Parshas Tetzaveh (Zachor) 5786
- Torah Tavlin
- Feb 28
- 2 min read
עשרת בני המן בן המדתא צרר היהודים הרגו ... (אסתר ט-י)
MASHAL: A merrymaker at a Purim seudah posed a question to the Purim Rav. “Why were Haman’s ten sons hung?” he asked. “It was Haman who sinned. Why should children be made to suffer for the sins of their father?”
“There are two opinions in the words of the Sages that clearly answer your question,” replied the Purim Rav. “One opinion states that Haman’s sons were punished because it was they who gave their father the idea of killing all the Jews. Their opinion - their deaths. The second opinion is that the sons gave their father the ten-thousand silver pieces he needed in order to pull off his evil scheme.
“However,” continued the Purim Rav, as he stroked his beard in deep contemplation, “according to the first opinion, Vayezasa should have been spared because as we know, he was far too foolish to act as an advisor. And if we accept the second opinion, Dalphon, who our Sages tell us did not have a penny to his name, ought to have been saved as well, because he could not have given his father any money towards the ten-thousand shekel.
“But,” concluded the Purim Rav, “when it comes to persecuting the Jews, even a Vayezasa becomes an intelligent advisor, and even someone as poor as Dalphon becomes a rich man!”
NIMSHAL: The story of Purim is a tale that extends over hundreds of generations. On Pesach we recite, “In every generation, they rise up against us to eradicate us.” Haman and his ilk are a cautionary tale of wicked sinners who not only hate the Jewish people, but despise the Jewish G-d. They scheme and plot, but in the end, “Hakadosh Boruch Hu saves us from their hands.” May we always be zoche to His salvation.