The Targum Rishon, also known as the First Targum of Esther in the Hebrew, is an Aramaic translation (targum) and elaboration of the Book of Esther. Much less apocryphal material is used to embellish its account compared with Targum Sheni (also known as the Second Targum of Esther), and it is also significantly shorter, as Targum Sheni is two and a half times its length.[1] Neither should be confused with another targum of Esther mentioned by tractate Megillah of the Talmud, which is an earlier but now lost text.[2] Targum Rishon is dated approximately between 500 and 700, and is of Palestinian provenance.[3] It postdates the Babylonian Talmud.[1] One recent analysis, though the conclusion remains tentative, places both targums no later than the early seventh century and in Palestine, composed roughly in the same period; furthermore, it proposes that both derive from an earlier rabbinic text known as Esther Rabbati.[4]
The text alternates between word-for-word renderings of Esther and entire rewrites. The majority of the time, only a few words are added to clarify the meaning of the passage. One is example is Targum Rishon to Esther 3:5: "Haman became filled with anger against Mordekhai" (italics added). One case of a lengthy insertion is in Targum Rishon 1:1. The original verse reads:
It happened during the days of the wicked Xerxes, the Xerxes who ruled 127 provinces, from India to Western Ethiopia.
Whereas the Targum reads[3]:
It happened during the days of the wicked Xerxes, the Xerxes in whose days (the decree allowing) work on the house of the great God was revoked. It remained revoked until the second year of Darius on the advice of the sinful Vashti , daughter of Evil Merodakh, son of Nebukhadnezzar. Because she did not permit the rebuilding of the Temple, it was decreed she be executed in the nude. And because Xerxes listened to her advice, his life was shortened and his kingdom was split up. Previously all peoples, nations, and (speakers of various) languages, and provinces were under his rule, but now they were no longer subjected to him. In view of this fact, and subsequently, when it was revealed before the Lord that Vashti would be killed and that he was destined to marry Esther, who was a descendant of Sarah, who lived 127 years, he was given an extension and he ruled 127 provinces, from India to Western Ethiopia.
The passage adds significant new information about Ahasuerus and Vashti. Vashti is now cast as the granddaughter of Nebuchadnezzar II, who destroyed the Second Temple, explaining why Targum Rishon portrays her so negatively. Another fantastic embellishment can be found in Targum Rishon 6:1. Overall, Targum Rishon tends to add more midrashic material as opposed to directly interpreting the text.[4]
Another addition Targum Rishon adds is to make Esther a much more religious and Jewish text. The original text does not mention God or any recognizably Jewish practices. In Targum Rishon, God becomes an active participant in the progression of the story, for example by punishing Haman, and later again saving his people from Haman's decree. Esther performs a lengthy prayer to gain favor with the king and overcome the evil plans of Haman in Targum Rishon 5:1, and so forth. Furthermore, Esther now performs a variety of Jewish practices, including the observance of Shabbat and the festivals, and she follows menstrual restrictions and food regulations. References are also made to Abraham, Jacob, and Isaac to link Israel to their past.[1]
^ abcFlesher, Paul V. M.; Chilton, Bruce (2011-01-01), "12 Targums to the Writings", The Targums, Brill, pp. 246–252, doi:10.1163/9789004218178_013, ISBN 978-90-04-21817-8, retrieved 2024-03-28
^McNamara, Martin; McNamara, Martin (2010). Targum and Testament revisited: Aramaic paraphrases of the Hebrew Bible: a light on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, Mich: William B. Eerdmans Pub. p. 328. ISBN 978-0-8028-6275-4.
^ abDamsma, Alinda (2014). "The Targums to Esther". European Judaism: A Journal for the New Europe. 47 (1): 127–136. ISSN 0014-3006.
^ abEnns, Peter; Longman, Tremper, eds. (2008). Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings: A Compendium of Contemporary Biblical Scholarship. p. 178.
The TargumRishon, also known as the First Targum of Esther in the Hebrew, is an Aramaic translation (targum) and elaboration of the Book of Esther. Much...
to as the Second Targum of Esther to contrast it with another shorter targum on the Book of Esther: TargumRishon, or the First Targum of Esther. The relationship...
date of the first Targum is about 700 (see S. Posner, "Das TargumRishon," Breslau, 1896). Targum Sheni, also known as the Second Targum of Esther, containing...
Middle Ages, of which three survive – the TargumRishon ("First Targum" or 1TgEsth) and Targum Sheni ("Second Targum" or 2TgEsth) dated c. 500–1000 CE, which...
High Priest once and for all. Chazalic literature – specifically Targum Jonathan, Targum Yerushalmi, and the Babylonian Talmud – presents his name (מלכי־צדק)...
journey: a complete history of the Jewish people from creation to the present. Targum Press. p. 700. ISBN 978-1-56871-323-6. Morgenstern, Arie (2006). Hastening...
Major Concepts of the Talmud: An Encyclopedic Resource Guide, Volume 1. Targum Press. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-56871-465-3. Retrieved March 15, 2013. Leviticus...
Qumran, which gives the name as liliyyot, and by the targum to Isaiah, which, in both cases, reads" (Targum reads: "when Lilith the Queen of [Sheba] and of...
Gamaliel and Hiyya the Great encouraged eating only pure food at all times. Targum Yonathan considered this to be implicit in Exodus 22:30. One who kept this...
numerical value of the Hebrew letters, for example יום א׳ (Day 1, or Yom Rishon (יום ראשון)): The names of the days of the week are modeled on the seven...
attributed to Rabbi Jonathan ben Uzziel, known as Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, all in addition to Rashi and Targum Onkelos; while commentaries on Nakh are those...
tradition of reading the Torah in the synagogue in both Hebrew and the Aramaic Targum ("translation"). Most non-Yemenite synagogues have a specified person called...
mikra ve-echad targum, independently reviewing the upcoming parashah (weekly Torah portion) twice in the original Hebrew and once in Targum Onkelos (an Aramaic...
in the Second Adar (Adar Sheni). The 14th and 15th of First Adar (Adar Rishon) are known as Purim Katan Purim Katan (פורים קטן) (lit., "small Purim")...
romanized: pareleusetai in Exodus 12:23, and ἐσκέπασεν, eskepasen in Exodus 12:27.) The Targum Onkelos, written in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic, translates pesach as Hebrew:...
collections of ancient Jewish writings, such as the Talmud, the Tosefta, the targums, and the midrashim... 'On the eve of Passover, they hanged Yeshu [= Jesus...
5 March 2024. "פעלתי כסייען של ישראל, אך לא בגדתי בעם הפלסטיני". Makor Rishon. 13 May 2017. Retrieved 4 February 2024. Ben-Zvi, Itzhak (1967). שאר ישוב:...
"Melchizedek as Priest of the Jerusalem Temple in Talmud, Midrash, and Targum" (PDF). The Temple Studies Group. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3...
example of this stance is the Black Orthodox Jewish writer and activist Shais Rishon, who has written that the International Israelite Board of Rabbis is not...
read the entire weekly portion twice (the law of shnayim mikra ve-echad targum). According to R. Yehudah, God Himself studies the Torah for the first three...
Coopersmith; Shraga Simmons (2003). Israel: Life In The Shadow Of Terror. Targum. ISBN 9781568712376. Retrieved 16 March 2011. Charles W. Greenbaum; Philip...
and Israel." The phrase "though I was a husband to them" is in Masoretic, Targum and Vulgate versions, whereas the Septuagint and Syriac versions have "and...
Global Information