ותאמר אסתר אם על המלך טוב יבוא המלך והמן היום אל המשתה אשר עשיתי לו
“If it please your majesty,” Esther replied, ‘let your majesty and Haman come today to the feast that I have prepared for him’”. (Esther 5:4).
The Gemara in Megillah suggests ten explanations why Esther invited Haman to join her at the first feast that she made in the king’s honor as part of her plan to persuade the king to rescind the decree against the Jews. Since she had no intention to reveal her identity as a Jew or to beseech the king to save her people from the evil plot of Haman until the second feast, why did she invite Haman to the first?
The Vilna Gaon (Kol Eliyohu) cites the Gemara in Pesachim (111a) to explain Esther’s motivation. The Vilna Gaon writes: “Had I been there, I would have added another reason why she invited him.” The Gemara in Megillah (15a) says that when Esther heard the news of Haman’s plot against the Jews, it shocked her so much that she became a niddah. Three days later, she made the first party for Achashveirosh and Haman. Her motivation was to invite the two of them and to situate herself, a niddah, between them.
The Gemara in Pesachim says that if a woman walks between two men while she is a niddah, a tragedy will result. If she has just begun her state of niddah, one of the men will be killed. If she is near the end of her flow, a quarrel will arise between the two men.
Esther reasoned that if she was at the beginning of her state of niddah, then either Haman or Achashveirosh would die, and the decree would be annulled. (The Gemara in Ta’anis (29a) says that when the senate issued a decree and, subsequently, one member of the senate died, his death was interpreted as an omen that the decree must be annulled.) If she was at the end of her state of niddah, then a quarrel would arise between Haman and Achashveirosh, and again Achashveirosh would rescind the decree. Either way, the decree would be revoked as a result of Esther's strategy. (In the end, her strategy was successful in both ways. A quarrel erupted between Haman and Achashveirosh, and Haman was killed.)
Why Hashem’s Name Is Hinted in Roshei Teives
The Kedushas Levi (Kedushah Rishonah) explains that during the time of the Purim story, Hashem's presence was concealed, and therefore Hashem's name isn't mentioned in the Megillah. Although great miracles occurred, they happened within the rules of nature.
However, Hashem’s name is found in the roshei teivos and in the sofei teivos of the Megillah. For example, the roshei teivos of יבא המלך ו המן היום spell הוי"ה, and the final letters of וכל זה איננו שוה לי, spell הוי"ה. The Kedushas Levi explains that this is because Hashem's name (and presence) was seen with several words, which represents several events. Each word represents another aspect of events, and when one takes a collective view of everything that happened in the Megillah, that is when one recognizes Hashem's name and presence.
