Why Conceal Esther's Nationality?

Exegetical Approaches

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Overview

Commentators offer an array of reasons for why Esther might have concealed her nationality.  On one end of the spectrum, R. Reggio asserts that Esther kept her identity a secret for her own personal benefit, assuming that revealing her lowly Jewish roots would have diminished her chances of becoming queen.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Lekach Tov and Ralbag suggest altruistic motives. Esther hoped the secret would aid her in becoming queen so that she would be better positioned to aid her nation when needed.

A middle position assumes, instead, that Esther's motives were religious in nature. According to Rashi she did not want to become queen at all, as this would make leading a religious life extremely difficult.  To prevent this, she thus hid her royal lineage, which would have increased her chances.  Ibn Ezra instead focuses on the period after Esther becomes queen, suggesting that Esther realized that religious observance in the palace would be easier if no one was aware of her religion.

Personal Gain

Esther kept her identity a secret so as to facilitate her being chosen as queen.

Sources:R. Yosef KaraEsther First Commentary 2:10Esther First Commentary 2:19-20Esther Second Commentary 2:10About R. Yosef Kara, RashbamEsther 2:10Esther 2:19-20About R. Shemuel b. Meir, 1st opinion cited in Ibn EzraEsther Version A 2:9Esther Version B 2:10About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, Northern French CommentaryEsther 2:10About Northern French Commentary, opinion cited by R. Avigdor Kohen TzedekEsther 2:10About R. Avigdor Kohen Tzedek, R. Y"S ReggioEsther pp. 7-8About R. Yitzchak Shemuel Reggio

אֶת עַמָּהּ וְאֶת מוֹלַדְתָּהּ – What did Esther not tell?

• Nationality – According to most of these exegetes, the words "עַמָּהּ וְמוֹלַדְתָּהּ" refer to Esther's Jewish nationality.  Esther did not want others to know that she was Jewish since the Jewish nation was degraded in the eyes of the Persians.  As such, the knowledge might lower her chances of being chosen.
• Exilic origins – The opinion brought by Ibn Ezra and R. Reggio emphasize instead that she wanted to conceal the fact that she came from exile ("מוֹלַדְתָּהּ") since this, rather than her Jewish roots,¹ was the potential source of humiliation.²

Esther and Mordechai's religious identity – Most of the commentators do not address the question, but R. Y"S Reggio points out that Mordechai and Esther do not seem overly concerned with observing the commandments.³  Thus, Mordechai never warns Esther to uphold belief in one God and reject Persian polytheism or to try and keep the laws of kashrut.  Instead, he does all in his power to get her to become queen, despite the fact that it will make observance more difficult.⁴

Why become queen? As opposed to the approach "agent of salvation" below, this position assumes⁵ that Esther wanted to become queen not for altruistic reasons but for the personal prestige and honor that accompanied the position.⁶

"וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ" – The passive form of these words is difficult for this position as it makes it sound as if Esther was taken against her will, while these commentators assert that she was actively trying to be chosen.  They would likely explain that no one went on their own to the palace; all candidates were brought there by the king's officers.  Thus, the language of "וַתִּלָּקַח" does not necessarily connote a forceful taking against one's will.

"לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר" – These words, too, suggest a passivity on the part of Esther which does not fit the portrait of one who wishes to be chosen as queen.  Y. Hazony,⁷ though, suggests that in reality this was part of Esther's strategy.  The verse points out that Esther did not request anything on her own, but only, "אֲשֶׁר יֹאמַר הֵגַי סְרִיס הַמֶּלֶךְ שֹׁמֵר הַנָּשִׁים".  Esther realized that Hegai, a professional in charge of the king's harem, knew best what it was that the king would want and thus followed his advice in all.

Until when did Esther keep the secret?

• Until the party – R. Yosef Kara, Rashbam, and R. Reggio all claim that Esther hid her identity both before and after her coronation, presumably, lest it cause her to lose the crown.
• Until her position was secure – Alternatively, this position could posit that the secret was necessary only during the pageant itself, to ensure that she was not automatically passed over due to her religion or foreign status.⁸ If so, the repeated mention of the fact of concealment after her coronation would need to be read as a summary statement for the chapter⁹ or as related specifically to the second gathering of virgins, when the competition was renewed.¹⁰

Revealing the secret – R. Avigdor Kohen Tzedek questions this approach from Esther's strategy to save her nation.  If her Judaism was abhorrent in his eyes, then it is not clear why Esther thought that revealing the fact should save her or her people.  It should have been a cause for her rejection!  This position might respond that, by that point, Esther had completely won over Achashverosh's affection and he no longer cared about her origins.¹¹

Evaluating the decision – Ibn EzraEsther Version A 2:9About R. Avraham ibn Ezra suggests that if Mordechai and Esther were really motivated simply by a desire that Esther become queen, their actions should be condemned.  If embarrassment over their Judaism further played a role, the actions are even more problematic.  This is especially true considering that, had Esther's nationality been known, it is possible that Haman would never have issued his edict.¹²

Religious Observance

The secrecy surrounding Esther's identity was related to her religious observance.  Commentators subdivide regarding whether her purpose was to avoid compromising her faith by trying not to become queen at all or to overcome the difficulties in observance after having been chosen.

Avoid Becoming Queen

Esther concealed her identity in order to reduce her chances of becoming queen and thus avoid the accompanying difficulties this might entail for Torah observance.

Sources:RashiEsther 2:10-11About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, RidEsther 2:10Esther 2:19-21About R. Yeshayah of Trani

Esther and Mordechai's religious identity – These exegetes maintain that Mordechai and Esther were observant Jews¹³ who were upset by the concept that Esther should marry a Persian king¹⁴ and be forced into a position where her faith and observance would be compromised.

אֶת עַמָּהּ וְאֶת מוֹלַדְתָּהּ – What did Esther not tell? Rashi and Rid maintain that Esther was of royal lineage, being a descendant of King Shaul.  It was this lineage that Esther attempted to conceal as it would make her a more appealing candidate. However, although the word "מוֹלַדְתָּהּ" could support this reading, it is difficult to say that the word "עַמָּהּ" is limited to family status.

Was Esther from Shaul's family? Rashi asserts that "אִישׁ יְמִינִי" means that Mordechai was from the tribe of Binyamin, and he apparently assumes that the "קִישׁ" who is mentioned in Mordechai's genealogy is the same as the father of Shaul.  Ibn EzraEsther Version A 2:5About R. Avraham ibn Ezra questions that if the verses wanted to highlight that Mordechai was a descendant of Shaul, it is strange that they would skip generations to mention Kish by name but not Shaul.

"וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ" and "לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר" – These verses support the notion that Esther was taken by force and preferred not to be chosen.

Until when did Esther keep the secret?

• Concealed until the party – Rashi and Rid follow the simple reading of the verses which suggest that Esther continued to conceal her identity even after she was chosen. This is somewhat difficult for this position, considering that such secrecy no longer served any purpose. Rashi suggests that once Esther was taken, Mordechai understood that she was meant to be a tool for the salvation of Israel.¹⁵  If so, it is possible that he thought that somehow continuing to hide her identity would help serve that purpose.¹⁶
• Revealed after coronation – Alternatively, it is possible that Esther did not continue to hide her identity after being chosen. As mentioned above, Esther 2:20 (the second mention of Esther hiding her identity) would then be read as a summary statement recapping what previously happened,¹⁷ rather than a statement of what Esther did throughout her reign.  In addition, to make sense of the end of the story, one would have to posit that Achashverosh was unaware of the identity of the nation which Haman wanted to destroy, while being fully aware that Esther was Jewish.¹⁸

Evaluating the decision – This position views Esther's motives positively, even if they were ineffective.

Enable Torah Observance

Mordechai felt that Esther would be better able to keep Hashem's commandments if her Judaism was not known.

Sources:Ibn EzraEsther Version A 2:9Esther Version B 2:10About R. Avraham ibn Ezra's own opinion,¹⁹ Akeidat Yitzchak #1Esther 2:10About R. Yitzchak Arama

Esther and Mordechai's religious identity – This position is based on the assumption that the two were observant Jews. Ibn Ezra identifies Mordechai with the person by the same name listed as one of those who followed Zerubavel to Israel,²⁰ suggesting that he was not a layman, but rather a prominent Jew.

Why would observance be easier?

• According to Ibn Ezra, if Esther's religion were known the king would have actively forced her to transgress commandments, such as eating non-kosher and the like.  If no one knew, though, they might not notice if she observed commandments in secret.
• The Akeidat Yitzchak instead suggests that the secret was meant to ensure that Esther did not fall into a situation in which the law would mandate that she give up her life rather than transgress a law.  Had her Judaism been public and then Achashverosh demanded of her to violate it, the laws of "יהרג ואל יעבר" would have applied. 

Did the Jews know Esther's identity? According to the Akeidat Yitzchak, Esther would have had to hide her identity even from the Jews.  Considering that she was taken from the house of Mordechai who was presumably known to the Jews, this seems somewhat difficult.²¹  Ibn Ezra could instead posit that the Jews knew Esther's identity but did not reveal it.

אֶת עַמָּהּ וְאֶת מוֹלַדְתָּהּ – What did Esther not tell? Both Ibn Ezra and the Akeidat Yitzchak suggest that these terms refer to Esther's Jewish roots and it was this that she concealed.

"וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ" and "לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר" – This position would point to these verses as evidence that Esther was taken by force and did not willingly go to the palace.  Moreover, once there she did not ask for anything that might lead her to be chosen.

Until when did Esther keep the secret? These commentators maintain that Esther continued hiding her identity throughout her reign, revealing it only at the second party..

National Interests

Esther was thinking about the good of the nation as a whole when she decided to conceal her background.

Agent of Salvation

Esther hid her religious identity so that she would be best positioned to save her nation.

Sources:Lekach TovEsther 2:10About R. Toviah b. Eliezer, R. Elazar HaRokeach #2Esther 2:10About R. Elazar HaRokeach, second opinion cited in Ibn EzraEsther Version A 2:9About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, RalbagEsther 2:10Esther 2 Toelet 15About R. Levi b. Gershom²²

How would secrecy aid the nation?

• Become queen – The Lekach Tov and Ralbag maintain that Esther concealed her identity so that she would be chosen by the king and be able to aid the Jews from that position of power.²³  Had Achashverosh known her "lowly" nationality he would have scorned her and rejected her out of hand.
• Privy to secrets – The Rokeach, instead, maintains that were Esther's identity known, everyone would have made sure to conceal from her any potential plots against the Jews.  If she was believed to be a Gentile, on the other hand, she would be privy to such information.²⁴

Esther and Mordechai's religious identity – These commentators assume that Mordechai and Esther were religious Jews.  It is also possible, however, that they might have had strong cultural and national ties to their people, but were not particularly observant.  This might explain why the Megillah makes no mention of prayer or any attempts to observe Jewish laws.   Moreover, it explains why the two see the potential benefits of Esther becoming queen as outweighing the problem of compromising religious observance.

"וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ" – The Lekach Tov and Ralbag assume that Esther desired to become queen,²⁵ and they thus need to explain the passive form of the verb "וַתִּלָּקַח".  Like the first approach above, they would presumably suggest that all the women were actively taken (but not necessarily forced) to the palace by the officers, regardless of whether they would have gone on their own or not.

"לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר" – As above, the Lekach Tov and Ralbag might suggest that Esther asked for nothing on her own, instead putting her trust in Hegai's abilities.  She assumed that he would know best what the king desired, making her more likely to be chosen.

Until when did she keep the secret? Esther first revealed her identity at the second party, when the revelation served to save her nation.

Evaluating the decision – was secrecy a good idea? R. Reggio questions this approach from the fact that hiding Esther's identity never served to help the Jews; it was only upon its revelation that they were saved.  In fact, had Esther revealed her identity from the very beginning, it is possible that Haman would never even have hatched his plan!²⁶

Other political positioning – Y. Hazony²⁷ suggests that Mordechai's betraying of Bigtan and Teresh was similarly motivated by political positioning.  Both he and Esther realized that active support of the despot, even if meant keeping secrets or compromising morality, was the best way to help their nation.

Decreased Danger

Mordechai and Esther feared that were Achashverosh to get angry at Esther, he would take it out on the entire Jewish nation.  To prevent this, Esther did not tell the king to which nation she belonged.

Sources:Second Targum of Megillat Esther2:10About Second Targum of Megillat Esther, Midrash Panim Acherot #2Version B 2:10Version B 2:20About Midrash Panim Acherot, Yalkut Shimoni #2Esther 1053About Yalkut Shimoni²⁸

Esther and Mordechai's religious identity – These sources all assume that Mordechai and Esther were observant Jews.

"וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ" and "לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר" – According to these sources, Esther did not wish to be chosen as queen and even hid from the officers so that she would not be taken.  She viewed becoming queen of the unstable and wrathful Achashverosh as a potential source of danger to the Jewish nation.²⁹  Both the passive form of "וַתִּלָּקַח" and the fact that Esther did not request anything during her preparations may support this reading.

Until when did she keep the secret? Esther revealed her identity only when she saw that the nation was endangered from another source and that the revelation might be more helpful than keeping it a secret.

¹ In fact, R. Reggio asserts that Achashverosh had nothing against the Jewish nation, and even suggests that he never knowingly agreed to their annihilation. For elaboration, see Achashverosh's Shock and Fury.

² Modern scholars have noted that according to Persian law, if one was a foreigner, one was disqualified from becoming queen.  See A. Shamah, "מדוע לא הגידה אסתר את עמה ואת מולדתה" in "הדסה היא אסתר" (Jerusalem, 1997): 239, n. 6.

³ See Esther's Religious Identity for other evidence that Esther and Mordechai might have been assimilated Jews.

⁴ If one pushes this position to its extreme, one might even say that Esther and Mordechai hid their roots because they were embarrassed by them.  See R. Y. Medan, "ומרדכי לא יכרע ולא ישתחווה - מדוע", in "הדסה היא אסתר" (Jerusalem, 1997): 164, who raises this possibility.
R. Reggio himself goes so far as to suggest that when Mordechai heard of Haman's plan he was more worried about Esther's potential loss of power and position than about saving the Jewish nation!  For elaboration see A Portrait of Mordechai.

⁵ The commentators do not say so explicitly, but this seems to be their assumption.

⁶ This starkly contrasts with Midrash Panim AcherotVersion B 2:10About Midrash Panim Acherot and Yalkut ShimoniEsther 1053About Yalkut Shimoni who present Mordechai as trying to run away from honor.  They suggest that Mordechai asked Esther to conceal their relationship ("מוֹלַדְתָּהּ") so that he would not get any special favors from the king for merely being her relative.

⁷ See The Dawn, (Jerusalem, 1995): 36-38.

⁸ This assumes that her nationality or exilic origins would have caused her candidacy to be dismissed out of hand, but not that some antisemitism would serve as a reason to reject her after the fact.  Thus, if she managed to prove herself, there would no longer be a need to hide her religion.

⁹ See Rashbam who understands the phrase "וּבְהִקָּבֵץ בְּתוּלוֹת שֵׁנִית" to refer not to a second gathering of women, but to the original gathering mentioned previously so as to choose a "second", meaning an alternative to Vashti. [Cf. Ibn Ezra who also thinks the verse refers to the gathering described earlier but understands "second" to be in contrast to the first gathering in which Vashti was chosen.]  According to this reading, verses 19-20 would be a summary statement, rather than a description of new events. It is not clear, though, why this summary would be necessary.

¹⁰ This approach would presumably suggest that Haman did not tell Achashverosh which nation he was intending to destroy.  Thus, even if Achashverosh was aware of Esther's nationality by the time that Haman made his edict, he did not know that it applied to her. For elaboration, see Achashverosh's Shock and Fury.

¹¹ Alternatively, to begin with, it was Esther's foreign status rather than Jewish religion which was problematic, and, as mentioned above, Achashverosh might have even been aware of the latter by the time of the party.

¹² See RashbamEsther 2:19-20About R. Shemuel b. Meir.  See also Second Targum on Esther 8:7About Second Targum of Megillat Estherwho even has Achashverosh blaming Esther for the catastrophe, telling her that she should have revealed her identity from the very beginning.

¹³ Though the verses never mention any explicit religious observance, this need not connote that they did not keep Hashem's commandments.

¹⁴ Cf. R. Elazar HaRokeachEsther 2:10About R. Elazar HaRokeach who suggests that Mordechai was also concerned lest other Jewesses be forced to marry Persian officers.  He asserts that if Achashverosh loved Esther and knew she was Jewish, he might decide that other Jewish women would also make good wives for his staff.

¹⁵ In this, Rashi follows Esther Rabbah 6:6.

¹⁶ See the approach below which suggests this.

¹⁷ Cf. Rashbam cited in the note above.

¹⁸ Cf. the second position brought in Akeidat YitzchakEsther 2:10About R. Yitzchak Arama, where he suggests that Esther only hid her relationship to Mordechai but not her nationality.  [Although the word "מוֹלַדְתָּהּ" could support this reading, it is difficult to say that the word "עַמָּהּ" is limited to family status.]  As evidence that Achashverosh was aware of her Judaism all along, he points out that in Chapter 7, it is not her nationality that Esther reveals, but only the danger in which she finds herself.  [Note also that in 8:1, Esther does reveal her relationship to Mordechai.]  In addition, Achashverosh's surprise is aimed, not at who she is, but at who could have devised such a decree of destruction.  For further discussion, see Achashverosh's Shock and Fury.

¹⁹ This opinion is also found in an eleventh century anonymous Karaite commentary, published by Michael G. Wechsler, "An Early Karaite Commentary on the Book of Esther," Hebrew Union College Annual 72 (2001): 101-137.

²⁰ See Ezra 2:2.  Ibn Ezra suggests that Mordechai returned to Persia only because he saw that the Beit HaMikdash was not being rebuilt.

²¹ The connection to Mordechai should have made it difficult to hide her identity even from Haman and the king.  For various understandings of how she managed, see How Did Esther Conceal her Nationality?.

²² See also Y. Hazony, The Dawn, (Jerusalem, 1995): 26-40 who suggests that many of Mordechai and Esther's actions were aimed at gaining political favor so as to be able to sway policy in favor of the Jews.

²³ R. Reggio questions why at the moment of Esther's coronation Mordechai would have already anticipated that evil was to befall the Jews at some later point (from today's vantage point, this is obviously not a difficult question to answer). Y. Hazony (see above note) suggests that Mordechai was an astute politician who was positioning himself and Esther for all eventualities, recognizing that the government of Achashverosh was not a stable one.  The fact that there was no present danger did not mean that there would not be one soon.

²⁴ From the story, though, it seems that Esther's positioning did not in fact gain her access to any palace secrets.  She seems to be the last, not the first, to hear of Haman's plot to kill the nation.  In Chapter 4, it is only after the entire nation is in mourning that she hears the news from Mordechai.

²⁵ It is not clear if the Rokeach also maintains that Esther actively desired to become queen, or that only once chosen did she attempt to position herself to help the nation.

²⁶ See also Second Targum of Megillat Esther8:7About Second Targum of Megillat Esther who raises the issue through the mouth of Achashverosh who is presented as accusing Esther of having been the cause of all of Haman's actions.  Had she simply told him that she was Jewish early on, he would have instead honored her whole family!

²⁷ See above note.

²⁸ See also R. Avigdor Kohen Tzedek Esther 2:10About R. Avigdor Kohen Tzedekwho proposes that Mordechai was hoping to steal Esther away from the palace, and he feared that if Esther's nationality was known, the king in his wrath would kill the Jews until she was returned.

²⁹ This is the exact opposite of the above approach which viewed the position as a potential source of salvation.