In this part of the chapter, we arrive at the decisive stage in Esther's story: her bringing before King Achashverosh. The Malbim guides us through three periods during which Esther showed self-sacrifice and did not disclose her people or her kindred, demonstrating from the text that in all of them she was acting under duress. The first period was her departure from home, the second period was the twelve-month cosmetic preparation, and the third period - the one before us now - was her bringing before the king. From here onward, we will follow the order of the pesukim.
Twelve Months - A Health Screening
וּבְהַגִּיעַ תֹּר נַעֲרָה וְנַעֲרָה לָבוֹא אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ מִקֵּץ הֱיוֹת לָהּ כְּדָת הַנָּשִׁים שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר חֹדֶשׁ כִּי כֵּן יִמְלְאוּ יְמֵי מְרוּקֵיהֶן שִׁשָּׁה חֳדָשִׁים בְּשֶׁמֶן הַמֹּר וְשִׁשָּׁה חֳדָשִׁים בַּבְּשָׂמִים וּבְתַמְרוּקֵי הַנָּשִׁים׃ (יב) - "Now when the turn of each maiden arrived to come before King Achashverosh, at the end of twelve months prescribed by the regulation for the women - for so were the days of their treatments completed: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with perfumes and with women's cosmetics." (12)
Why specifically twelve months? The Malbim explains: in order to test her physical health. Back then, there were no medical diagnostic labs, and it was impossible to run a comprehensive checkup, so the only way was to observe her over the course of a full year. And why specifically a year? Because across twelve months, she experiences all four seasons. A person might be energetic and strong as a panther in the summer, but when winter arrives, allergies strike and he is bedridden for half a year. Or the opposite: in the spring, during the transitional season, allergies wipe him out. Every season has its own ailments. How then can one know that she is truly healthy and free of any disease? If he takes her today, a problem might surface the day after tomorrow. Therefore, twelve months served as an adequate trial, ensuring that she harbored no hidden internal illness.
The division of the treatments was not arbitrary either: during the six winter months, they would anoint her with oil of myrrh, which is known to warm the limbs; and during the summer months, they would apply perfumes, for perfumes eliminate foul odors and the smell that comes from perspiration and dirt during the hot days.
"U-vazeh" - Everything the King Demanded
וּבָזֶה הַנַּעֲרָה בָּאָה אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ אֵת כׇּל־אֲשֶׁר תֹּאמַר יִנָּתֵן לָהּ לָבוֹא עִמָּהּ מִבֵּית הַנָּשִׁים עַד־בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ (יג) - "And in this way the maiden would come before the king: whatever she requested would be given to her to bring with her from the harem to the king's palace." (13)
The entire arrangement between the king and the maiden rested on two sides. On the maiden's side - the king sought only physical beauty and health. Noble lineage no longer interested him: his predecessor was both beautiful and of royal lineage, and that had caused him problems. Now he wanted a woman who would be beautiful and keep quiet, ensuring his peace of mind. Therefore, once the days of their treatments were complete and it was established that she had no illness, the verse states, "And in this way [u-vazeh] the maiden would come before the king" - with this and nothing more: beautiful and healthy, those were all the requirements.
And on the king's side - what did he provide? "Whatever she requested would be given to her." She was permitted to ask for gifts as she wished, and all her heart's desires were granted. Why? The Malbim explains simply: when taking a maiden to the king, it is by no means certain that she goes willingly, and through these lavish gifts they ensured that she would submit willingly. This is precisely reflected in the wording of the verse: "she would come [ba'ah] before the king" - she came, rather than was brought [huva'ah]. Not by force. And how did the king ensure she would come of her own accord? By giving her whatever she asked for, so that she would submit willingly.
בָּעֶרֶב הִיא בָאָה וּבַבֹּקֶר הִיא שָׁבָה אֶל־בֵּית הַנָּשִׁים שֵׁנִי אֶל־יַד שַׁעַשְׁגַז סְרִיס הַמֶּלֶךְ שֹׁמֵר הַפִּילַגְשִׁים לֹא־תָבוֹא עוֹד אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ כִּי אִם־חָפֵץ בָּהּ הַמֶּלֶךְ וְנִקְרְאָה בְשֵׁם׃ (יד) - "In the evening she would come, and in the morning she would return to the second harem, into the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's chamberlain, guardian of the concubines. She would not come before the king again unless the king took delight in her and she was summoned by name." (14)
By the way, during the Megillah reading one should pay attention: "ba'ah" in "in the evening she would come" (בָּעֶרֶב הִיא בָאָה) is read with the stress mil'el (on the penultimate syllable), indicating the past tense, rather than milra (on the final syllable), which denotes the present tense.
This offers further proof for the Malbim's explanation: even though she would come in the evening and in the morning return to be confined in the harem of concubines, never to come before the king again - meaning that from the king's perspective it might be a matter of "use and discard," just a single night and nothing more - they still went willingly. Why? Because of the gifts and promises they received.
When Esther's Turn Came - The Exact Opposite
וּבְהַגִּיעַ תֹּר־אֶסְתֵּר בַּת־אֲבִיחַיִל דֹּד מׇרְדֳּכַי אֲשֶׁר לָקַח־לוֹ לְבַת לָבוֹא אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר כִּי אִם אֶת־אֲשֶׁר יֹאמַר הֵגַי סְרִיס־הַמֶּלֶךְ שֹׁמֵר הַנָּשִׁים וַתְּהִי אֶסְתֵּר נֹשֵׂאת חֵן בְּעֵינֵי כׇּל־רֹאֶיהָ׃ (טו) - "Now when the turn came for Esther, the daughter of Avichayil the uncle of Mordechai, who had taken her for his daughter, to go in to the king, she requested nothing, except what Hegai the king's chamberlain, the keeper of the women, advised. And Esther obtained favor in the eyes of all who saw her." (15)
With Esther, the picture was the exact opposite on both counts. On the one hand, the king demanded beauty alone - yet she brought far more than that. "The daughter of Avichayil" - she possessed noble character traits inherited from her father, who was a righteous man; "the uncle of Mordechai, who had taken her for his daughter" - Mordechai had raised her, and if Mordechai raised her, he certainly nurtured her in the most upright and fitting manner, bringing forth all her exceptional character traits. The other maidens brought only physical beauty, externals, health, and all the cosmetic treatments they had received; Esther brought with her noble lineage and fine character as well.
And on the other hand - the gifts. The king offered gifts so that they would come willingly, but Esther "requested nothing." This was entirely intentional: had she asked for this or that, it would have amounted to an outright transaction - you surrender yourself, and I provide gifts. She was effectively declaring to him: I waive your gifts, I have no need for them, lest you think that I consent and that this is of my own free will. Through this very act, she demonstrated that she was brought under duress and against her will. Had she accepted gifts, it would be as though an agreement had been struck - you accepted gifts, so what more can you claim? Therefore, she accepted nothing at all.
The phrase "Now when the turn came for Esther" also points to this: only when there was no choice left, when her turn arrived in the rotation and they pushed her forward to enter - then, and only then, did she go. She was entirely under duress, and one must not imagine that she consented to go. And what did she take along? "Except what Hegai... advised" - only the bare minimum, whatever she was compelled to take by way of cosmetics, clothing, or jewelry. Anything that depended on her personal request - she asked for nothing.
And even though this was already the third time she forfeited her life before the king - since her very demeanor in presenting herself to him was resistant - nonetheless, "Esther obtained favor in the eyes of all who saw her." This extraordinary grace overshadowed everything.
"And Esther Was Taken" - Utterly Under Duress
וַתִּלָּקַח אֶסְתֵּר אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ אֶל־בֵּית מַלְכוּתוֹ בַּחֹדֶשׁ הָעֲשִׂירִי הוּא־חֹדֶשׁ טֵבֵת בִּשְׁנַת־שֶׁבַע לְמַלְכוּתוֹ׃ (טז) - "So Esther was taken to King Achashverosh into his royal house in the tenth month, which is the month of Tevet, in the seventh year of his reign." (16)
Notice the precision of the text: regarding all the other maidens, it says "the maiden came to the king," whereas regarding Esther it says "she was taken" - completely under duress. Moreover, lest one think she was merely taken into the palace compound in general, the verse specifies "into his royal house" - into the king's private chambers.
As for the timing, the Malbim does not mention this, but Chazal note: Why does the verse emphasize the month of Tevet? To teach that it was a cold month, and Heaven orchestrated that this would occur in a month when one body draws warmth and comfort from another. Just as we find concerning King David, "they covered him with clothes, but he could not become warm," and because of the chill they said, "Let a young virgin maiden be sought for the king." So too here - she arrived at the most opportune time from Achashverosh's perspective, and Heaven orchestrated this exact timing so that she would find favor in his eyes, serving as an anchor of salvation for the Jewish people later in the story.
Love Versus Finding Favor
וַיֶּאֱהַב הַמֶּלֶךְ אֶת־אֶסְתֵּר מִכׇּל־הַנָּשִׁים וַתִּשָּׂא־חֵן וָחֶסֶד לְפָנָיו מִכׇּל־הַבְּתוּלוֹת וַיָּשֶׂם כֶּתֶר־מַלְכוּת בְּרֹאשָׁהּ וַיַּמְלִיכֶהָ תַּחַת וַשְׁתִּי׃ (יז) - "And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti." (17)
We asked about the meaning behind the double expression: "more than all the women" and "above all the virgins." The Malbim explains: There is no doubt that Achashverosh already had wives and concubines. Regarding them, the term "love" applies, as they had been his wives for a long time. But regarding the virgins from whom he sought to find a queen, the term "love" does not apply at all, but rather only finding favor. After all, you only met her today; what kind of love could there be? There was no such thing as love at first sight. Consequently, it makes no sense to say that he loved Esther more than the virgins, because he did not yet love any of them. Therefore, the verse distinguishes: "And the king loved Esther more than all the women" - those to whom he was already married; "and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins" - using the phrasing appropriate to them. And immediately, "and he set the royal crown upon her head" - he did not continue with auditions or examinations, for he had found that which his soul desired.
Three Methods of Persuasion
וַיַּעַשׂ הַמֶּלֶךְ מִשְׁתֶּה גָדוֹל לְכׇל־שָׂרָיו וַעֲבָדָיו אֵת מִשְׁתֵּה אֶסְתֵּר וַהֲנָחָה לַמְּדִינוֹת עָשָׂה וַיִּתֵּן מַשְׂאֵת כְּיַד הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ (יח) - "Then the king made a great feast for all his princes and his servants, Esther's feast; and he proclaimed a tax relief for the provinces, and gave gifts according to the bounty of the king." (18)
There are two questions here. First, a "great feast" is understandable - this is a wedding; but why call it "Esther's feast"? Did we think otherwise? Second, why suddenly tax relief? We all know that for a prime minister to announce a tax cut, a knife has to be held to his throat; without that, there is no chance fuel prices will drop. Yet here, Achashverosh grants tax relief of his own free will, with no one pressuring him. What is the logic?
The Malbim explains: Even after he crowned her queen, Esther persisted in her refusal. Do not think that once he brought her into the palace, placed a royal crown upon her, and gave her beautiful garments, she began to take pleasure in it. Absolutely not. The entire reality of being married to an uncircumcised, loathsome gentile was repulsive to her, and therefore she continued to refuse and did not reveal her people or her kindred. Perhaps, she thought, if I continue to refuse, he will become exasperated and banish me - like the Arab custom where one says to his wife "talaq" three times and that is it, without a get, without witnesses, without anything. But Achashverosh does not relent. The matter intrigues him, and he makes every effort to extract from her the secret of her people and her kindred, testing her with three things.
The first: great honor. "Then the king made a great feast... Esther's feast" - gentlemen, who invited you to this feast? Esther. Her name was printed on the invitation, not the king's name. You receive the credit and the honor; perhaps in this way she will relent and disclose her secret.
The second: "and he proclaimed a tax relief for the provinces." Perhaps when Esther sees that her people are also included in the tax relief, she will think to herself: If the king does good for all the provinces just to benefit my people, then if I tell him who my people are, he will grant them a full exemption from taxes. This was another attempt at persuasion.
The third: "and gave gifts according to the bounty of the king" - he gave her exceedingly lavish gifts, fit for royal bounty. Through this, she might be motivated to enrich her compatriots and reveal her background to him, so that they too might receive gifts. If the king is in such a generous mood, handing out gifts - who knows, perhaps he will grant something to my people as well.
"And When the Virgins Were Gathered Together a Second Time"
וּבְהִקָּבֵץ בְּתוּלוֹת שֵׁנִית וּמׇרְדֳּכַי יֹשֵׁב בְּשַׁעַר־הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ (יט) - "And when the virgins were gathered together a second time, Mordechai sat in the king's gate." (19)
This is a great wonder, and all the commentators struggle with it. The king had already found what his soul desired - why would he gather virgins a second time? The bids were submitted, reviewed, and there was a winner. It was over!
Chazal also sensed this difficulty. Chazal say: Achashverosh reasoned, "A woman is jealous only of the thigh of her fellow woman." What arouses a woman's greatest jealousy? If she knows that her husband's heart belongs to another, or even that he is glancing toward another woman - that is a bitter defeat for her. Achashverosh thought: If she cannot be persuaded through pleasant means, through gifts and honor, I will announce that I am looking for another woman - and then she will come under immense pressure. "What are you missing?" - "Perhaps I am looking for someone of a bit more distinguished lineage." Then she will immediately say: "No problem, I will tell you who I am." This is what Chazal say, and their words are magnificent. These words are cited here merely to illustrate just how difficult this verse is - what does gathering virgins a second time have to do with anything, once the king had already gathered, evaluated, and chosen?
The Malbim, however, takes a different path. According to him, Ahasuerus thought: Perhaps she is afraid to reveal her people and her kindred because she comes from a lowly and humble nation, and if I find out, I will say to myself, "What did I take? Such an unpedigreed woman?". And if that was her concern, what reinforced it? There were still many virgins who had been gathered, whom the king had not yet touched at all. For that had been the arrangement: in the evening she would go, and in the morning she would return, one each night - and in the middle came Esther, and the king said, "I have found my queen." That left many others who had not yet been brought for inspection or even entered the royal palace. Consequently, Esther was worried: There is still "merchandise" in the harem, and if I tell him I am of lowly descent, he will say, "Keep sending them in; I want to keep looking."
What did Ahasuerus do? He announced to them all: Everyone go home. All the women in the harem are released. And what did he gain by this? That the fear would be removed from her heart that he might look for another. My dear lady, I have sent all the candidates home; now you can say with peace of mind which nation you are from, and even if it is lowly, I will not be alarmed or seek another, for there are no others left. And that is the meaning of "when the virgins were gathered a second time" - they gathered them all together in order to send them back to their homes. This is a novel interpretation, since the plain sense of the verse suggests they gathered them for another round of evaluation, which raises great difficulty; but according to the Malbim, they were gathered together solely to be returned to the places from which they came.
And what is the significance of "and Mordechai was sitting in the king's gate" at the end of the verse? This was yet another means of persuasion. Who sits at the gate? The judge. "Judges and officers shall you appoint in all your gates," and judges would sit at the gate. We find the same regarding Lot, who sat at the gate of Sodom, about which Chazal remarked that on that very day they had appointed him a judge over them. Ahasuerus knew that Esther had been adopted into Mordechai's household and that there was a connection between them; therefore, he appointed him to sit in the king's gate as one of the ministers - the reason being that the queen had grown up in his house. When she saw the honor and greatness bestowed upon him, she would have an incentive to reveal his identity, thinking: This is not merely an ordinary man who found me in the marketplace and adopted me, this is my uncle - and how much more honor and esteem will they grant him then! We might also suggest an additional possibility, though this is not from the Malbim: perhaps Ahasuerus sensed that Mordechai knew her origin and was concealing it, but could not prove it. He therefore thought, I will give him a position and honors, and if he truly cares for her, he will eventually reveal it to me, and I will solve the mystery of which nation she comes from.
Esther Disclosed Nothing - Mordechai's Bidding Even in Royalty
אֵין אֶסְתֵּר מַגֶּדֶת מוֹלַדְתָּהּ וְאֶת־עַמָּהּ כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה עָלֶיהָ מׇרְדֳּכָי וְאֶת־מַאֲמַר מׇרְדֳּכַי אֶסְתֵּר עֹשָׂה כַּאֲשֶׁר הָיְתָה בְאׇמְנָה אִתּוֹ׃ (כ) - Esther did not disclose her kindred or her people, as Mordechai had instructed her; for Esther did the bidding of Mordechai just as when she was reared by him. (20)
All the investment and all the efforts were to no avail: Esther still did not disclose. Here the Malbim notes a change in phrasing: initially it says, "Esther had not disclosed her people and her kindred," whereas here her kindred precedes her people. Why? Because initially the king simply wanted to know who she was, and when asking "Who are you?" one first asks what people you come from - Jewish, Russian, Egyptian, or Iraqi. But now, when the intention was to bestow benefits upon her nation, the question was where she was born: if you were born in Egypt, I will benefit all Egyptians; if you were born in another place, I will benefit that nation. Therefore, her kindred is mentioned first here.
The verse continues: "For Esther did the bidding of Mordechai just as when she was reared by him," and this is a remarkable insight. As long as she was under Mordechai's guardianship, in his house and under his authority, it is natural that she obeyed him like a devoted daughter. But now she had attained greatness in her own right: I am the queen, wife of Ahasuerus who rules over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, and no longer a little girl in Mordechai's home; I too can decide and act independently. The verse comes to teach you: this was not Esther's mindset at all. Exactly as she had been when reared by him, when he brought up Hadassah and everything was done according to his word, so it remained even when she was queen. Royal stature did not change a thing in her; it did not inflate her ego or grant her an air of haughtiness, and she did everything according to Mordechai's instructions.
Preceding the Remedy to the Blow
בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם וּמׇרְדֳּכַי יוֹשֵׁב בְּשַׁעַר־הַמֶּלֶךְ קָצַף בִּגְתָן וָתֶרֶשׁ שְׁנֵי־סָרִיסֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ מִשֹּׁמְרֵי הַסַּף וַיְבַקְשׁוּ לִשְׁלֹחַ יָד בַּמֶּלֶךְ אֲחַשְׁוֵרֹשׁ׃ (כא) - In those days, while Mordechai was sitting in the king's gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king's chamberlains from the guards of the threshold, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. (21)
This is puzzling: it was already stated in verse 19, "and Mordechai was sitting in the king's gate," so why repeat it? The Malbim explains: before describing the terrible calamity that befell the Jewish people, the author of the Megillah wants to demonstrate how the Holy One, blessed be He, never strikes until He has prepared the remedy before the blow. And what is the reason for preparing the remedy before the blow? To show that the purpose of the blow is not the blow itself, but the cure. The proof: even before the strike lands, the healing medication is already prepared. If the blow were intended for destruction, He would strike without preparing any cure at all. But if His entire intention is for the good, He prepares the remedies in advance to show that everything is ultimately for your benefit.
To what can this be compared? To a person going to undergo bloodletting: the disinfectant, the cotton wool, the gauze, and everything needed to dress the incision are laid out in advance. Why? Because the bloodletting was not done to drain his blood, but to heal him. When someone receives a wound for the sake of healing, all the means for the cure are prepared beforehand.
Regarding this, the Malbim offers an original explanation of the verse, "Any of the diseases that I placed upon Egypt I will not place upon you, for I am Hashem your Healer." Why was the disease placed upon Egypt? Certainly not to heal Egypt, but to destroy them, so that the wicked would be struck and know they were receiving their punishment. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: Such a disease I will not place upon you. What kind of affliction will I bring upon a Jew? One whose purpose is "for I am Hashem your Healer" - an affliction designed to lead to healing, to refine you and set you on the straight path, with the remedy already prepared for you in advance.
With this, a major difficulty is resolved: if "all the disease which I put upon Egypt I will not put upon you," what is the need for "for I am Hashem your Healer"? If there is no illness, there is no need for a doctor! Indeed, during the doctors' strike, the patients simply stopped dying. Rather, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: There will be illness, but illness for the sake of illness, purely for suffering as in Egypt - that I will not put upon you. The illness you experience will be one whose remedy is prepared in advance, in order to heal you and set you straight, for it is not intended to harm you.
The Six Miracles in the Episode of Bigthan and Teresh
The first preparation had already been made: the Holy One, blessed be He, arranged for "a sister in the king's house" - Queen Esther wearing the royal crown. Now Scripture describes the second preparation: that Mordechai would perform an immense kindness for the king, placing the king deeply in his debt for saving his life from the two assassins, Bigthan and Teresh - and this would serve as a milestone in the salvation of the Jewish people.
Therefore, Scripture reiterates and emphasizes, "and Mordechai was sitting at the king's gate," to teach us two things. First: why did the guards become angry? Because they saw Mordechai, whom they viewed as an ordinary, lowly person, suddenly sitting at the king's gate and appointed as a judge. "What is this? A newcomer arrives and is appointed a judge? While we remain at the same rank, eunuchs guarding the threshold. Could he not have given us an appointment and promotion as well?" And second: for this very same reason, the Holy One, blessed be He, orchestrated that Mordechai sit at the king's gate - so that he would overhear their fury. This overhearing led to the execution of the eunuchs, which in turn incited Haman against him, and this itself would become the catalyst for the redemption, as we will see later in greater detail. This is the first miracle: Mordechai is present there - for the sake of the remedy before the coming blow. The decree of destruction already has its cure in the book of chronicles.
The second miracle: the very anger of Bigthan and Teresh. Who is chosen to be a royal doorkeeper? A person selected to be the bodyguard of a prime minister or prominent ministers undergoes countless background checks and vetting; he must be a local citizen and not an outsider, and he undergoes an exhaustive series of examinations to ensure he is fit for the role. These are supposed to be the most loyal individuals - yet specifically they, after all that screening, seek to assassinate the king. It defies logic. Moreover, what were they angry about? Mordechai's elevation. A person usually envies his peers; yet Mordechai was clearly of far higher stature, while they were eunuchs with an inferior post - how could they envy him?
There is yet another wonder in the act itself: such coups typically occur among ministers or army commanders, for if one eliminates the king, he can reign in his stead - hence palace intrigues at the highest level. But where have we ever heard of an intrigue by a doorkeeper seeking to assassinate the king? What would he gain from it? Over anger that Mordechai was appointed, you go and assassinate the king? Ultimately, a minister would seize the throne, and what would you have gained? "The adversary is not worth the king's damage," and no one acts this way. The Malbim explains: this is an additional wonder and another miracle.
וַיִּוָּדַע הַדָּבָר לְמׇרְדֳּכַי וַיַּגֵּד לְאֶסְתֵּר הַמַּלְכָּה וַתֹּאמֶר אֶסְתֵּר לַמֶּלֶךְ בְּשֵׁם מׇרְדֳּכָי׃ (כב) - "And the matter became known to Mordechai, and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther informed the king in the name of Mordechai." (22)
The third miracle: that the plot became known to Mordechai. There are two approaches to this: some explain, following Chazal, that Mordechai understood Tarsian, and they spoke in Tarsian assuming he did not understand the language; others explain that the master of dreams revealed it to him, and various other explanations are given. The Malbim explains: it was through the Divine Providence of Hashem, who unravels all secrets.
The fourth miracle: Mordechai did not ask Esther to report the matter in his name, yet nonetheless, "and Esther informed the king in the name of Mordechai." Esther always followed Mordechai's instructions to the letter, and Mordechai had not told her to mention his name - she should have simply reported the plot anonymously. Instead, she deviated and said: Know, my lord, it was Mordechai who revealed this to me. Why did she do this? Heaven orchestrated it so that the deed would be credited to Mordechai's merit, for in the hour of reckoning, this merit would be needed.
וַיְבֻקַּשׁ הַדָּבָר וַיִּמָּצֵא וַיִּתָּלוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם עַל־עֵץ וַיִּכָּתֵב בְּסֵפֶר דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים לִפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ (כג) - "And the matter was investigated and found to be so, and both of them were hanged on a tree; and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king." (23)
The fifth miracle: "And the matter was investigated and found to be so." The Malbim explains that this means the tangible evidence itself was found - they discovered the poison they intended to give the king, the "smoking gun." This too was a wonder, for poison is the most concealed thing, hidden with extreme care, yet they searched and found it right on their persons.
And the sixth miracle: "And it was written." Through Divine Providence, the king did not reward Mordechai immediately - he did not open his purse and pay for the favor - but rather the matter was recorded in writing. Nor was it recorded in the ordinary chronicles, but "before the king." Had it been entered into the regular royal chronicles, who was the king's royal scribe? Shimshai, the son of Haman, and he could have altered the record. But this was the king's personal book of chronicles, kept before him, where no one else could tamper with the text. And this itself was another wonder that preserved this merit to stand in Israel's defense later in the story.
In summary:
In this part of the chapter, the Malbim teaches us two overarching themes. First: Esther acted entirely under duress. At every single stage, she stood apart from all the other maidens - they came willingly and for gifts, whereas she “did not request anything” (“לֹא בִקְשָׁה דָּבָר”) and “was taken” (“וַתִּלָּקַח”) against her will. Even after she was crowned, she stood firm in her refusal and did not disclose her people or her homeland, despite Achashverosh’s three methods of persuasion: the feast of Esther, the tax remission for the provinces, and the gifts distributed according to the royal bounty, and even after the virgins were assembled and Mordechai was seated at the king's gate. All of this stemmed from absolute loyalty: “And Esther obeyed Mordechai’s bidding, just as when she was being raised by him” (“וְאֶת־מַאֲמַר מׇרְדֳּכַי אֶסְתֵּר עֹשָׂה כַּאֲשֶׁר הָיְתָה בְאׇמְנָה אִתּוֹ”) - royalty did not change a single thing about her. Second: The Holy One, blessed be He, does not bring a blow without first preparing the cure. Long before the decree was ever heard, two remedies were already set in place: Esther inside the royal palace, and Mordechai saving the king from the two assassins - a merit inscribed in the book of chronicles before the king that no one could alter, which would stand in defense of the Jewish people in their hour of need.