
"How could Esther rule over one hundred and twenty seven?"
Even the most scintillating lecturer in the world,
may find himself facing an uninterested crowd.
And what will he do when heads before him start nodding, and eyes are closing?
He will unleash surprising information and amazing anecdotes!
This is what Rabbi Akiva did,
as told in the following Midrash:
In the middle of a lesson on Megillat Esther
he noticed that the audience was not entirely there
so he surprised them with a question:
Why does the Megillah mention the number
one hundred and twenty-seven – the number of countries
ruled by Ahasuerus, destined to (eventually) be ruled by Esther?
If this number sounds familiar
it is because it is also mentioned in the Tanakh:
It is the lifespan of Sarah,
who died at one hundred and twenty-seven!
This now all fits nicely:
Sarah was Esther’s great-great-great grandmother!
Dr. Gila Vachman, Lecturer on Midrash and Legend at the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies; Program Director, ‘Torah Lishma’ at Neve Schechter
Rabbi Akiva was once sitting and lecturing, and
Rabbi Akiva was once sitting and lecturing, and the community [his students] was falling asleep.
To awake them, he said: How could Esther rule over one hundred and twenty seven provinces?
It is as it should be that Esther, a descendant of Sarah who lived to one hundred and twenty seven, would rule over one hundred and twenty seven provinces.
Bereishit Rabbah 58
