of Megillat Esther as a cautionary tale for Jews living in the Diaspora in her TABS essay, Megillat Esther: A Godless and Assimilated Diaspora.. Darius must be 37 years old (62 minus 25) when he got married to Esther. Victoria, in full Alexandrina Victoria, (born May 24, 1819, Kensington Palace, London, Englanddied January 22, 1901, Osborne, near Cowes, Isle of Wight), queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1837-1901) and empress of India (1876-1901). not tell how old she was, is certainly not historical and appears cit.). The. Mordecai then spoke these famous words, Do not think to yourself that in the kings palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your fathers house will perish. Institution: National Library of Israel, Jerusalem. The king was humiliated and enraged, and he banished Vashti. The day before, the 96-year-old queen pulled out of a virtual Privy Council meeting after her doctors advised her to rest. Prof. Mika Ahuvia is Associate Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Washington and currently holds the Marsha and Jay Glazer Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies. Queen Esther is the reluctant heroine of the Purim story. According to the view that Esther was Hadassahs second name, the Rabbis explain that she was given this name because she concealed (histirah) her origins. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. And her name was not Esther. Mordechai had a cousin named Esther, who was the daughter of Abihail, a Benjamite. She succeeded in remaining concealed for four years but was eventually found and brought to the royal palace. cit. The combined symptoms in Esther signify that she was suffering from a serious psychiatric illness, but the precise diagnosis remains unclear. Esther, the orphaned cousin and adopted daughter of Mordecai, won the kings devotion and was chosen to be the new queen; Mordecai had instructed her to not reveal that she was Jewish. According to another tradition, he accompanied her to ensure that she did not suffer from sorcery (Esth. "And Esther obtained favour in the sight of all who saw her." (2:15). Furthermore, he commanded all the provinces of his realm to provide special favors and tax exemptions to Esther and her people, the Jews. They were honored with royal garments and a decree was written to protect all Jews. cit.). Photo Credit: Wikipedia, 'Ahasuerus and Haman at the Feast of Esther . Notably, Shelamzion maintained peace through defensive measures and diplomatic outreach rather than outright acts of aggression. Queen Elizabeth II died of old age, her death certificate has revealed. Instead, Haman was hanged, and the Jews were given permission to destroy their enemies. 2:7states: Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter [literally: took herle-vat], which the midrash understands as: Mordecai took herle-bayit, that is, as a wife (BTMegillahloc. She and her cousin Mordecai persuaded the king to cancel an order for the extermination of Jews in his realm, plotted by the king's chief minister, Haman. "order." 100). 17:14): Inscribe this in a document as a reminder (since Haman was of Amalekite stock). Nehemiah probably knew of Queen Esther was born about 492BC and was 14 when she became Queen. Like the moon, that is born after thirty days, Esther, too, said(Esth. Lastly, Mordecai helped the Jews to establish their rights, which became to be known as the Purim festival. Queen Elizabeth II, the UK's longest-serving monarch, has died at Balmoral aged 96, after reigning for 70 years. King Ahasuerus, named Darius, who became King Darius II. The king agreed, not knowing that Esther, his beloved queen, and Mordecai, the man to whom he owed his life, were both Jews. We can adjust the hypothetical ages and birth dates of Mordecai, Esther and their parents by a few years and still keep it . script>. In various sources the Rabbis relate to the question of the Book of Esthers acceptance as Scripture and to the establishment of the holiday ofPurim. Esthers jar is a visual representation of her emotional turmoil and her suffering. For an analysis of these sources and their reliability, see Tal Ilan,Integrating Women into Second Temple History(Tbingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1999), esp. Nonetheless, in the very same document in which the rabbis rule out the possibility of Jewish queens, the rabbis remember Queen Shelamzion Alexandra quite favorably. It is also thought that Mordecai may have had additional children, as it is not explicitly mentioned that Esther is his only child.
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