Midrash sur Esther 2:23
וַיְבֻקַּ֤שׁ הַדָּבָר֙ וַיִּמָּצֵ֔א וַיִּתָּל֥וּ שְׁנֵיהֶ֖ם עַל־עֵ֑ץ וַיִּכָּתֵ֗ב בְּסֵ֛פֶר דִּבְרֵ֥י הַיָּמִ֖ים לִפְנֵ֥י הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ (פ)
Une enquête fut ouverte, qui confirma la chose; les deux [coupables] furent pendus à une potence, et le fait fut consigné dans le livre des annales, en présence du roi.
Esther Rabbah
“The matter was investigated, and it was revealed; the two of them were hanged on a gibbet and it was recorded in the book of chronicles before the king” (Esther 2:23).
“The matter was investigated, and it was revealed” – Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa bar Shila of the village of Temart said: If in the book [of chronicles] of flesh and blood it is so, when the [the time to read from the] book of the Holy One blessed be He comes, about which it is written: “The Lord listened and heeded and a book of remembrance was written before Him…” (Malachi 3:16), all the more so.
“The matter was investigated, and it was revealed” – Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa bar Shila of the village of Temart said: If in the book [of chronicles] of flesh and blood it is so, when the [the time to read from the] book of the Holy One blessed be He comes, about which it is written: “The Lord listened and heeded and a book of remembrance was written before Him…” (Malachi 3:16), all the more so.
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Esther Rabbah
Another interpretation: “After these matters” – it is written: “Though his haughtiness ascends to the heavens” – to the heights; “and his head reaches to the clouds”– the clouds2The midrash explains that the word av in the verse means clouds. (Job 20:6). “He will perish forever, like his dung” (Job 20:7) – just as dung is repulsive, so too, he is repulsive. “Those who see him will say: Where is he?” (Ibid.) – They see him but do not recognize him: Where is Haman and where is his contentment?
Rabbi Pinḥas related these events: The lion made a banquet for all the animals and spread over them [for shade, the] hides of lions, wolves, and predators. After they ate and drank, they said: ‘If only someone would recite a poem before us.’ They fixed their eyes on a certain fox. He said to them: ‘You repeat to me what I say to you.’ They said: ‘Yes.’ He said to them: ‘He who showed us with those above, let him show us with those on the ground.’ So: He who showed us the downfall of Bigtan and Teresh and their hanging will show us the downfall of Haman. And He who punished the first ones, let him punish the latter ones. What is written above on the topic? “The two of them were hanged on a gibbet” (Esther 2:23); so, too, this person will ultimately be hanged.
Rabbi Pinḥas related these events: The lion made a banquet for all the animals and spread over them [for shade, the] hides of lions, wolves, and predators. After they ate and drank, they said: ‘If only someone would recite a poem before us.’ They fixed their eyes on a certain fox. He said to them: ‘You repeat to me what I say to you.’ They said: ‘Yes.’ He said to them: ‘He who showed us with those above, let him show us with those on the ground.’ So: He who showed us the downfall of Bigtan and Teresh and their hanging will show us the downfall of Haman. And He who punished the first ones, let him punish the latter ones. What is written above on the topic? “The two of them were hanged on a gibbet” (Esther 2:23); so, too, this person will ultimately be hanged.
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Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer
When the king arose from his sleep, he said to his servants, his eunuchs, who were wont to give him something to drink: Give me a little water. They brought him the golden jug, and a deadly poison || was therein. He said to them: Pour out the water before me. They said to him: O our lord, O king, this water is excellent, good, even choice. Why should we pour it out before thee? He said to them: Thus have I resolved to have it poured out before me. They poured it out before him, and he found therein the deadly poison, and he commanded that they should be hanged, as it is said, "They were both hanged on a tree" (Esth. 2:23). They were both hanged on one tree, one after the other, as it is said, "Upon a tree" (ibid.); it is not written, "Upon trees." All affairs which were enacted before the king they wrote before him, and they placed it in the king's box, and when the king wished to discover what had happened to him they read the documents, and he knew what had happened to him. So they wrote in the book the word which Mordecai had told, as it is said, "And it was written in the book of the chronicles" (ibid.).
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