Community Magazine March 2014

26 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE When my father Darius went to his [allotted] place… I became king in my father’s place.” Regarding his qualifications as king and leader, the Greek historian Herodotus writes (specifically referring to commanding the Persian army while invading Greece): “Of all of those tens of thousands of men, for goodliness and stature there was not one worthier than Xerxes himself to hold that command.” We see that both accounts mentioned in the Gemara regarding Ahashverosh’s ascent to the throne have parallels in other historical sources discussing Xerxes. ESTHER I I:2 – At that time, when King Ahashverosh had consolidated his rule over his kingdom, whose seat was in the citadel of Shushan. I:3 – In the third year of his reign, he made a banquet for all his ministers and servants… Why didAhashverosh wait until the third year of his reign to make this banquet? According to the Gemara (Megillah 11b), hewaited threeyearstobesure that the 70 years of exile promised by the prophet Yirmiyahu would expire, at which point he no longer needed to fear that the Jews would rebel. According to his calculation, the 70 years passed by the third year of his reign, and seeing that the prophecy of their return was not fulfilled, he felt secure and then began his celebration. By contrast, Midrash Abba Gurion and the Targum state that the delaying of the celebration was a result of rebellions against him by various countries. Indeed, historians tell us that Xerxes faced different rebellions during the first two years of his reign, first in Egypt and then in Babylon. Only after crushing these revolts did he have the opportunity to celebrate. In essence, all of these ideas are similar. When Ahashverosh first ascended the throne, his grip on the empire was being challenged, and thus it was only once he brought the entire empire under his firm control that he settled down and started celebrating. ESTHER 3 III:1 – After these events, King Ahashverosh promoted Haman the son of Hamedata , the Agagi, and raised his status, and made his position higher than all the [other] ministers who were with him. The name Hamedata appears as the name of an officer in Xerxes’ court. The name is inscribed in Aramaic on green stone utensils found in the Persepolis treasury. His earliest appearance is from the seventh year of the king’s reign, approximately the time that Haman was promoted to his top position. After the Megillah According to the Gemara (Megillah 11b), Ahashverosh died shortly after the story of Megillat Esther. It seems from both Targum and Targum Sheini (Esther 1:1) that his death was untimely. Likewise, a cuneiform tablet was found which states that King Xerxes was assassinated, perhaps by his own son. The Persian kings from that time period were buried at a site known today as Naksh-i-Rustam , not far from Persepolis, where four elaborate tombs are carved into the rock face. However, only the tomb of Darius, Xerxes’ father, has a name inscribed on it. The inscription is accompanied by a relief which depicts the king standing on a dais. The dais is supported by figures representing the prominent nations of the empire. In the text, Darius describes in detail the empire he established, noting that one who sees this dais will know how far the Persian spear and bow have traveled. It is believed that the tomb of Xerxes is one of those adjacent to Darius’ tomb. Artaxerxes According to conventional history, Xerxes was succeeded by his son Artaxerxes, who is referred to in the Book of Ezra by the names Daryavesh, Artahshaste, and Koresh. He acted favorably toward the Jews and permitted them to rebuild the Bet Hamikdash and the wall surrounding Jerusalem. During his reign, Ezra and Nehemiah returned to Eretz Yisrael from Babylon and Shushan, and they became the leaders of the Jewish people. All of this is described in the Books of Ezra (from chapter 7 and on) and Nehemiah. Rabbi Yehuda Landy is an expert in Tanach, Gemara, and other Jewish sources, as well as in Biblical geography and archeology. This article was adopted from The Jewish World of Wonders. ALTHOUGH HIS NAME WAS PRONOUNCED BY THE GREEKS AS XERXES, THE PERSIAN PRONUNCIATION WAS HASHIARSH. WHEN PRONOUNCED IN HEBREW, HASHIARSH TURNS INTO AHASHVEROSH. This base was discovered in Shushan and contains an inscription from Xerxes. Evidently, the construction of the palace continued during his reign. Golden bowl with the name of Xerxes engraved into it. Cuneiform tablet referring to the assassination of Xerxes.