The Lost Hero of the Megillah
Question: Why did Hegai favor Esther?
Key Verses:
2:7 “And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter; for she had neither father nor mother, and the maiden was of beautiful form and fair to look on; and when her father and mother died, Mordecai took her for his own daughter”
2:8 “It came to pass, when the king’s commandment and his decree was published, and when many maidens were gathered together unto the Shushan the capital city, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was taken into the king’s house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women”
2:9 “And the maiden pleased him, and she obtained kindness of him; and he speedily gave her ointments, with her portions, and the seven maidens, who were meet to be given her out of the king’s house; and he advanced her and her maidens to the best place in the house of the women”
2:15 “When the turn of Esther, the daughter of Avihayil, the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, to go to the king, she asked nothing but what Hegai, the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, recommended; And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all them that looked upon her.”Esther obtained favor in the eyes of all who looked upon her”
Scant information is given about Esther’s personality. It is clear she has a high level of beauty because the text indicates the king’s servants were looking for beautiful virgin girls throughout the kingdom (2:2) in order to replace deposed Vashti. One verse later (2:3), the reader is introduced to the palace chamberlain, Hegai (or Haygeh), who is the eunuch responsible for all the contestants in this unique beauty pageant. He is supposed to institute a year-long beautification and purification program (2:12) for each girl that included immersing them in oils and perfumes. Only at that point will they be sent to the king for an overnight tryout (2:14).
Esther, or Hadassah, is discovered in Shushan (2:5), the Persian capital city, and taken into the program. The girl whom the king will find “most pleasing” will become the queen (2:4). The language in the Megillah is simple.
Before the pageant begins, the text indicates Ahasuerus is lonely without Queen Vashti (2:1). One of the king’s servants suggests a search to find beautiful virgins (2:2). The king approves the idea (2:4).
At this point, the text introduces Mordecai the Jew (2:5). Two important facts are disclosed in this verse and the following (2:5-6). Mordecai was exiled from Jerusalem to Babylon, which means he was most likely a slave, but definitely a refugee. The war Babylonian King Nebuchednezzar launched against the Jewish people in Israel concluded with the destruction of Solomon’s Temple in 586 BCE. The second fact is Mordecai’s first cousin, Hadassah, aka Esther, is an orphan (2:7). The Jews of this region were likely in similar conditions, poor slaves with partial, if not decimated, families. The condition of the Jewish people in Persia, Babylon and anywhere in the area had to be difficult, ranging from poverty and destitution to those who had managed to start up businesses and begin climbing the ladder out of poverty. It’s likely the Jews had no organized community and had no representation in the government.
A contemporary of Mordecai and Esther is the famous Daniel, whose Biblical book is part of the Jewish Bible. He too was taken from Judea into captivity and slavery (Daniel 1:2). He was from a noble family (1:3) and when he arrived in Babylon, Nebuchednezzar decided to recruit some handsome, talented, intelligent youths to serve him in the palace (1:4). What’s important to remember is the Jews were incorporated quickly into palace life in service of the King, in this case, the king of Babylon. It’s not out of the question to consider that any employee of the king in the palace might also be castrated. It’s also not out of the question to think the Persians did the same as the Babylonians.
Hegai is responsible for the women candidates and takes a specific liking to Esther (2:9). The text doesn’t say why, although it later alludes to Esther not acting spoiled and being gracious to Hegai (2:15). Because of this, Hegai favors her with food, oils and ointments, servants and a preferred place in the women’s dormitory. Is Hegai grooming Esther to be the queen? It sure sounds like it.
At this point, the text says Mordecai commanded Esther not to disclose her Jewish origins, and that Esther complied (2:10).
The story continues with Esther eventually having her tryout with the king (2:16). The king is pleased, so much so that he selects her as the successor to Vashti (2:17). A feast is made (2:18) and then the reader is reminded Esther is mum about her Jewish origins (2:20).
The chapter concludes with Mordecai discovering a plot to assassinate King Ahasuerus (2:21-3), and taking the correct measures to ensure the plotters were apprehended and killed by the king’s men (2:23).
In terms of the chronology of the chapter, it’s interesting to note Mordecai’s request for Esther to keep a low profile on her Jewishness does not come before she enters the palace. Nor does it come immediately after she enters the palace. One would have expected Verse 2:10 to have been inserted either before 2:8 or immediately after it. But it isn’t positioned there. We are told in 2:8 that Esther is taken to the palace, placed in the harem, where she develops a relationship with Hegai – which seems to have taken a substantial period of time – before the verse indicating Mordecai’s concern over her religion staying secret appears in the text. In other words, an opening for interpretation exists for whether or not Esther told Hegai she was Jewish and perhaps that was the reason she was favored by him, because no other reason for his preferring her is written.
This theory can be taken one step further. Could it be Hegai, whose name doesn’t seem to be Persian, as his colleague Shashgaz (2:14), but resembles Hebrew, (e.g. the prophet Hagai) is a Jewish servant working in the palace, as Daniel, Hananya, Mishael and Azarya were in Babylon? Could it be the reason Hegai has favored Esther is because he recognized her and/or knew of her Jewish origins? When Mordecai “commands” Esther not to tell anyone she’s Jewish, even if the verse, according to some, is in the past tense and therefore covers all of Esther’s time in the palace, perhaps she doesn’t need to tell Hegai anything because he knows. Hegai and Mordecai may have been carried into slavery together. Hegai may have known Esther’s parents before they were killed. All this is conjecture. However, there has to be a reason why he favored her over everyone else.
If Mordecai is a slave or a refugee in Shushan, how does he have such quick and effective access to the palace? The text says, “Every day, Mordecai walked before the courtyard of the women’s residence to know about Esther’s health and what would become of her” (2:11). It’s clear from the text that he knows someone. How else is Mordecai getting information about Esther and also about a plot to assassinate the king? (2:21) He has an inside source who is communicating information about Esther’s health and other matters in the palace. Certainly other workers exist. The problem is the Megillah doesn’t identify anyone else. Hegai favors Esther. It makes sense Hegai would also favor Mordecai. Mordecai’s access shows Hegai knows him as well and is the information courier between Esther and her concerned cousin.
Ahasuerus’ personality is depicted in the Megillah. One can make a composite sketch of the Persian king. The Rabbis conclude he was foolish. He was a drunk who hosted a 180-day public drinking binge. He disposed of his wife Vashti under the influence of alcohol, then felt lonely without her, maybe even regretted it (2:1). It’s difficult to cast someone who ruled over 127 provinces so successfully that he could indulge in a 180-day drinking binge without worry about war or revolution as dumb. This would indicate either a powerful army loyal beyond doubt to him, or a calculated system of taxing that was tolerable to all 127 provinces. To achieve such a balance would indicate a highly intelligent king, or at least a king who has intelligently promoted the proper administrators and/or soldiers to run the show.
If there’s a flaw in Ahasuerus’ personality, it seems to be that he doesn’t want to be bothered with the minutiae of running the palace. The king signs off on his advisors’ and servants’ suggestions far too quickly, indicating he’s not interested in the small stuff. He may even be guilty of thinking some of the major stuff is small stuff, as his approval of Haman’s plan to eradicate the Jews without Ahasuerus even asking who the target of the edict was. Haman kept it cryptic, “There is a certain people…” (3:8) and Ahasuerus didn’t seem interested; he simply gave his approval (3:11). But with regard to deposing Vashti (1:21), organizing a beauty pageant to find him a new wife (2:4), rewarding Mordecai (6:10) and punishing Haman (7:9), Ahasuerus does exactly what his advisors propose to him. This is a king who doesn’t sweat the petty.
Does the staff know their king? One would imagine they know how to get what they want out of their distracted king. Does this apply in the case of Esther as well? Hegai favored Esther and readies her for the visit with the king. Is it possible Hegai told Ahasuerus who the winner would be? Esther never said a word or asked for anything (2:15). She understood what Hegai was doing. Hegai galvanized the staff to support Esther’s candidacy as well, as it says, “Esther obtained favor in the eyes of all who looked upon her” (2:15). The text is very concise about what happened next. Esther was taken to the king (2:16) and he liked her best (2:17). Of course the king who did whatever his staff advised, chose Esther. Mostly the advice they gave throughout the Megillah was sound. These were good advisors and staff.
Is it possible Hegai whispered, “This girl is really special, my king” to Ahasuerus? Or, “My King, she’s the one.” Did Hegai do it because he was Jewish? Or, was this his revenge against Ahasuerus for castrating him and preventing him from having his own children? What better revenge than ensuring that the most powerful man on Earth has Jewish children. It’s a strong possibility Hegai was Jewish. It answers all the questions. Hegai set it all up for Esther to become queen. Have no doubt – Hegai is the lost hero of the Megillah.