We learn in Keilim 17:9:
ושתי אמות היו בשושן הבירה
There were two maidservants in Shushan the capital.
Who are these maidservants? How are they connected to the Purim story? Where are they mentioned in Megillat Esther?
Add a comment
|
3 Answers
The Jews had Ora, Simcha, Sason and Yekar (Esther 8:16). Only Ora was definitely a female maidservant, but then there was also Jacob's Shoshana.
As recorded in this question and this answer, my best guess is that the two maidservants is either referring to Queen Vashti, who was made from two women (ושתי המלכה עשתה משתה נשים) or King Achashverosh's mothers-in-law, Keshoch and Shachacha (כשוך חמת המלך אחשורוש; וחמת המלך שככה).
-
1+1. I had a question about recycling mishloach manot. You did one better. You're recycling your own PTIJ!– DanFCommented Feb 23, 2018 at 17:59
They were Bigtan and Teresh. Esther 2:24 says that they were משמרי הסף meaning that they watched the window sill. They guarded it against becoming cloudy or dirty, and they were constantly cleaning it.
Achashverosh appointed these two to be the only window cleaners and he trusted them to keep the window sills clean, constantly. But, we see that they were a bit lazy, and on their own, they wanted to hire another window sill cleaner as it says later in that same verse,
ויבקשו לשלוח יד
They wanted to send extra help. You can read at what happened to them. The king was unhappy that they wanted to hire someone else, and, so he hanged them.
