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At the beginning of Esther 7, Esther makes her plea for the Jewish people. Rashi (to v. 3) makes a very interesting comment:

וְעַמִּי. יִנָּתֵן לִי "בְּבַקָּשָׁתִי" שֶׁלֹּא יֵהָרְגוּ. וְאִם תּאמַר: מָה אִכְפַּת לָךְ? "כִּי אֵיכָכָה אוּכַל וְרָאִיתִי, וגו'"

"And my people" should be given to me "as my request," that they not be killed. And if you'll ask, "why do you care?" [Esther replies,] "For how can I see, etc."

That last quotation ("for how can I see") is a later passuk, 8:6. If that is the reason for this earlier one, why does she split them up, only bringing in that explanation later in her attempt to overturn the decree? Why doesn't she mention all of her arguments at once?

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At the time she has asked for both using the chen which the king has shown her. Once Haman is dead and Mordechai made the King's representative, she sees that only the first part of her request has been granted. She (and those close to her) are now safe. However, the king has not acted to cancel the evil that Haman has done.

The explicit statement in the second pasuk is not given in the first pasuk because it is implicit in Esther 7:3

may my life be given me in my petition and my people in my request

It was only when the king did not act on the implicit request that she had to ask explicitly.

Esther 8:4

Then the king extended the golden scepter to Esther, and Esther arose and stood before the king.

shows that Esther had to approach the king again and

Esther 8:9 shows this as was over two months later.

And the king's scribes were summoned at that time, in the third month-that is the month of Sivan-on the twenty-third day thereof, and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded, to the Jews and to the satraps and the governors, and the princes of the provinces from Hodu to Cush, a hundred and twenty-seven provinces, every province according to its script and every nationality according to its tongue, and to the Jews according to their script and according to their tongue.

Esther had to approach the king a second time since she sees that the results of the first time only saved her and her immediate entourage. Noone would now dare attack those under the immediate eye of the king, but the decree making everyone else outside the palace fair game was still in effect. Thus she had to make the request more explicit and reiterate the argument.

She could not repeat the first argument as she is now safe.

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  • This doesn’t address the question at all. I get why she had to go a second time - that’s not part of the question at all. My question is why כי איככה isn’t said at the banquet. That’s all I’m asking, and nothing here addresses that.
    – DonielF
    Mar 2, 2018 at 6:48
  • @DonielF I will explain further to show better what I meant Mar 2, 2018 at 11:34

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