Pt1 The Humiliation of Haman: The Dramatic Talmudic Elaboration of the Biblical Verse of Haman Carrying out King Ahasuerus's Orders to Honor Mordecai (Esther 6:11-12; Megillah 16a)

This is the first part of a two-part series. The outline is below.¹

Intro

The Talmud elaborates the events when Haman went to carry out King Ahasuerus's orders to honor Mordecai, as stated in two verses in Esther 6:11-12 (I adjusted the translation slightly): 

ויקח המן את־הלבוש, ואת־הסוס, 

וילבש את־מרדכי, 

וירכיבהו ברחוב העיר 

ויקרא לפניו: 

"ככה יעשה לאיש, אשר המלך חפץ ביקרו"

וישב מרדכי אל־שער המלך,

והמן נדחף אל־ביתו, אבל וחפוי ראש

So Haman took the garb, and the horse 

and dressed Mordecai 

and paraded him through the city square; 

and he proclaimed before him: 

“This is what is done for the man whom the king desires to honor!”

Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate,

while Haman hurried home, his head covered in mourning.

Outline

1. Haman found Mordecai demonstrating the halakhot of the meal-offering in the Temple to the rabbis

2. Haman asked the rabbis what they were discussing

3. Haman took Mordecai to the bathhouse, washed him, and cut his hair

4. Haman stooped down to help Mordecai mount the horse, and as he did, Mordecai kicked him

5. Haman’s daughter threw feces onto her father's head, and then committed suicide

The Passage

Megillah.16a.6-11

Haman found Mordecai demonstrating the halakhot of the meal-offering in the Temple to the rabbis

Haman found Mordecai demonstrating the halakhot of kemitza (קמיצה - the handful of flour for the meal-offering in the Temple) to the Sages (רבנן). 

Seeing Haman approaching with a horse, Mordecai became frightened, and warned the Sages that Haman is coming to kill him, urging them to leave to avoid harm. 

Mordecai then wrapped himself in a shawl and began to pray. 

Haman sat in front of him and waited until Mordecai finished his prayer.

״ויקח המן את הלבוש ואת הסוס״. 

אזל אשכחיה דיתבי רבנן קמיה 

ומחוי להו הלכות קמיצה לרבנן, 

כיון דחזייה מרדכי דאפיק לקבליה וסוסיא מיחד בידיה, מירתת. 

אמר להו לרבנן: האי רשיעא למיקטל נפשי קא אתי 

זילו מקמיה, די לא תכוו בגחלתו. 

בההיא שעתא, נתעטף מרדכי, וקם ליה לצלותא, 

אתא המן, ויתיב ליה קמייהו, ואוריך עד דסליק מרדכי לצלותיה.

The Gemara describes what occurred as Haman went to follow the king’s orders, as the verse states: “Then Haman took the apparel and the horse” (Esther 6:11). 

When he went, he found Mordecai as the Sages were sitting before him, 

and he was demonstrating to them the halakhot of the handful, i.e., the scooping out of a handful of flour from the meal-offering in order to burn it on the altar. 

Once Mordecai saw him coming toward him with his horse’s reins held in his hands, he became frightened, 

and he said to the Sages: This evil man has come to kill me. 

Go away from him so that you should not get burnt from his coals, i.e., that you should not suffer harm as well. 

At that moment Mordecai wrapped himself in his prayer shawl and stood up to pray. 

Haman came over to where they were and sat down before them and waited until Mordecai finished his prayer.

Haman asked the rabbis what they were discussing

While waiting, Haman asked the Sages what they were discussing. They explained that when the Temple stood, one could achieve atonement by offering a handful of fine flour. 

Haman lamented that their handful of flour had thwarted his plan to destroy the Jews, despite his pledge of 10,000 talents (ככרי) of silver. 

When Mordecai finished praying, he reminded Haman that since he had once bought Haman as a slave, any property Haman owned, including the silver, belonged to Mordecai.²

אמר להו: במאי עסקיתו? 

אמרו ליה: בזמן שבית המקדש קיים, מאן דמנדב מנחה, מייתי מלי קומציה דסולתא, ומתכפר ליה. 

אמר להו: אתא מלי קומצי קמחא דידכו, ודחי עשרה אלפי ככרי כספא דידי. 

אמר ליה: רשע, עבד שקנה נכסים, עבד למי ונכסים למי?

In the interim, as he waited, Haman said to the other Sages: With what were you occupied? 

They said to him: When the Temple is standing, one who pledges a meal-offering would bring a handful of fine flour and achieve atonement with it. 

He said to them: Your handful of fine flour has come and cast aside my ten thousand pieces of silver, which I had pledged toward the destruction of the Jewish people. 

When Mordecai finished praying, he said to Haman: Wicked man, when a slave buys property, to whom belongs the slave and to whom belongs the property?! As I once bought you as a slave, what silver can be yours?

1. For other examples of Talmudic dramatic elaborations of short Biblical stories, see “Talmudic Elaboration of Sexuality and Love in Biblical Narratives”, pt1 and pt2; and ““One day David went falcon-hunting”: The Demilitarized, Rabbinized, and Enchanted Story of Avishai Saving David From Yishbi-benov (II Samuel 21:15-17; Sanhedrin 95a)”.

2. This same argument is made elsewhere in the Talmud, in the context of the debate with the Canaanites in front of Alexander, see my previous piece on this.