Thread by @JamesBejon

THREAD: Thirteen, Unlucky for Some!

As the Feast of Purim draws nigh, some fun with numbers and gematria.

In the book of Esther, Haman repeatedly threatens the Jews with ‘destruction’ (אבד).

His act of genocide is scheduled (by lot) for a specific day: the 13th of Adar.

In ANE literature, the concept of ‘favourable days’ is a well known one.

For instance, Nebuchadnezzar is known to have started to rebuild Borsippa’s tower ‘in a favourable month, on a favourable day’ (i-na ITI ša-al-mu i-na UD ŠEGA).

P.S. If someone could explain to me why A. George (not a bad Assyriologist) has «šemê» rather than «mitgāru» for še.GA, I’d be grateful.

Anyway...

Haman clearly thinks the 13th Adar will turn out to be a favourable day for him,

but he’s badly mistaken; it will be a decidedly *unfavourable* day for him.

And his downfall will involve the convergence of all sorts of different occurrences of the number 13 in the book of Esther.

🔹 His nemesis, Esther, arises in a 13th month (2.12).

🔹 His final end is described in the text of 9.12,

which consists of 26 = 13 x 2 words,

...and involves the book’s 13th occurrence of the root אבד = ‘destroy’.

🔹 The particular form of the verb ‘destroy’ employed in 9.12 (ואבד) has a gematrial value of 13.

🔹 The death of Haman’s sons takes the tally of people impaled on a stake in the book of Esther to 13

(i.e., Bigthan, Teresh, Haman, and Haman’s 10 sons).

🔹 And Haman’s line comes to an unseemly end on the 13th day of the 13th year of the king’s reign (3.7, 12, 9.1ff.).

If the relevant year was intercalated, it may even have taken place in a 13th month (i.e., a second Adar).

Gematria also plays a role elsewhere in the book.

That Esther and Haman’s rivalry replays the rivalry between Saul (Esther’s infamous ancestor) and Agag (Haman’s infamous ancestor) is well known,

and explains why the book goes to such lengths to emphasise how Esther—unlike Saul—declines to take any ‘plunder’ from her enemy (9.10, 15, 16).

The connection between Esther, Saul, and Agag is emphasised by means of gematria.

🔹 The first (anticipatory) reference to Esther occurs in 2.4—והנערה—a word with a gematrial value of 336.

🔹 The word ‘Purim’ (פורים) also has a gematrial value of 336.

🔹 The particular ‘Purim’ cast by Haman rule out the first 336 days of the calendar year (1st Nisan to 12th Adar inclusive).

🔹 And, as a result of the Purim in question, the date set for Haman’s showdown with the Jews is the 337th day of the calendar year,

which hints at the book’s background and significance,

since both the title ‘Saul’ (שאול) and the title ‘Agag the king of Amalek’ (אגג מלך עמלק) have a gematrial value of 337.

THE END.

#NumbersAndTheBible