The uniqueness of the miracle we celebrate on Purim is that nothing outside nature occurred. It was natural for Achashveirosh to become angry at his wife, Vashti, and kill her, and it was natural that Mordechai overhear people planning to kill Achashveirosh, and so on. Every aspect of the megillah can be explained according to the rules of nature. But when we think about the entire episode, we are astounded at the wondrous miracle. It was a miracle within nature, but it was so clear that Hashem arranged everything until there was no doubt in the matter.
The Bnei Yissaschar (Kislev 4:83) writes the following mashal, told from early scholars, to describe the miracle of Purim:
Someone fell ill, and a doctor informed the family that he would die very shortly. "Is there no cure at all?" the family asked. "There is a cure," the doctor replied. "It is extracted from an expensive herb that grows in the East, on islands off the Indian coast. However, the Indian government doesn’t export that herb because it wants to keep that rare herb for its local population. Additionally, these days, no merchant or tourist travels the long distance from India to here. So, although technically there is a cure, we can't give it to your relative.
The family refused to give up. "We will hire someone to travel to India to bring back the herbs," they said. "Your dedication is commendable," the doctor replied, "but it is a dangerous trip, as it passes through perilous deserts and stormy seas. Many people who attempted this journey didn’t survive. Anyway, the trip takes years, and your relative only has a day or two to live." "I'll tell you more," the doctor continued. "Even if we had the herb, we wouldn’t know how to prepare it. The herbs need to be mixed, distilled, and prepared in a special way, and no one in this country knows how to do it. A wise doctor lives far away in the West, in Spain. He knows how to prepare medicine. But to send someone to Spain and bring the doctor here is also a long trip that will take years, and it is also a very perilous route. It isn't certain the doctor will survive the trip. And since your relative doesn’t have much more time to live, there is no hope."
Just then, someone entered the doctor’s office and said, "A ship from India has just arrived, and it is carrying the precious healing herb!" Everyone rejoiced, but the doctors cautioned them that there was no reason to be happy because without the doctor from Spain, the herbs were worthless. Just then, another person entered the room and announced that the great doctor from Spain had arrived.
The doctor from Spain was summoned. He prepared the herbs, and the ill person recovered.
In this story, nothing supernatural occurred. Everything could be explained by the rules of nature. However, it was obviously a miracle. Precisely when the ill person needed the doctor and the herbs, they arrived. Everyone understood that Hashem arranged these events to save the sick person’s life. Only a fool would think that it happened by chance. Similarly, with the miracle of Purim, everything that occurred can be explained according to nature. But looking at the entire episode, it becomes clear beyond a shadow of a doubt that Hashem performed tremendous miracles.
With this information, we understand why Hashem's name isn't written in the megillah; only Hashem's name is seen in some words' roshei teivos and sofei teivos. For example, surprisingly, there aren't pasukim like 'ה אל ויצעקו, "They shouted out to Hashem," or that they said, 'ה ברוך, to praise Hashem when the miracles occurred. Hashem's name isn't written in the megillah. But Hashem's name is found in the roshei teivos and the sofei teivos such as the roshei teivos of יוםה המןו מלךה באי spell ה"הוי, and the final letters of יל השו ואיננ הז וכל, spell ה"הוי. Kedushas Levi (Kedushah Rishonah) explains that this is because Hashem was concealed when this miracle happened. Just as Hashem was concealed in the world, Hashem's name is concealed in the megillah. But Hashem and His name are clearly seen and recognized when one looks at the series of events that occurred. Therefore, in the roshei teivos and sofei teivos, which represent a series, Hashem's name is clearly seen.
Every Word of Megillas Esther Reveals the Miracle
The series and combination of events can be compared to a jigsaw puzzle of many pieces. Each piece joins the others to create a picture. So, too, each event of our lives combines and merges to create a complete picture, a story of Hashem's hashgachah pratis. This occurs in every generation, and to every Yid. Everything that happens to a person, from his youth until his final day, is part of a larger picture. A challenge he endured a month ago is connected to a hardship he went through a week ago, and so on; they form a single narrative. Therefore, a person should accept every situation in his life with love and joy, knowing it is all part of a larger picture, which is ultimately for his benefit.
Shulchan Aruch (690:17) teaches, "The minhag Yisrael is that when the megillah is read, it is opened like a letter, to reveal the miracle." This means that the megillah is entirely unrolled in front of the baal korei, folded in a particular way. We can explain that the megillah is opened in full to teach us that one can't look at any single event of the megillah as though it stands alone. Every detail is part of a larger and greater story.
It states (Esther 3:10) ַיְּהוּדִיםה ֵרצֹר ֲגָגִיָאה ָאָתְּדַמה בֶּן ָןָמלְה ְּּנָהוַיִּת יָדוֹ ַלֵעמ ּוְֹתַבַּעט ֶתא ֶ ךְֶּלַמה ַרוַיָּס, "The king removed his ring from his hand and gave it to Haman the son of Hamedasa the Agagi, the adversary of the Jews." The Gemara (Megillah 14.) says, "Achashveirosh's removing his ring [to give to Haman] accomplished more than what the forty-eight male neviim and seven women nevios who prophesized to Yisrael accomplished. The neviim and nevios failed to arouse the Jewish nation to teshuvah, but when Achashveirosh removed his ring, the Jewish people improved their ways."
Bris Kehunas Olam (ז פרק אסתיר הסתר מאמר) writes, "Achashveirosh's giving the ring accomplished more because it was a miracle concealed in nature, and the nation uncovered what was beneath the 'nature'. This brought them to teshuvah more than the forty-eight neviim and seven neviyos whose prophecies were above nature." The explanation is that the greatest level is to find Hashem within nature. That brings people to teshuvah.
