Sunday, February 28, 2010

בימים ההם, בזמן הזה - More on Vashti

Another Purim miracle!  I had a surprise in my inbox this morning, from my חברותא, entitled "A freilichin purim! Ein simcha elah torah":

I was learning the megila agadeta over shabbos and I was telling [my wife] about one of the gemaras and what the sfas emes said on the gemara and when I told her - she said - that answers [Rabbi Besser's] question!

The gemara darshens the pasuk that Hashem will wipe out from Bavel all remenant and survivor, including nin va-neched. The gemara explains that "neched" refers to vashti. The sfas emes explains that the whole purim story was a hachanah for the rebuilding of the beis hamikdash (which makes sense given that the gemara in sanhedrin says that you machris zaro shl amaleik before binyan beis hamikdash - and therefore purim was the precursor to rebuilding the beis hamikdash, there's more to say but acm"l). The sfas emes continues that therefore vashti was killed to destroy the house of nevuchadnezar that destroyed the first mikdash, in preparation for building the second. At which point [she] said -that's why chazal care that vashti was killed, to finish of nevuchadnezar as part the preparation for bayis sheini.

Hope all else is well and have a great day!

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