Post date: Mar 15, 2011 8:14:3 PM
בְּיוֹם שְׁלוֹשָׁה עָשָׂר לְחֹדֶשׁ אֲדָר וְנוֹחַ
B’yom shiloshuh ussur l’chodesh Adur v’noach
(9:17)
Zeresh suggested that Haman should make a gallows 50 Amos tall. Thinking that this was a great idea, Haman went looking for such a large beam of wood, but he had a hard time locating one. Then it dawned on him that Noach’s Teivah—which was huge—was made of wood. But when Noach caught wind that Haman wanted to use wood from his Teivah to hang Mordechai, he would hear nothing of it and resisted with all of his might.
However, Noach was much more elderly than Haman, so he had a hard time stopping Haman. Nonetheless, Haman succeeded in bringing the beam all the way back to his home with Noach still clinging to it. And THAT is how Noach ends up in Shushan at the time of the Purim miracle and gets mentioned in Megilas Esther.
(Vedebarta Bam)
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שִׂמְחָה וּמִשְׁתֶּה וְיוֹם טוֹב
Simcha u’mishteh v’yom tov
(9:19)
Purim does not have the status of a Yontif like most of our other holidays. Most of our holidays include restriction from performing creative actions (aka: Melachos). Although some locales have accepted upon themselves such a restriction, the overwhelming majority of communities do not observe Purim in this manner.
Our Pasuk, in describing how people conduct themselves on the holiday of Purim, tells us that people celebrate the day as one of happiness, feasting and as a holiday. However, a few Pesukim later, when the Pasuk relates how Mordechai recorded the events of the miracle and established the Mitzvos of the day for all time, it says “לַעֲשׂוֹת אוֹתָם יְמֵי מִשְׁתֶּה וְשִׂמְחָה וּמִשְׁלֹחַ מָנוֹת אִישׁ לְרֵעֵהוּ וּמַתָּנוֹת לָאֶבְיֹנִים,” (La’asos ossum y’mei mishteh v’simcha u’mishloach munnos ish l’rei’ei’hu u’matunos lu’evyonim, 9:22) making no mention of a day of Yontif which would include restriction on Melachah.
(Gemara Megillah 5a)
Practically speaking, because Purim does not have the full status as a Yontif, it is also permissible to get married on this day. We learn from the Pasuk of “וְשָׂמַחְתָּ בְּחַגֶּךָ” (V’samachta b’chagecha, Devarim 16:14) that we have a Mitzvah to be happy on Yontif because of the Yontif. From this we derive that the Simcha of the Yontif should be only from the Yontif and should not be from getting married on that day. However, since Purim doesn’t have the full status of a Yontif, we are permitted to get married on Purim! Mazal Tov!
(Shulchan Aruch 696:8, Mishnah Berurah 28)