Close To Torah

Who reads introductions anyway?! So let’s just lay down one last foundation and then next time, B’Ezras Hashem, we will start with the meat and potatoes!

Megillas Esther is unique from all other books of Tanach in that nowhere throughout its’ entire ten chapters is there any mention of Hashem’s name. This is very perplexing indeed?

One explanation is as follows. There are two ways in which Hashem runs the world, one is in the open and the other is in hiding. When the Jews were taken out of Egypt, Hashem performed blatant and open miracles to liberate them. Every nation of the world was both convinced and awed by Hashem’s indisputable absolute power. That was Hashem orchestrating the world in the open. The miracles continued throughout the Jew’s forty years in the desert. However, Hashem does not prefer to operate in the open, for this takes away man’s freewill. Hashem wants man to put in effort to see Him and not simply to be “forced” into action by Hashem’s imminent presence. Therefore, Hashem limits His open control of the world, whereby man now has to search to find Hashem in the world. This would leave freewill for those that desire to deny Hashem, and provide a rewarding challenge for those who seek Him.

Purim: The Hidden State

The climax of this hidden state came during the time of the Purim story. This is the meaning of the Talmud which classifies the story of Esther to be a fulfillment of the verse “Vanochi Haster Aster Pani Bayom HaHu, I (Hashem) will hide Myself.” This is the reason that Hashem’s name is not stated explicitly in the Megillah. The challenge of the Nation was to recognize Hashem’s hand bringing about their entire salvation, while it was not openly seen!

The Depth Behind Their Re-acceptance

As explained earlier, the Jews of the desert indeed accepted the Torah, however, their acceptance was deemed as coerced. The coercion was through the holding of the Sinai mountain over their heads and threatening their deaths if they would refuse the Torah. The depth is that because they were living with Hashem revealed blatantly in their faces they had no choice but to accept the Torah. Therefore, it was as if they were forced. It was only during the time of Purim, when Hashem’s guidance was hidden and not seen outright that the Jews had the opportunity to now accept the Torah on their own accord!

Thus, the entire theme of the Megillah itself is to teach us that although the world seems to be going around on its own, we Jews strive to see and acknowledge Hashem Who is running it all. Thus, it is most appropriate that the Sefer which represents man’s striving to connect to Hashem in a most distracting and challenging world, should contain all of the lessons and inspiration for how to life a happy and productive life in this world. Hence, we will attempt to glean these lessons from the Scroll which is dedicated to teaching us how to live in a world where one must choose and put in much effort to see and connect with Hashem.

Translating the Message

Indeed the Scroll itself is called “Megillas Esther.” The word “Megillas” contains the root “megaleh,” which means “to reveal.” The word “Esther” means “hidden.” Thus its’ title itself expresses its’ objective to us quite clearly. Megillas Esther: to reveal the hidden! Hashem hides His running of the world’s events behind a mask called “nature” and “natural means,” we come and reveal the true Source Who is running it all!

Yosef HaTzaddik: Tzofnas Panayach

Interestingly enough, this was also Yosef HaTzaddik’s job and greatness in Egypt. In a nation of haughty, deniers of Hashem, where self-aggrandizement and perversion reigned supreme, Yosef announced to Pharoah, “Hashem does everything, not I!” At a time when he could have pushed Hashem out of his mind and sinned with his master’s attractive and seductive wife, he grabbed on to spiritually and fought the challenge. He saw Hashem through the darkness and acknowledged His Kingship. Thus he was rewarded with ruler-ship himself and the title of “Tzofnas Panayach.” A translation of this names shows it to be the same as Megillas Ester. It means “the revealer of hidden things.” Indeed, this is the job of the Jewish nation to see Hashem’s guiding hand even in the gloomy darkness of exile. This is the entire theme of Megillas Esther!

The law states that on Purim one must hear every single word of the Megillah to fulfill his obligation! There is no stricter law found for all other Rabbinical required reading throughout the year! The reason that the law is so demanding here is because every verse and every word of Megillas Esther is part of the great lesson! We will try to demonstrate this to the best of our ability.

Our series will now strive to bring out these beautiful ideas and together we shall grow in love and service of Hashem! Stay tuned!

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Machshuvah Hashem's Name, Kaballas HaTorah, Yosef