Targum Sheni on Esther Reader

This King Solomon was it who had caused a glorious royal throne to be made, covered with gold from Ophir, overlaid with beryl stones, brilliants, marble, samaragel, carbuncle, diamonds, pearls, and other precious stones. For no king was the throne made like it, and no kingdom could produce similar ones. This throne was made as follows: Twelve lions of gold stood upon it, and opposite to them twelve eagles of gold, a lion opposite an eagle, and an eagle opposite a lion.

The right paw of the golden lion was toward the left wing of the golden eagle, and the left wing of the golden eagle was toward the right paw of the golden lion. The sum of all the lions upon it was seventy-two, and there were the same number of eagles. Towards the top, where the king's seat was, the throne was round. It had six steps of gold, as it is written: "The king made a throne of ivory, and this throne had six steps."

Upon the first step lay a golden ox, and opposite to it a golden lion; upon the second step lay a golden bear, and opposite to it a golden lamb; upon the third step lay a golden panther, and opposite to it a golden owl; upon the fourth step lay a golden eagle, and opposite to it a golden peacock; upon the fifth step lay a golden cat, and opposite to it a golden hen; and upon the sixth step lay a golden hawk, and opposite to it a golden dove.

Upon the throne stood likewise a golden dove, holding a golden hawk in its claws. Thus one day will all the nations and languages be delivered into the hands of King Messiah, and into the hands of the house of Israel.

It is not said here, he showed them his riches, but "he showed them the riches of his glorious kingdom." By which riches is to be understood, that which came from the temple. For a mortal eye has no riches, but all riches belong to God, as it is written, "Mine is the silver and the gold, saith the Lord of hosts." During a hundred and eighty days he showed them daily six treasuries, as it is written, "riches, honour, dominion, glory, majesty, greatness" (Esther i. 4),—so then six expressions. But when the Israelites saw there the vessels of the temple, they did not remain any longer. The king was told that the Jews did not want to take refreshment, because they saw there the vessels of the temple, and so he ordered that they should have another banquet for themselves.

Then said Memucan, who is Daniel. But why is he called Memucan? Because when the tribe of Judah were taken captive to Babylon, —Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah were among them,—Daniel also was exiled, through whom great, wonderful, and mighty works were done, and again through whom heaven determined that Queen Vashti should be killed, in consequence of which he was called Memucan, i.e. " establisher." And Memucan spake to the king and governors—there was a royal statute at the time which provided, that in the cabinet consultations the younger ministers should give their advice first.

If it was a proper one, they carried it into execution; but if not, the older ministers gave their advice. And as Memucan was the youngest of them all, he gave his advice first. It so happened that Memucan had married a Persian wife who was richer than himself, and she refused to speak to him in any other language but her own, and so he thought to himself, now is the opportunity to compel the wives to honour their husbands.

Therefore he said to the king and the nobles: "Not against the king alone has Queen Vashti failed, but also against all the nations and governors that are in the empire of Ahhashverosh.

Mordecai brought up Hadassah. This is Esther; and she was called Hadassah, because as the myrtle spreads fragrance in the world, so did she spread good works. And for this reason she was called in the Hebrew language Hadassah, because the righteous are likened to a myrtle. In reference to her Isaiah prophesied, saying: "Instead of the Naazuz (the thorn) shall come up the Berosh (fir-tree), and instead of the Sarpard (briar) shall come up an Hadassah." That is to say, instead of Naazuz, the thorn, shall grow up a tamarinth, i.e. instead of the pious Mordecai the wicked Haman shall ascend the scaffold. Sarpard is a willow; instead of the willlow shall grow up the myrtle, i.e. instead of Vashti, Esther shall ascend the throne.

Now when the royal decrees were made known, and virgins were gathered to Shushan through Hega the royal eunuch and keeper of the women, and when Mordecai heard that virgins were forcibly demanded, he took Esther and withdrew her from the royal messengers, that they should not carry her away. He hid her in a summer-house, that they should not see her. The daughters of the heathen used to dance and show their beauty through the windows when the royal messengers passed by, therefore the messengers brought many virgins from the provinces.

And the messengers knew Esther, and when they saw that she was not among these virgins, they said one to another: "In vain have we exerted ourselves to bring virgins from the provinces, when we have in our province a virgin who surpasses in beauty all those whom we have brought." And when search was made for Esther and she was not found, they made it known to the king. When the king heard it, he issued an order that every virgin who shall conceal herself from the royal messengers, shall be punished with death.

Mordecai, hearing this order, was afraid, and he conducted his uncle's daughter to the market, and so Esther was brought by Hega, the keeper of the women, unto the king.

Never! I only bow before the one great and living God in heaven, who is a consuming fire and whose angels are fire, who holds the earth in His arm, who spread out the heavens by His mighty power, who by His will makes the sun to be darkness and the darkness to be light, who by His wisdom surrounded the ocean with sand, provided the sea with odorous salt and with banks, keeping the waves bound in the deep as with chains that they should not overflow the land and not pass their limit.

By His word He created the firmament and spread it as a cloud in the air, yea. He spread it as a vapour upon the world, and a tent upon the surface of the earth, and by His power He carries the things that are above and below. Before Him the sun, the moon, and the Pleiades run their course, and the stars and planets are not for a moment inactive. None of them rest, but all run before Him as His messengers, who go right and left to do His will. To Him who created them belongs praise, and before Him one must bow."

And Mordecai, the righteous, saw by the Holy Spirit everything that had been done, viz. that the king had sent word from his palace by his servants to the righteous Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachai, who were in the chamber of hewn stones, and were prophesying on the great wall of Jerusalem, that they should stop the work of building after seventy-two towers were already built. The wicked Ahhashverosh also fetched a hundred and twenty-seven scribes from a hundred and twenty-seven provinces, every one of whom had a roll and a book in his hand.

They sat at the gates of Shushan and wrote, and sent out grievous decrees concerning the Jews and their laws. The first letter written in the name of the king, and sealed with his signet-ring, they despatched by swift messengers, and the contents were as follows:—"From me. King Ahhashverosh, to all peoples, nations, and languages who live in all the land, peace be multiplied. I make known to you, that a certain man came to us, who is not from our place nor from our province, and he came for the purpose of joining us, that we might prevail against our enemies.

We have made investigation concerning him, and (we find) that his name is Haman, son of King Agag, son of the great Amalek, son of Reuel, son of Eliphaz the first-born of Esau, in fact, a descendant of prominent lords and wealthy people. This man asked of me a small and insignificant petition, and informed me concerning the Jews and their blameworthy laws and affairs. He said, 'When they came out from Egypt they numbered six hundred thousand men, and so I will give thee six hundred thousand minas of silver, a mina for every man' for which sum he desired that I should sell this people to him to be killed.

Immediately the holy ark was brought out to the gates of Shushan, and the book of the Law was taken out, and they covered it with sackcloth, and ashes spread upon it, and then they read therein: "When thou art in tribulation, and all these things have come upon thee, etc., thou should turn to the Lord thy God; for the Lord thy God is a merciful God" (Deut. iv. 30, 31). Mordecai again rose in the midst of the congregation and said: People of Israel!

Beloved and dear people! Beloved and precious to God! Let us look for an example to the people of Nineveh! When the prophet Jonah, the son of Amittai, was sent to announce to them that the city of Nineveh would be destroyed, and when the tidings reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside the royal throne, put on sackcloth, rolled himself in ashes, and issued a proclamation in Nineveh, saying: 'The decree of the king and his nobles commands thus: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; let them not feed nor drink water.

Let them turn from their evil ways, and from the violence that is in their hands.' 'And the Lord turned by His word from the evil which He thought He would do unto them, and He did it not.' Let us also do as they did, and institute and proclaim fasts, because we are banished from Jerusalem;

Hitherto I went to the king against my will, but now I go willingly. And a daughter of Israel who is violated by a Gentile is a lawful wife to her husband. Let the bridegroom go out from his sleeping-room covered with sackcloth, and let the bride likewise leave her nuptial chamber with her head covered with ashes. Let men and beasts and sheep not taste anything for three days, and let the babes be separated from the breasts of their mothers."

Immediately they inspected the assembly, and they found in it twelve thousand young priests. These seized trumpets with their right hand and the books of the law with their left, and then wept and cried towards heaven, and said: "O God of Israel! behold the law which Thou hast given us. Behold, Thy beloved people is about to cease from the world. Who will read therein and speak of Thy name?

The sun and moon will be dark, and not give their light, for they were created but for Thy people Israel." They then fell upon their faces, and cried: "Answer us, Father, answer us! Answer us, King, answer us!" And they blew the trumpets, and the people cried aloud after them, so that the hosts of heaven wept, and the patriarchs were moved in their graves.

This affair was revealed to Mordecai by the Holy Spirit, and he told it to Esther, who communicated to the king in Mordecai's name.