The Targum provides another Midrashic explanation: that she was as beautiful as the Evening Star (or Morning Star), which is astara in Greek. In the Talmud, Tractate Yoma (29a), Esther is compared to the “morning star”, and is considered the subject of Psalm chapter 22 because its introduction is a “song for the morning star.” Esther can also be understood to mean “hidden” in Hebrew, and her name is interpreted thus in Midrash, where it is said that Esther hid her nationality and lineage as Mordecai had advised. Because the methods and aims of God are believed to be similarly hidden, “The Book of Esther” in Hebrew can be understood as “The Book of Hiddenness,” representing G-d’s hiddenness in the story.

Esther was a woman of deep faith, courage and patriotism, ultimately willing to risk her life for her adoptive father, Mordecai, and the Jewish people. Scripture portrays her as a woman raised up as an instrument in the hand of God to avert the destruction of the Jewish people, and to afford them protection and forward their wealth and peace in their captivity. As a result of Esther’s intervention and influence, Mizrahi Jews lived in the Persian Empire for 2400 years thereafter. Esther’s husband Ahasuerus followed in the footsteps of Cyrus the Great, in showing mercy to the Jews of Persia: Cyrus had decreed an end to the Babylonian captivity of the Jews upon his conquest of Babylon in 539 BC.

Following is the story of Esther recorded as the Book of Esther;

CHAPTER ONE

1 And it came to pass in the days of Achashverosh, the same Achashverosh who ruled from Hodu to Cush, one hundred and twenty-seven provinces.

2 In those days, when King Achashverosh sat on his royal throne, which was in Shushan the capital –

3 In the third year of his reign, he made a feast for all his ministers and servants; the army of Persia and Media, the nobles and all the ministers of the provinces in his service.

4 For many days, one hundred and eighty days, he displayed the glorious wealth of his kingdom and the splendorous beauty of his majesty.

5 And when these days came to an end, the king made a seven-day feast in the courtyard of the king’s palace garden, for all the people in Shushan the capital, nobleman and commoner alike.

6 There were hangings of white, green and blue, held by cords of linen and purple wool to silver rods and marble pillars. There were divans of gold and silver on a floor of alabaster and marble [arranged in patterns of] rows and circles.

7 Drinks were served in golden vessels, vessels of assorted design, and the royal wine was in abundance as befitting the king.

8 The drinking was by the law, without force, for so had the king ordered all the stewards of his household-to comply with the will of each man.

9 Queen Vashti, too, made a feast for the women in the royal palace of King Achashveirosh.

10 On the seventh day, when the king’s heart was merry with wine, he ordered Mehuman, Bizzeta, Charvona, Bigta, Avagta, Zeitar and Charkas, the seven chamberlains who attended King Achashverosh,

11 to bring Queen Vashti before the king wearing the royal crown, to show her beauty to the nations and ministers, for she was indeed beautiful.

12 But Queen Vashti refused to appear by the king’s order brought by the chamberlains, and the king grew furious and his wrath seethed within him.

13 So the king conferred with the wise men, those knowledgeable of the times–for this was the king’s custom, to [bring such matters] before those who were versed in every law and statute.

14 Those closest to him were Carshina, Sheitar, Admata, Tarshish, Meress, Marsina and Memuchan. These were the seven ministers of Persia and Media, who had access to the king and ranked highest in the kingdom.

15 [He asked them:] “By law, what should be done with Queen Vashti for failing to obey the order of King Achashverosh, brought by the chamberlains?”

16 Memuchan declared before the king and the ministers: “It is not against the King alone that Queen Vashti has sinned, but against all the ministers and all the nations in all the provinces of King Achashverosh.

17 “For word of the queen’s deed will reach all the women and it will belittle their husbands in their eyes. For they will say: ‘King Achashverosh commanded that Queen Vashti be brought before him, yet she did not come!’

18 “This very day, the noblewomen of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s deed will repeat it to all the King’s nobles and there will be much disgrace and anger.

19 “If it please the King, let a royal edict be issued by him, and let it be written into the laws of Persia and Media and let it not be revoked, that Queen Vashti may never again appear before King Achashverosh, and let the King confer her royal title upon another woman who is better than she.

20 “And the King’s decree which he shall proclaim will be heard throughout his kingdom, for it is indeed great, and all the women will respect their husbands, nobleman and commoner alike.”

21 The idea pleased the king and the ministers, and the king did as Memuchan had advised.

22 He sent letters to all the king’s provinces–to each province in its script and to each nation in its language [saying] that every man shall be master in his home and that he speak the language of his nation.

CHAPTER TWO

1 After these events, when King Achashverosh’s wrath had abated, he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what had been decreed upon her.

2 So the king’s attendants advised: “Let beautiful virgin girls be sought for the King.

3 “And let the King appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, and let them gather every beautiful virgin girl to Shushan the capital, to the harem, under the charge of Heigai, chamberlain of the King, custodian of the women, and let their cosmetics be provided.

4 “And let the girl who finds favor in the King’s eyes become queen in Vashti’s stead.” The plan pleased the king and he acted accordingly.

5 There was a Jewish man in Shushan the capital, whose name was Mordechai, son of Yair, son of Shim’iy, son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

6 Who had been exiled from Jerusalem with the exiles that had been exiled along with Jechoniah, King of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, had sent into exile.

7 He raised his cousin Hadassah, also called Esther, for she had neither father nor mother. The girl was of beautiful form and beautiful visage, and when her father and mother died, Mordechai adopted her as his daughter.

8 Now when the king’s order and edict became known, and many girls were gathered to Shushan the capital under the charge of Heigai, Esther was taken to the palace under the charge of Heigai, custodian of the women.

9 The girl found favor in his eyes and won his kindness, so that he hurried to provide her with her cosmetics and meals, and the seven maids that were to be given her from the palace. He also transferred her and her maids to the best quarters in the harem.

10 [All the while] Esther did not divulge her race or ancestry, for Mordechai had instructed her not to tell.

11 And every day Mordechai would stroll in front of the harem courtyard to find out how Esther was faring and what would be done with her.

12 Now when each girl’s turn came to go to King Achashverosh, after undergoing the prescribed twelve-month care for women –for only then would their period of beauty-care be completed: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with perfumes and women’s cosmetics–

13 With this the girl would appear before the king; she would be provided with whatever she requested to accompany her from the harem to the palace.

14 In the evening she would go [to the king], and in the morning she would return to the second harem, under the charge of Shaashgaz, the king’s chamberlain, custodian of the concubines. She would not go to the king again, unless the king desired her, whereupon she would be summoned by name.

15 And when the time came for Esther, daughter of Avichayil uncle of Mordechai, who had taken her as a daughter, to go to the king, she did not ask for a thing other than that which Heigai, the king’s chamberlain, custodian of the women, had advised. And Esther found favor in the eyes of all who saw her.

16 Esther was taken to King Achashverosh, to his palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tevet, in the seventh year of his reign.

17 And the king loved Esther more than all the women and she won his favor and kindness more than all the virgins; he placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in Vashti’s stead.

18 Then the king made a grand feast for all his ministers and servants, “The Feast of Esther.” He lowered [taxes] for the provinces and gave presents befitting the king.

19 And when the virgins were gathered a second time, Mordechai was sitting at the king’s gate.

20 Esther would [still] not divulge her ancestry or race, as Mordechai had instructed her. Indeed, Esther followed Mordechai’s instructions just as she had done while under his care.

21 In those days, while Mordechai sat at the king’s gate, Bigtan and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains from the threshold guards, became angry and planned to assassinate King Achashverosh.

22 The matter became known to Mordechai and he informed Queen Esther. Esther then informed the king of it in Mordechai’s name.

23 The matter was investigated and found [to be true] and the two were hanged on the gallows. It was then recorded in the Book of Chronicles before the king.

CHAPTER THREE

1 After these events, King Achashverosh promoted Haman, son of Hamdata, the Agagite and advanced him; he placed his seat above all his fellow ministers.

2 All the king’s servants at the king’s gate kneeled and bowed before Haman, for so had the king commanded concerning him. But Mordechai would not kneel or bow.

3 The king’s servants at the king’s gate said to Mordechai, “Why do you transgress the King’s command?”

4 And when they had said this to him day after day and he did not listen to them, they informed Haman to see if Mordechai’s words would endure, for he had told them that he was a Jew.

5 When Haman saw that Mordechai would not kneel or bow before him, Haman was filled with wrath.

6 But he thought it contemptible to kill only Mordechai, for they had informed him of Mordechai’s nationality. Haman sought to annihilate all the Jews, Mordechai’s people, throughout Achashverosh’s entire kingdom.

7 In the first month, which is the month of Nissan, in the twelfth year of King Achashverosh’s reign, a pur, which is a lot, was cast before Haman, for every day and every month, [and it fell] on the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.

8 Haman said to King Achashverosh, “There is one nation, scattered and dispersed among the nations throughout the provinces of your kingdom, whose laws are unlike those of any other nation and who do not obey the laws of the King. It is not in the King’s interest to tolerate them.

9 “If it please the King, let [an edict] be issued for their destruction, and I will pay ten thousand silver talents to the functionaries, to be deposited in the King’s treasuries.”

10 The king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, son of Hamdata, the Agagite, persecutor of the Jews.

11 The king said to Haman, “The money is yours to keep, and the nation is yours to do with as you please.”

12 The king’s scribes were then summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and all that Haman commanded to the king’s satraps and the governors of each province and to the nobles of each nation was written–to each province according to its script and each nation according to its language. It was written in King Achashverosh’s name and sealed with the king’s signet ring.

13 Letters were sent with couriers to all the provinces of the king: to annihilate, murder and destroy all the Jews, young and old, children and women, on one day–the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar and to plunder their possessions.

14 Copies of the edict were to be proclaimed as law in every province, clearly to all the nations, so that they should be ready for that day.

15 The couriers hurried out with the order of the king and the law was proclaimed in Shushan the capital. Then the king and Haman sat down to drink, and the city of Shushan was in turmoil.

CHAPTER FOUR

1 Mordechai knew all that had occurred, so Mordechai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ash. He went out into the city crying loudly and bitterly.

2 He went up until the king’s gate, for it is improper to enter the king’s gate wearing sackcloth.

3 And in every province, wherever the edict of the king and his law reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, crying and wailing; sackcloth and ash were spread out for the masses.

4 Esther’s maids and chamberlains came and told her about it and the queen was terrified. She sent garments with which to dress Mordechai so that he would remove his sackcloth from upon him, but he did not accept them.

5 Esther summoned Hatach, one of the king’s chamberlains whom he had placed in her service, and she commanded him to go to Mordechai to find out the meaning of this and what it was about.

6 Hatach went out to Mordechai, to the city square that was in front of the king’s gate.

7 And Mordechai told him about all that had happened to him, and about the sum of money that Haman had promised to pay to the king’s treasuries for the right to destroy the Jews.

8 He also gave him a copy of the law that was proclaimed in Shushan calling for their annihilation, to show Esther and to tell her about it, and to instruct her to go to the king to beseech him and to plead with him on behalf of her nation.

9 Hatach went and relayed the words of Mordechai to Esther.

10 Esther told Hatach to relay to Mordechai:

11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that any man or woman who goes to the king and enters the inner courtyard without being summoned, his is but one verdict: execution; except for the person to whom the king extends his golden scepter–[only] he shall live. And I have not been summoned to come to the king for thirty days now.”

12 They relayed Esther’s words to Mordechai.

13 And Mordechai said to relay to Esther, “Do not think that you will escape [the fate of] all the Jews by being in the king’s palace.

14 “For if you will remain silent at this time, relief and salvation will come to the Jews from another source, and you and the house of your father will be lost. And who knows if it is not for just such a time that you reached this royal position.”

15 Esther said to relay to Mordechai:

16 “Go and gather all the Jews who are in Shushan and fast for my sake, do not eat and do not drink for three days, night and day. My maids and I shall also fast in the same way. Then I shall go to the king, though it is unlawful, and if I perish, I perish.”

17 Mordechai then left and did all that Esther had instructed him.

CHAPTER FIVE

1 On the third day, Esther donned [garments of] royalty and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace, facing the palace. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the palace facing the palace entrance.

2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing in the courtyard she found favor in his eyes. The king extended to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand and Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.

3 The king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? [Even if it be] half the kingdom, it will be granted you.”

4 Esther said, “If it please the King, let the King and Haman come today to the feast that I have prepared for him.”

5 The king said, “Tell Haman to hurry and fulfill Esther’s bidding.” And the king and Haman came to the feast that Esther had prepared.

6 At the wine feast, the king said to Esther, “What is your plea? It will be granted you; what is your request? [Even if it be] half the kingdom it shall be fulfilled.”

7 So Esther replied and said, “My plea and my request:

8 “If I have found favor in the King’s eyes, and if it please the King to grant my plea and fulfill my request, let the King and Haman come today to the feast that I shall prepare for them, and tomorrow I shall fulfill the King’s bidding.”

9 That day Haman left happy and content. But when Haman saw Mordechai at the king’s gate and [Mordechai] neither rose nor trembled before him, Haman was filled with wrath against Mordechai.

10 Haman restrained himself and went to his house and sent for his friends and his wife Zeresh.

11 Haman told them of his glorious wealth and his many sons, and all about how the king had promoted and raised him above all the king’s ministers and servants.

12 Then Haman said: “In addition, along with the king, Queen Esther invited only me to the feast that she prepared. Tomorrow, too, I am invited to her [feast] along with the king.

13 “Yet all this is worthless to me whenever I see Mordechai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate!”

14 Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have gallows erected fifty cubits high, and tomorrow tell the king to have Mordechai hanged on it. Then you will be able to go in good spirits with the king to the feast.” Haman was pleased with the idea and erected the gallows.

CHAPTER SIX

1 That night, the king’s sleep was disturbed. He ordered that the Book of Records, the Chronicles, be brought, and they were read before the king.

2 It was found written that Mordechai had informed on Bigtan and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains from the threshold guards, who had planned to assassinate King Achashverosh.

3 The king asked, “What splendor and honor has been accorded to Mordechai for this?” “Nothing was done for him,” the king’s attendants replied.

4 “Who is in the courtyard?” asked the king. And just then Haman had come to the outer courtyard of the king’s chambers to tell the king to hang Mordechai on the gallows he had prepared for him.

5 “Haman is standing in the courtyard,” the king’s attendants answered him. “Let him come in,” said the king.

6 Haman entered, and the king said to him, “What should be done for a man whom the king wishes to honor?” Now Haman said to himself, “Who would the king wish to honor more than me?”

7 So Haman said to the king, “For a man whom the king wishes to honor,

8 “let them bring a royal garment that the king has worn, and a horse upon which the king has ridden, and upon whose head the royal crown has been placed.

9 “And let the garment and the horse be entrusted in the hands of one of the king’s noble ministers, and they shall dress the man whom the king wishes to honor and lead him on the horse through the city square, proclaiming before him, ‘So is done for the man whom the king wishes to honor!’”

10 The king said to Haman, “Hurry! Take the garment and the horse just as you have said, and do just so for Mordechai the Jew who sits at the king’s gate. Do not leave out a thing from all that you suggested.”

11 So Haman took the garment and dressed Mordechai, and he led him through the city square and proclaimed before him: “So is done for the man whom the King wishes to honor!”

12 Then Mordechai returned to the king’s gate while Haman hurried to his house, miserable, his face covered.

13 Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends about all that had happened to him. And his wise men and his wife Zeresh told him, “If this Mordechai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of Jewish descent, you will not prevail over him, for you will certainly fall before him.”

14 While they were still talking with him, the chamberlains of the king arrived, and they rushed to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared.

CHAPTER SEVEN

1 The king and Haman came to drink with Queen Esther.

2 And again on the second day the king said to Esther during the wine feast, “What is your plea, Queen Esther? It will be granted you. What is your request? [Even if it be] half the kingdom it will be fulfilled.”

3 Queen Esther replied and said: “If I have found favor in your eyes, O King, and if it please the King, let my life be granted me by my plea, and the life of my people by my request.

4 “For my people and I have been sold to be annihilated, killed and destroyed! Had we been sold as slaves and maidservants I would have kept silent. But indeed the persecutor is not bothered by the King’s loss.”

5 And King Achashverosh spoke and said to Queen Esther, “Who is this, and which one is he, that has the audacity to do such a thing?”

6 “A man who is a persecutor and an enemy: this evil Haman!” Esther replied. And Haman shuddered in the presence of the king and the queen.

7 The king arose in wrath and left the wine feast [and went] to the palace garden, while Haman stood up to beg Queen Esther for his life, for he realized that the king’s hostility towards him was irrevocable.

8 And the king returned from the palace garden to the wine-feast chamber, and Haman had fallen upon the divan upon which Esther was reclining. The king said, “Does he even intend to seduce the queen while I am in the palace!” As soon as these words left the king’s mouth the face of Haman was covered.

9 Then Charvonah, one of the chamberlains that attended the king, said, “In addition, there is the gallows that Haman erected for Mordechai, who spoke for the King’s good, standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high!” “Hang him upon it!” said the king.

10 And they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordechai and the king’s wrath abated.

CHAPTER EIGHT

1 On that day, King Achashverosh gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, persecutor of the Jews. And Mordechai came before the king, for Esther had told [the king] how he was related to her.

2 And the king removed his signet ring which he had taken from Haman and gave it to Mordechai, and Esther put Mordechai in charge of Haman’s estate.

3 Esther again spoke before the king and fell before his feet and she cried and begged him to nullify the evil decree of Haman the Agagite and his plot that he had plotted against the Jews

4 The king extended the golden scepter to Esther and Esther rose and stood before the king.

5 She said, “If it please the King, and if I have found favor before him, and the idea is proper to the King, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let [an order] be issued ordering the withdrawal of the letters containing the plot of Haman, son of Hamdata, the Agagite, in which he ordered the destruction of the Jews throughout the King’s provinces.

6 “For how can I behold the calamity that will befall my people? And how can I behold the destruction of my race?”

7 King Achashverosh said to Queen Esther and Mordechai the Jew, “See, I have given Haman’s estate to Esther, and he himself was hanged on the gallows for raising his hand against the Jews.

8 “Now you can issue decrees concerning the Jews as you please, in the King’s name and sealed with the King’s signet ring. For an edict written in the King’s name and sealed with the King’s signet ring cannot be withdrawn.”

9 The king’s scribes were then summoned, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on its twenty-third day, and an edict was written according to all that Mordechai instructed the Jews, the satraps, the governors, and the nobles of the provinces from Hodu to Cush, one hundred and twenty-seven provinces to each province according to its script and to each nation according to its language, and to the Jews according to their script and language.

10 He wrote it in King Achashverosh’s name and sealed it with the king’s signet ring. He sent the letters by couriers on horseback, riding mules bred of mares from the king’s stables:

11 That the king had allowed the Jews of every city to gather and stand up for their lives; to annihilate, kill and destroy every army of any nation or province that might attack them, [including their] children and women, and to plunder their possessions,

12 on one day in all the provinces of King Achashveirosh, on the thirteenth of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.

13 Copies of this edict [were sent] to be proclaimed as law in every province, clearly to all the nations, so that the Jews would be ready for that day to take revenge upon their enemies.

14 The couriers, riding mules from the king’s stables, left urgently and hurriedly with the king’s edict, and the law was proclaimed in Shushan the capital.

15 And Mordechai left the king’s presence wearing a royal garment of blue and white, a large golden crown, and a shawl of fine linen and purple wool. And the city of Shushan celebrated and rejoiced.

16 For the Jews there was light and happiness, joy and prestige.

17 And in every province and city to which the king’s edict and law reached, there was happiness and joy for the Jews, a celebration and a holiday. Many of the gentiles converted to Judaism, for fear of the Jews had fallen upon them.

CHAPTER NINE

1 On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, when the time for the carrying out of the king’s edict and law had arrived, on the day the enemies of the Jews had thought they would dominate them, everything was overturned: the Jews dominated their enemies.

2 The Jews gathered in their cities throughout the provinces of King Achashveirosh to attack those who sought to harm them. No man stood in their way, for fear of them had fallen upon all the nations.

3 And all the ministers of the provinces, the satraps, the governors and the king’s functionaries honored the Jews, for fear of Mordechai had fallen upon them.

4 For Mordechai was prominent in the king’s palace and his fame was spreading throughout all the provinces, for Mordechai was growing in power.

5 And the Jews struck at all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying, and they did with their enemies as they pleased.

6 In Shushan the capital the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men.

7 And Parshandata, and Dalfon, and Aspata;

8 and Porata and Adalya and Aridata;

9 and Parmashta and Arisai and Aridai and Vaizata,

10 –the ten sons of Haman, son of Hamdata, persecutor of the Jews, they killed; but they took none of the spoils.

11 That day, the number of the slain in Shushan the capital was relayed to the king.

12 The king said to Queen Esther, “In Shushan the capital, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men and the ten sons of Haman; what have they done in the other provinces of the King? What is your plea? It will be granted you. What is your additional request? It will be fulfilled.”

13 Esther replied, “If it please the King, let the Jews of Shushan be allowed to do tomorrow what was lawful today, and let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.”

14 The king ordered this done, and the law was proclaimed in Shushan, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged.

15 So the Jews of Shushan gathered again on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and killed three hundred men in Shushan, but took none of the spoils.

16 And the rest of the Jews of the king’s provinces gathered and stood up for their lives to relieve themselves of their enemies and killed seventy-five thousand of their foes, but took none of the spoils.

17 On the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and they rested on the fourteenth day and made it a day of feasting and rejoicing.

18 And the Jews of Shushan gathered on the thirteenth and fourteenth [of Adar], and rested on the fifteenth and made it a day of feasting and rejoicing.

19 Thus the prazi Jews, those who live in unwalled cities, make the fourteenth day of the month of Adar a holiday, a day of feasting, rejoicing and sending portions of food one to another.

20 Now Mordechai recorded these events and sent letters to all the Jews living throughout the provinces of King Achashveirosh, near and far

21 [instructing them] to obligate themselves to celebrate annually the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar,

22 like the days upon which the Jews were relieved of their enemies, and the month which had been transformed for them from one of sorrow to joy, from mourning to festivity–to make them days of feasting, rejoicing, sending food portions one to another and giving gifts to the poor.

23 And the Jews accepted [as an obligation] that which they had begun to observe, and that which Mordechai had written to them.

24 For Haman, son of Hamdata, the Agagite, persecutor of all the Jews, plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and he cast a pur, which is a lot, to shatter them and destroy them.

25 But when she came before the king, [the king] said–and ordered letters to be written to the effect–that [Haman's] evil plot against the Jews be returned upon his own head, and he and his sons were hanged upon the gallows.

26 For this did they call these days “Purim,” after the pur, because of all of the events of this epistle, [which explains] what happened to them and why they saw fit to [establish the holiday].

27 The Jews established and accepted upon themselves, and upon their descendants, and upon all who might convert to their faith, to annually celebrate these two days in the manner described [here], on their proper dates never to be abolished.

28 And these days are remembered and observed in every generation, by every family, in every province and every city. And these days of Purim will never pass from among the Jews, nor shall their memory depart from their descendants.

29 Queen Esther, daughter of Avichayil, and Mordechai the Jew, wrote about the enormity of all [the miracles], to establish [the holiday] with this second Purim epistle.

30 And he sent letters to all the Jews, to the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of Achashveirosh’s kingdom, words of peace and truth,

31 [instructing them] to observe these days of Purim on their proper dates, in the manner established for them by Mordechai the Jew and Queen Esther, just as they had accepted upon themselves and upon their descendants the observance of the fasts and their lamentations.

32 And the word of Esther confirmed the observances of these Purim days, and [the story] was included in Scripture.

CHAPTER TEN

1 King Achashverosh levied a tax upon the mainland and the islands of the sea.

2 And the entire history of his power and strength, and the account of Mordechai’s greatness, whom the king had promoted, are recorded in the Book of Chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia.

3 For Mordechai the Jew was second to King Achashverosh, a leader to the Jews, and loved by his many brethren. He sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace for all their descendants.

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To the Rabbis, Esther is one of the four most beautiful women ever created. She remained eternally young; when she married Ahasuerus she was at least forty years of age, or even, according to some, eighty years based of the numerical value of Hadassah, her Hebrew name. She is also counted among the prophetesses of Israel.

Given the great historical link between Persian and Jewish history, modern day Persian Jews are referred to as “Esther’s Children”. A building known as The Mausoleum of Esther and Mordechai is located in Hamedan.

The Book of Joshua begins: And it was after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, that the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, “Moses my servant has died and now arise and cross the River Jordan. You and all this nation go to the land which I give the Children of Israel. Every place on which the soles of your feet will tread I have given to you, as I have spoken to Moses. No man shall stand up before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so shall I be with you. I will not weaken my grasp on you nor will I abandon you. Just be strong and very courageous to observe and do in accordance with all the Torah that Moses my servant has commanded you. Therefore, do not stray right or left in order that you will succeed in wherever you go.”

This is the first mention of the Philistines as troublesome neighbours of the Israelites (Jdg 3:31). Shamgar’s improvised weapon with which he helped to “save Israel” is spoken of as an oxgoad. With no arms in his hand but an ox-goad, Shamgar repelled Philistine incursions into Israelite regions and smote 600 of the invaders with an ox goad, which was used to guide oxen or defend oneself from an oxen in rage; hence the reference to it being a formidable weapon sometimes ten feet long (B.C. about 1290.) However, it is well known that the warriors of Israel were masters of a Divinely unique method of martial arts, whereby they were capable of defeating large numbers of their enemies. The military prowess of the ancient Israelite warriors is known to some as being Abir  warrior fighting arts. Abir is a Hebrew word meaning powerful, a warlord, palace guard, protector of royalty, warrior, bodyguard, or a defender and to soar above protectively. The history of these ancient Israel fighting techniques, included both hand to hand and also weaponries in nature.

According to a tradition represented in Josephus (Ant., V, iv, 3), Shamgar died in the year he became judge. Unlike the descriptions of other Biblical Judges, the first reference to Shamgar has no introduction, conclusion, or reference to the length of reign, and the subsequent text follows on directly from the previous narrative. In several ancient manuscripts this reference to Shamgar occurs after the accounts of Samson rather than immediately after the account of Ehud, in a way that is more narrative consistent; scholars believe that this latter position is more likely to be the passage’s original location.

She was born at the time that the Egyptians began to oppress the Children of Israel and embitter their lives; she was thus named “Miriam”, meaning “embittered” (in Hebrew, “mar” means “bitter”). Several years after she was born, Pharaoh’s astrologers told him that the savior of Israel will meet his end by water. Pharaoh then decreed that all male Jewish babies be thrown into the Nile, and he entrusted the Jewish midwives, Shifra and Pua, with this task. According to many sources, Shifra refers to Jochebed, and Pua refers to 5-yr-old Miriam, who assisted her mother.

Amram then divorced his wife, in despair from this decree. Being that he was the head of Sanhedrin, the rest of the Jews followed his example. His daughter Miriam’s reaction: “Father, your decree is harsher than Pharaoh’s, for Pharaoh’s decree is directed only against the males, whereas yours is directed against both males and females”. Amram thereupon remarried his wife with great ceremony and all the Jews again followed suit. Before Moses was born, 7-year-old Miriam prophesied, “My mother is destined to bear a son who will redeem Israel”.  When Moses was born, the whole house was filled with light. Her father kissed her on her head and said, “My daughter, your prophecy has been fulfilled.”

When Moses was 3 months old, Pharaoh’s scouts discovered the newborn baby and ordered him cast into the Nile. Jochebed then slapped Miriam on the head and said, “My daughter, where is your prophecy?” When Moses was placed into the Nile in a basket, Miriam stood from afar to see what would become of baby Moses and her prophecy. At that time, the astrologers told Pharaoh, “The savior of the Jews has already been cast into the water,” and the decree was rescinded. At the age of 80, Moses received a prophecy that the redemption was near. When he relayed this message to the Jewish men, they were unable to believe it, being too embittered from their slavery and suffering.

“Women have greater faith than men.” Therefore, the wives rejoiced in Moses’ message of salvation and continued to encourage their husbands by decorating themselves with make-up and jewelry when meeting them after their long, grueling day’s work. They even fashioned tambourines in the depths of the Egyptian exile under Miriam’s direction, in anticipation of the coming redemption.

The Red Sea split on the 22^nd of Nisan, enabling the Jewish nation’s safe crossing while escaping the Egyptians in pursuit. After the Children of Israel escaped from Egypt and had crossed the Red Sea, Miriam and the women took up the instruments, and they danced while singing the song of redemption with complete faith and joy, following Moses’ cue. Although not yet in the Land of Israel, still in exile in the desert, they had perfect faith in their full redemption.

The Ari teaches that when a well of water is dug, a corresponding spiritual well of water is opened in the upper worlds, causing the spiritual energies of faith contained in the upper waters to permeate the atmosphere and giving people more faith and belief in G-d (since any action done in the physical world causes a corresponding action in the spiritual world). The Forefathers dug wells in their efforts to spread the belief in G-d to the world. Thus, Miriam’s well is connected to her deep belief and faith in G-d.

There were three good shepherds/providers that were given to the Jewish people: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. And three good gifts were given in their behalf: the Manna in Moses’ merit, Seven Clouds of Glory in Aaron’s merit, and a (miraculous travelling) well in Miriam’s merit. Throughout their 40-year sojourn in the desert, they ate wondrous manna, were surrounded and protected by seven Clouds of Glory, and drank water from a miraculous well. Thus were their basic needs of food, water, and shelter provided for in the desert.

Miriam’s well is described;  ”like a rock full of holes, trickled and rose like the water of this small jug, it ascended mountains with them and descended to the valleys with them….the princes of Israel surrounded it with their staffs and recited over it the song “Rise up well and answer her, rise up well and answer her” (Num. 21:17), and it bubbled and rose upwards like a pillar”.

Miriam had two merits connected specifically with water, and there are differing opinions for which merit the well was bequeathed: watching over Moses’ rush basket in the Nile in his infancy and exuberant praise after the Splitting of the Sea on the banks of the Red-Sea. Indeed, it was entirely to Miriam’s credit that the Jews continued to procreate in Egypt in spite of Pharaoh’s decrees and she even helped to keep the babies alive and supplied them with food (Ex. 1:17).

In addition, the “Well of Miriam” was more to the Israelites than just their source of water. When the leading clouds came to a stop it indicated to the nation that they should make camp. The arrangement of the camp as detailed in the beginning of the Book of Numbers was deliberate and divine, and directed initially by the well, which would move to the very center of the camp, marking the position of the Tabernacle. The well then overflowed and created a canal system that delineated the placement and boundaries of each tribe within the desert encampment.

On the tenth of the month of Nissan, Miriam the prophetess died and the people complained of great thirst. Then Moses came upon a “rock”, actually the well in hiding, and hit it to provoke it to again provide water. Although Moses was punished by this episode by not being allowed into the Land of Israel, the well itself was renewed and continued to accompany the children of Israel, in his merit. “And Miriam died there… And there was no water for the congregation.” (Num. 20:1-2) Oral Torah and Written Torah.

The Ari explains that subsisting on manna and roving-well water had a purpose beyond miraculous survival in the desert. Manna, given in Moses’ merit, aided the Jew’s understanding of the written Torah; the well-water, given in Miriam’s merit, aided their understanding of the oral traditions of Torah and caused these traditions to become engraved on their hearts. In fact, the letters for the Hebrew word for “well”, “be’er”, are the same letters as the word for “interpretation”. The oral traditions of the Torah were given concomitantly with the 24 written books of the Torah at Mt. Sinai. These include laws that are called “laws of Moses, from Sinai”, although not included in the Written Torah (contradicting the belief that the oral traditions were entirely a result of confusion of the law as a result of the passage of time.)

When studying or reading the Written Torah, one recites a blessing over it even when he understands not one word, for the letters themselves are intrinsically holy and comprehension is secondary. On the other hand, if one does not comprehend what he is learning in the Oral Torah, he is not permitted to recite the blessing over Torah, as its study without comprehension does not constitute Torah study at all. Jews also approach the Oral Torah with simple faith that transcends logic. Thus, a Jew will not adjudicate Torah law according to his own logical conclusions if his opinion is contradicted by an earlier Torah sage, one whose legal opinions are accepted by most Jews as binding. The above holds true even when, according to the rules of logic, the person feels himself to be completely in the right. Unlike secular wisdom, Torah logic and faith go hand in hand.

The well did not abandon the nation of Israel even after their entrance to the Land of Israel, as opposed to the Manna and the Clouds of Glory; in fact, it continues to contribute from its wondrous powers until this day. When they entered the Land under Joshua, on 10 Nissan, the anniversary of Miriam’s death, the well also entered the Land, where it became hidden:

Legends abound regarding Miriam’s well and whoever wishes to see Miriam’s Well should go up to the top of the Carmel and look out, and they will see a type of sieve in the Mediterranean sea.” According to another source, the well sank into the Sea of Galilee: “It happened that someone who suffered from boils went down to immerse in the waters in Tiberias; it was an opportune time, and he saw Miriam’s Well and washed in it and was healed”. Even in our day and age, “some have a tradition to draw water from a well Saturday night because Miriam’s Well supplies all the wells each Saturday night, and one who does so and drinks will be cured of illness”. Indeed, Miriam’s Well is said to feed the waters of Israel’s most important water reserve nowadays, the Sea of Galilee, while hidden in its depths.

The transmission from Moses until today is an unbroken chain of transmission of 120 generations. The following list of Rabbinic leaders, from Moses until the completion of the Talmud in 500 CE appears in the introduction to Maimonides’ “Mishneh Torah.” Following this list is an explanation from Maimonides on the precise method of transmission, beginning with Moses.

Mount Sinai (1312 BCE)
1. Moses
2. Joshua

The Elders (l260-860 BCE)
3. Pinchas and the 70 Elders
4. Eli the Kohen
5. Samuel the Prophet
6. King David

The Prophets (860-360 BCE)
7. Achiyah
8. Elijah the Prophet
9. Elisha
10. Yehoyada the Priest
11. Zechariah ben Yehoyada
12. Hosea
13. Amos
14. Isaiah
15. Micah
16. Joel
17. Nachum
18. Habakuk
19. Zephaniah
20. Jeremiah
21. Baruch ben Neriah

The Great Assembly (360-260 BCE)
22. The Great Assembly consisted of 120 Elders, including Ezra, Zechariah, Daniel and Mordechai
23. Shimon the Tzaddik

TANA’IM – Mishnaic Era (260 BCE – 200 CE)
24. Antigonos of Socho
25. Yose ben Yoezer, Yose ben Yochanan
26. Yehoshua ben Perachiah, Nittai of Arbel
27. Yehuda ben Tabbai, Shimon ben Shatach
28. Shemayah and Avtalyon
29. Hillel and Shamai
30. R’ Shimon ben Hillel, R’ Yochanan ben Zakkai
31. Rabban Gamliel the Elder, R’ Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, R’ Yehoshua ben Chananiah, R’ Shimon ben Netanel, R’ Elazar ben Arakh
32. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel I, Rebbe Akiva, Rebbe Tarfon, R’ Shimon ben Elazar, R’ Yochanan ben Nuri
33. Rabban Gamliel II, Rebbe Meir, Rebbe Yishmael, Rebbe Yehudah, Rebbe Yose, R’ Shimon bar Yochai
34. Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel II
35. Rabbi Yehudah the Prince (codifier of the Mishnah in 190 C.E.)

AMORA’IM – Talmudic Era (200-500 CE)
36. Rav, Shmuel, Rabbi Yochanan (compiler of the Jerusalem Talmud)
37. Rav Huna, Rav Yehudah, Rav Nachman, Rav Kahana, Rabba bar bar Channa, Rav Ami, Rav Asi
38. Rabbah, Rav Yosef, Rav Chisda, Rabba bar Rav Huna.
39. Abaya, Rava
40. Rav Ashi, Ravina (compilers of the Babylonian Talmud in 500 C.E.)

Maimonides, citing sources from the Talmud and Midrash, recounts in graphic detail the transmission process from Moses to the people of Israel. Moses personally wrote 13 copies of the Torah and distributed them – one to every tribe – before his death.

Maimonides’ “Introduction to the Mishnah:”

Know that every mitzvah which G-d gave to Moses was given with its clarification. First He told him the mitzvah and then He expounded on its explanation and content, including all that which is included in the Torah.

The manner of transmittal to Israel occurred as stated in the Talmud (Eruvin 54b): [How was the system of teaching? Moses first learned the law from the mouth of the Almighty.]

Moses then went into the Tent, and Aaron went in with him. Moses then stated to him a single time the mitzvah he had received, and taught him its explanation, (following which) Aaron retreated to the right of Moses.

Then, Elazar and Itamar, Aaron’s sons, entered – and Moses told them what he had told Aaron, and then they stepped back. One sat to the left of Moses, and the other on the right of Aharon.

Then the seventy Elders arrived, and Moses taught Aaron and his sons. Following this came the masses of people and every one seeking God, and he (Moses) placed before them the mitzvah, until all had heard it from his mouth.

The result is that Aaron heard that precept from the mouth of Moses four times, his sons three times, the Elders twice, and the remainder of the people once.

Moses then left, and Aaron repeated the explanation of that mitzvah which he had learned, having heard it from the mouth of Moses four times (as we have mentioned), to all those present.

Aaron then left, after his sons had heard the precept four times (three times from Moses, and once from Aharon). After Aaron had departed, Elazar and Itamar repeated and taught that mitzvah to all the people present, and then ceased their teaching.

Thus we find that the seventy Elders heard the precept four times: twice from Moses, once from Aharon, and once from Elazar and Itamar. The Elders themselves then repeated and expounded the mitzvah to the people one time. As a result, we find that the entire congregation heard the precept in question four times: once from Moses, once from Aharon, a third time from his sons, and the fourth time from the Elders.

After this, all the people went to teach one another what they had heard from Moses and to write that mitzvah on scrolls. The leaders would roam through the Israelites to (insure that the people) learned and applied themselves until they would know the traditional version of that mitzvah and were fluent in reading it. They would then teach the explanations of that G-d-given precept. That explanation would include all aspects, and they would write the precept and learn by heart the Oral Tradition.

Thus, our Sages said in the Midrash: “And G-d spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai” (Leviticus 25:1). Why does the Torah state specifically at Mount Sinai? Was not the entire Torah given at Sinai? This is to tell us that just as the law of the Sabbatical year was stated with its generalities, specifics and fine details at Sinai, so too all the mitzvahs were stated with their generalities, specifics and fine details at Sinai.

Jeremiah was a Kohen (member of the priestly family) when in the thirteenth year of King Josiah (628 BC), he left his native place, Anathoth, to reside in Jerusalem. There he assisted Josiah in his work of reformation. Jeremiah wrote a lamentation upon the death of this righteous king (2 Chr. 35:25). In Jewish rabbinic literature, Jeremiah and Moses are often presented in parallel lines. In the Midrash, Jeremiah is compared as “a prophet like Moses; Deut.18″ is promised: “As Moses was a prophet for forty years, so was Jeremiah; as Moses prophesied concerning Judah and Benjamin, so did Jeremiah; as Moses’ own tribe [the Levites under Korah] rose up against him, so did Jeremiah’s tribe revolt against him; Moses was cast into the water, Jeremiah into a pit; as Moses was saved by a slave (the slave of Pharoah’s daughter); so, Jeremiah was rescued by a slave ; Moses reprimanded the people in discourses; so did Jeremiah.”

The book of Jeremiah depicts a remarkably introspective prophet, a prophet struggling with and often overwhelmed by the role into which he has been thrust. Jeremiah interspersed efforts to warn the people with pleas for mercy until he is ordered to “pray no more for this people” (Jer. 7:16, 14:11). He engages in what may seem like strange behavior, but which might be described as ‘acted parables’, such as walking about in the streets with a yoke about his neck and engaging in other efforts to attract attention. Others engage in rival acts that parody and critique his. He is taunted, put in jail, at one point thrown in a pit to die. He was often bitter about his experience, and expresses the anger and frustration he feels. He is not depicted as a man of iron, and yet he continues in preaching and praying for God’s people. There is no reference to Jeremiah during the six month reign of Jehoahaz, but in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, the enmity of the people against the prophet was expressed with persecution.

He remained in Jerusalem, uttering from time to time his words of warning, but without much effect. He was there when Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon besieged the city (Jer. 37:4, 5), 588 BC, as Jeremiah had prophesied beforehand. The rumor of the approach of the Egyptians to aid the Jews in this crisis induced the Babylonians to withdraw, and to return to their own land. However, this siege was raised for only a short time. The prophet, in answer to his prayer, received a message from God, stating that “the Babylonians would come again, and take the city, and burn it with fire” (37:7, 8). The princes, in their anger at such a message by Jeremiah, cast him into prison (37:15-38:13). He was still in confinement when the city was taken (586 BC). The Babylonians released him, and showed him great kindness, allowing Jeremiah to choose the place of his residence, according to a Babylonian edict. Jeremiah accordingly went to Mizpah in Benjamin with Gedaliah, who had been made governor of Judea. He served wine to a family with a vow of temperance. He bought his family estate in Anathoth while in prison and while the Babylonians were occupying it.

Johanan succeeded Gedaliah, who had been assassinated by an Israelite prince in the pay of Ammon “for working with the Babylonians”. Refusing to listen to Jeremiah’s counsels, Johanan fled to Egypt, taking Jeremiah and Baruch ben Neriah, Jeremiah’s faithful scribe and servant with him (Jer. 43:6). There, the prophet probably spent the remainder of his life, still seeking in vain to turn the people to the Lord, from whom they had so long revolted (44). Some believe he was murdered in Egypt by those angered by his prophecies. It is known that he lived into the reign of Merodach, son of Nebuchadnezzar, and may have been about ninety years of age at his death. There is no authentic record of his death. He may have died at Tahpanhes or, according to another tradition, may have gone to Babylon with the army of Nebuchadnezzar.

In some Islamic narrations, Ezra or Jeremiah is the person mentioned in this verse: Qur’an 2:259 Or (take) the similitude of one who passed by a hamlet, all in ruins to its roofs. He said: “Oh! how shall God (Allah) bring it (ever) to life, after (this) its death?” but Allah caused him to die for a hundred years, then raised him up (again). He said: “How long didst thou tarry (thus)?” He said: (Perhaps) a day or part of a day.” He said: “Nay, thou hast tarried thus a hundred years; but look at thy food and thy drink; they show no signs of age; and look at thy donkey: And that We may make of thee a sign unto the people, Look further at the bones, how We bring them together and clothe them with flesh.” When this was shown clearly to him, he said: “I know that Allah hath power over all things.” It is told that the town is Jerusalem after destruction and Ezra or Jeremiah is the person that asked Allah how this town will be alive according to promises.

In July 2007, Assyrologist Michael Jursa translated a cuneiform tablet dated to 595 BC, as describing a Nabusharrussu-ukin as “the chief eunuch” of Nebuchahnezzar II of Babylon. Jursa hypothesized that this reference might be to the same individual as the Nebo- Sarsekim mentioned in Jeremiah 39:3.

Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were among the Jewish young nobility carried off to Babylon, along with some of the vessels of the Jerusalem temple. Daniel and his three Jewish companions were subsequently evaluated and chosen for their intellect and beauty, who constituted the ranks of the advisors to the Babylonian court. [Daniel 1]. Daniel became distinguished during this period for his piety, and for his strict observance of the Torah [Daniel1:8-16] and gained the confidence and esteem of those who were over him.

Daniel’s ministry as a prophet began late in life. Whereas his early exploits were a matter of common knowledge within his community, these same events, with his pious reputation, serve as the basis for his prophetic ministry. The recognition for his prophetic message is that of other prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel whose backgrounds are the basis for their revelations.

Daniel’s fidelity to God exposed him to persecution by jealous rivals within the king’s administration. The fact that he had just interpreted the emperors’ dream had resulted in his promotion and that of his companions. Being favored by the King, Cyrus, he was untouchable. His companions were vulnerable to the accusation that had them thrown into the furnace for refusing to worship the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar as a god; but they were miraculously saved, and Daniel would years later be cast into a den of lions (for continuing to practice his faith in G-d], but was miraculously delivered; after which Cyrus issued a decree enjoining reverence for “the God of Daniel” [Daniel 6:26]. He “prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian,” whom he probably greatly influenced in the matter of the decree which put an end to the Jewish Captivity (BC 536).

His residence in Babylon was very probably in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, now identified with a mass of mounds called the Kasr, on the right bank of the river. However, Daniel and his three companions remained fiercely loyal to their Jewish religious and cultural identity, an identity which would sooner or later come into conflict with the paganism of the Babylonian court.

After the Persian conquest of Babylon, Daniel held the office of the first of the “three presidents” of the empire under the reign of the of Darius the Mede, and was thus practically at the head of state affairs, with the ability to influence the prospects of the captive Jews [Daniel 9], whom he had at last the happiness of seeing restored to their own land; although he did not return with them, but remained still in Babylon. The prophet Ezekiel, with whom Daniel was a contemporary, describes one Daniel as a “pattern of righteousness (14:14, 20) and wisdom” (28:3).

Daniel according to Islamic sources as follows; There Daniel was obliged to enter into the service of the king of Babylon, and in accordance with the custom of the age, received the Chaldean name of Belteshazzar, i.e., prince of Bel, or Bel protect the king! Daniel’s training was to fit him for service to the empire. Daniel became known for his interpretation of dreams and rose to the rank of governor of the province of Babylon, and became “chief of the governors” (Chald. Rab-signin) over all the wise men of Babylon, after passing a dangerous test of the astrologers by the king, which could easily have cost Daniel his life. Daniel made known and also interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream; as well as a later dream preceding the king’s descent into animal behavior, and many years afterwards, when he was now an old man, amid the alarm and consternation of the terrible night of Belshazzar’s impious feast (in which Belshazzar and his concubines drank wine out of the royal Jewish ceremonial goblets of the Temple), Daniel was called in at the suggestion of the queen-mother (perhaps Nitocris, the daughter of Nebuchadnezzar) to interpret the mysterious handwriting on the wall. For successfully reading the cryptic handwriting by an angel of God, Daniel was rewarded by the Babylonians with a purple robe and elevation to the rank of “third ruler” of the kingdom. The place of “second ruler” was held by Belshazzar as associated with his father, Nabonidus, on the throne Daniel interpreted the handwriting, and “in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain” by his own sons, who later fled. [Daniel 1:4 Daniel 1:17 & Daniel 2:14] [Daniel 5:16].

The Tomb of Daniel is in Susa, the traditional burial place of the biblical prophet Daniel.The time and circumstances of Daniel’s death have not been recorded. However, Daniel was still alive in the third year of Cyrus according to the Tanakh [Daniel 10:1] and he would have been almost 100 years old at that point, having been brought to Babylon when he was in his teens, more than 80 years previously. He possibly died at Susa in Persia [Iran]. Tradition holds that his tomb is located in Susa at a site known as Shush-e Daniyal. Other locations have been claimed as the site of his burial, including Daniel’s Tomb in Kirkuk, Iraq, as well as Babylon, Egypt, Tarsus and, notably, Samarkand, which claims a tomb of Daniel, with some traditions suggesting that his remains were removed, perhaps by Tamerlane, from Susa to Samarkand.

There are seven different locations all claimed to be the site of the tomb: Babylon, Kirkuk and Muqdadiyah in Iraq; Susa and Malamir in Persia (Iran), and Samarkand in Uzbekistan and Alexandria in Egypt. What has occured is that certain bones of Daniel were divided the remains, which they regard as possessing remarkable curative properties, as well as the power to bring rain in time of draught and were thus taken to the aforementioned locations where tombs or shrines were constructed in honor of him and miracles attributed to him. The tomb in Susa is said to grow in length miraculously.

Let’s start with a little background on the Jewish custom to read a portion of the Haftorah on the Sabbath day. Actually, less than five percent of the prophets are read during the Sabbath service throughout the year. The custom to read the Haftorah began when Antiochus Epiphanes (ruled from 175-164 B.C.E.), in an effort to stifle the study of Torah among the nation of Israel, decreed that the Jews not read from the Torah.

To deal with this serious problem, the Jewish people began to read from a selected portion of the Prophets on each Sabbath day as a substitute. This custom was retained after the decree was rescinded. The particular Sabbath portion of the Prophets was carefully selected for one of two reasons. Either because the theme of a segment of the Prophets closely correlated to the portion of the Torah read that week, or because that section of the Prophets thematically corresponded to a festival or a historical circumstance during that Sabbath. It is therefore easy to understand why Isaiah 53 is never read in the synagogue.

Isaiah 53 bears no relationship to any of the chapters of the Pentateuch and is unrelated to any holiday or historical circumstance on the Jewish calendar and therefore it was never included in any Haftorah portion.

It probably would come as a surprise to many that not only is Isaiah 53 never read in the synagogue on the Sabbath, but neither are Isaiah chapters 3, 13, 23 or 33 for that matter.

Blessings,

Rabbi Tovia Singer