History Crash Course #24: Purim in Persia
A feast celebrating God's abandonment of Israel puts into motion Haman's plot to annihilate the Jews.
The armies of Medes under Darius and the armies of Persia under Cyrus march into Babylon and conquer it. The Babylonian Empire ceases to exist and it is now absorbed by the new Persian Empire.
So what do we have in that part of the world, just to keep it straight? First Assyria, then Babylon, then Persia ― they were all great Mesopotamian empires, one after the other, all interacting with the Jewish people.
In 370 BCE Cyrus issues a decree allowing all the indigenous peoples that had been exiled by the now-defunct Babylonian empire to go back to their homeland. One copy of this decree is on display at the British Museum, and although this version does not specifically mention the Jews, they are included as we learn from the Book of Ezra:
In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, upon the conclusion of the Lord’s prophecy, by the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord aroused the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, and he issued a proclamation throughout his kingdom – and in writing as well, saying, “Thus said Cyrus the King of Persia, ‘All the kingdoms of the earth has the Lord, God of heaven, given to me and He has commanded me to build him a Temple in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of His entire people – may his God be with him – and let him go to Jerusalem which is in Judah and build the Temple of the Lord...” (Ezra 1:3)
Going Home
You would think that the Jews would jump up, pack up and go. But that’s not what happens. Of what is probably a million Jews living in the empire, only 42,000 go back ― only about 5% of those that went into exile 70 years earlier go back and the remaining 95% stays put.
The same thing happened in 1948 when the state of Israel was declared. There were about 12 million Jews in the world at that time and only 600,000 or 5% settled the land. The rest 95% preferred to stay in exile.
Why?
Only about 5% of the Jews that went into exile 70 years before go back to the land of Israel.
The answer is the same for 370 BCE, as it is for 1948, as it is for today. The Diaspora is nice. It’s more comfortable to live in Brooklyn or Los Angeles or Toronto than in Israel. Why move if you have a nice big house in America and a nice standard of living and two cars, and you have nice day schools.
This attitude is repeated in Jewish history, and it is a problem. Because God might give the Jews a little breathing space in Diaspora from time to time, but in the long run, He’s not going to allow them to stay there.
One of the great patterns we’re going to see over and over again is the higher the Jews rise in the Diaspora, the lower they fall. The nicer the Diaspora seems to be at first, the worse the subsequent reaction against the Jews. We see it in Egypt. Jews are invited in, they do well and prosper, and look what happens ― they end up slaves. We see this in Spain. We see this in Germany. All the places that once loved and welcomed the Jews eventually turn on them. Therefore, Jews make a mistake if they ever think that the Diaspora is home. It never works for long. Israel is the only home for the Jews.
The 42,000 Jews that go back in 370 BCE immediately start rebuilding Jerusalem, and, of course, the first thing in Jerusalem that they want to rebuild is the Temple, because a Jew can’t live a complete Jewish life without a Temple.
The Samaritans, who never liked the Jews and who hate this new influx, immediately send a message to Persia demanding that the Jews be forbidden to continue building. They say that if the Jews are allowed to rebuild the Temple, they’re going to rebel.
And, as a result of their threats, Persia freezes the building permit. For 18 years no construction is allowed. And it is during this period that the Purim story, related in the Book of Esther, takes place.
Meanwhile, Back In Persia
Back in Persia, a new king has replaced Cyrus. His name is Achashverosh, and he is married to Vashti, the sole survivor of the blood-bath in the royal palace of Belshazzar during the Persian invasion (as noted in Part 23).
Achashverosh throws a party reminiscent of the one that Belshazzar had thrown some years before. He, too, has been calculating and he has decided that the 70 years allotted in Jeremiah’s prophecy for the Jews to regain the land of Israel is up.
(In truth, Jeremiah prophecy mentions 70 years in different contexts, one referring to when God would “remember” Jerusalem, and another when God would “redeem” Jerusalem. The first 70 years ― counted from the initial conquest of Judea ― was up when the Jews were allowed to return to the land. The second ― counted from the destruction of the Temple ― will not be up for another 14 years when the Temple will finally be rebuilt.)
To this feast, Achashverosh invites the Jews and, unbelievably, they come ― to “celebrate” their own end. This gives you an idea how far gone were the Jews who opted to stay in the comfort of the Persian Diaspora.
To this feast, the king invites the Jews and, unbelievably, they come to “celebrate” their own end.
Though years before they had “sat by the rivers of Babylon and wept,” they had gradually adapted to the comforts of exile to the point that they gradually developed into a positive enjoyment of the pagan way of life and its pleasures. So deep was their desire to fit in that these Jews could actually toast their own public humiliation.
After some drunken revelry featuring (yet again) the Temple vessels, the king orders his wife to appear wearing nothing besides the royal crown. She refuses to come and he has her executed.
Queen-less, the king sends his scouts to round up all the eligible women in the land ― and this is how Esther gets nabbed for the palace. No one knows she is Jewish, and her uncle Mordechai tells her to keep her identity secret. The king falls in love with her and from among all the women taken to the palace Esther becomes queen.
(The Book of Esther is best read with the commentary from the Talmud’s Tractate Megillah, because there are a lot of fascinating details to the story that are left out from the simple telling. However, these details are beyond the scope of a crash course in Jewish history. For more see the Aish.com Purim Site.)
Haman, The Amalekite
Achashverosh’s top minister is a man named Haman HaAgagi. If that rings a bell, it should. Agag was the king of the nation of Amalek whom King Saul neglected to kill as commanded. Haman is an Amalekite, and he harbors a pathological hatred of the Jewish people. (For a detailed explanation of Amalekite ideology see Part 16.)
And so it comes to pass that Haman gets the king to agree to issue a secret decree to annihilate the Jews of Persia on the 13th day of the Hebrew month of Adar. And how he decides on the best date for genocide is very interesting.
Haman throws lots – called “purim.”
Why?
It is part of Amalekite ideology that everything is a random occurrence – everything happens by chance. There is no God running the show. It’s the ultimate denial of reality.
It is part of Amalekite ideology that everything happens by chance.
So this holiday which is called Purim – “Chance” – comes to illustrate that, in fact, nothing happens by chance. From the point that Haman throws the lots – flips the dice, so to speak ― everything begins to flip on him.
Expecting honors from the king, Haman finds himself forced to bestow these honors on his arch-enemy Mordechai. Invited along with the king to the queen’s feast, Haman is preening with pride, only to discover that the queen is Jewish. And that now he is accused of plotting to murder her along with her people. Begging for mercy, he throws himself onto the queen’s bed only to be caught by the king in this precarious position and accused of attempted rape.
Things couldn’t possibly look worse for Haman and then comes the clincher. Having erected a gallows for Mordechai, he finds them put to an unexpected use when he himself is sentenced to death. And the Jews, whom he had wanted to wipe off the face earth, rather than being annihilated are given the king’s permission to annihilate their enemies.
The most fascinating thing about the Book of Esther, which relates this incredible story, is that in the entire text the name of God is never mentioned. We learn from this that after the destruction of the Temple the presence of God was concealed in the world, but that we could still see God acting through history – delivering one hidden miracle after another to help the Jews survive, keeping his promise that Israel would remain an “eternal nation.”
We learn from the Talmud that this state of affairs was actually prophesied in the Book of Deuteronomy, where God says:
“I will surely conceal My face on that day...” (Deut. 31:18)
The Hebrew word for “conceal,” hester ― because of its identical root letters with the name Esther – is read as an allusion to this time.
Hidden Face Of God
In the time when the First Temple stood, you could see God’s presence clearly. You could feel God in Jerusalem. God is always here but since that Temple’s destruction the level of spirituality in general is lower and the Jews’ ability to relate to God from that period of time onward is much less direct.
From this time forward God will not act in history in the open manner He had previously. But God is always there, nevertheless. He’s the master puppeteer behind the scenes putting everything into place.
From this time forward God will not act in history in the open manner He had previously.
The Book of Esther is the ultimate story of God putting the cure before the disease. Everything that’s a seeming disaster, in hindsight works out, so at the end of the story the Jewish people look back and see how incredible it all was.
This is why on Purim Jews get drunk so that they can’t tell the difference between “Blessed be Mordechai” and “Cursed Be Haman.” This is to illustrate that even the worst is really serving the will of God. Everything is not what it seems, which is why on Purim it is a custom to wear masks.
The Hebrew word that best describes Purim is venahafoch hu, meaning “flipped over story.” Whatever bad had seemed to be happening by chance was, in fact, intricately planned for the good. Nothing happens by accident. There’s a design to it all.
This, in fact, sums up Jewish history. Just as in the story of Purim when it’s over we look back and we see how everything fits into place. Nothing is by chance. Everything has a reason and God will make sure that even in the worst circumstances the Jews are always going to have a way out, so that they can accomplish their mission in this world.
The next part of their mission means rebuilding the Temple. Darius II succeeds Achashverosh as King of Persia. He is believed to be Esther’s son and he allows the Jews to finish the job they had started under Cyrus.
This is a very special time in Jewish history when the Jews make a second attempt at getting it right.
History Crash Course #25: The Second Temple
The Holy Temple is rebuilt, but is not the same with the Ark of the Covenant missing.
The rebuilding of the Temple, which had began under Cyrus when the Persians first took over the Babylonian empire, and which was then interrupted for 18 years, resumed with blessing of Darius II, the Persian king whom we believe to be the son of Esther.
The work is completed in 350 BCE and the Temple is re-dedicated. But it is not the same.
The intense spiritually of the First Temple cannot be compared to the Second. The constant open miracles are gone. Prophecy will also disappear during the early years of the second Temple. The Ark of the Covenant is gone ― and although there is a Holy of Holies, it stands empty.
The Ark ― this special gold-lined cedar chest which had contained the tablets of the Ten Commandments ― was the place where theShechina, the Presence of God, descended from heaven between the outstretched wings of the two golden cherubs. What happened to it? The Talmud talks about it and relates two opinions.(1) One opinion says the Babylonians took it into captivity. The other opinion says that it was hidden by King Josiah who had anticipated the impending invasion and destruction.
There's a well-known story told in the Talmud of a cohen, a priest, who finds a loose stone on the Temple Mount and realizes that's where the Ark is hidden. On the way to tell others about it, he dies.(2) The point of the story is that the Ark is not meant to be found. Not yet.
Ezra and Nechemiah
The Jews who rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem were faced with many challenges and difficulties. Strong leadership would be essential for them to be able to both rebuilt the Temple and re-establish a strong community.
Two individuals played a critical role in the re-establishment of the Jewish community in Israel. One was Ezra.
A scribe and scholar and a Jewish community leader in Persia, Ezra, acohen, hears that the Jewish community in the Holy Land is floundering with neither king nor prophet. So, he takes with him 1,496 well-chosen men with leadership abilities and comes to the rescue.
Ezra is so well thought of in the Talmud that it is written of him that "the Torah could have been given to Israel through Ezra, if not that Moses preceded him" (Sanhedrin 21b).
This high praise goes to Ezra for the spiritual rebuilding of the Jewish people and his efforts to reinstate Torah law in the land.
Among his most dramatic reforms is his war against assimilation and inter-marriage.
Indeed, the Book of Ezra condemns all the men living in Israel who had married non-Jewish wives and gives their names ― all 112 of them. (Ezra 10:18-44.)
You might ask: Why the big deal? After all, only 112 men strayed. Today, millions of Jews are intermarrying ― the intermarriage rate in America over 50%. The difference is that 2,500 years ago, even one Jew intermarrying was an outrage. Now society accepts it as normal. So-called "progressive" congregations in America are even shopping for rabbis who will officiate at mixed marriages ― to lend legitimacy to something the Bible repeatedly condemns, and which spells the death of the Jewish people.
Through Ezra's efforts, these mixed marriages are dissolved. All the people are then gathered in Jerusalem ― men and women from all over the country ― and the Torah is read out loud to all. At the end, all present pledge not to intermarry, uphold the Torah and strengthen themselves spiritually.(3)
The other major personality of this period is Nechemiah, a leader of the Jewish community of Babylon and an official of the Emperor Darius II. While Ezra had succeeded in spiritually strengthening the returnees, Jerusalem remained un-walled and unprotected. Thirteen years after the arrival of Ezra, Nechemiah arrives, having been appointed governor by Darius. After surveying Jerusalem he announces: "Come, let us build the walls of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be an object of scorn." (Nechemiah 2:17). Despite the efforts of the surrounding peoples to hinder its construction, the wall is completed. Spiritually and physically fortified, Jerusalem will prosper and its population will expand.
Spiritual Vacuum
Despite Ezra's efforts (and those of the other leaders) the Temple is spiritually a shadow of its former self.
The returnees from Babylon are not in a position to rebuild the Temple as splendid as Solomon's. Eventually (circa 30 BCE) it will be rebuilt again by Herod the Great, and made into a spectacular structure, but even though it is going to be physically beautiful, it will be spiritually empty when compared with the First Temple. And even though there are going to be High Priests, the institution will become corrupt.
According to the Talmud, during the First Temple period of about 410 years, there were only 18 High Priests. During the Second Temple period of 420 years, there were more than 300 High Priests! We know (from the Talmud, Yoma 9a) that Yochanan was High Priest for 80 years, Shimon was High Priest for 40 years, and Yishmael ben Pabi was High Priest for 10 years. That means in the remaining 290 years there were at least 300 priests ― one every year or so. What accounts for that?
The Talmud tells us that the Holy of Holies was forbidden ground, except for Yom Kippur. On that one day only, the High Priests entered to perform special rites before God. But if he himself was not spiritually pure and unable to focus, he would not be able to stand the intense encounter with God and would die on the spot. We know that during the Second Temple Period a rope had to be tied to the High Priest, so that in case he died, he could be pulled out of the Holy of Holies.
Because the whole High Priesthood was a corrupted institution for most of the Second Temple period, the High Priests died or were replaced every year. (4) And yet people clamored for the job, which went to the highest bidder. So the question has to be asked: If he was going to die on Yom Kippur, who would want the position? One possible answer is that many of the candidates strongly believed that their incorrect Temple service was actually the correct way to do it.(5) That is how bad things go
Loss of Prophecy
Why did things get so bad?
Largely because prophecy disappeared from the land and strong central authority was largely lacking.
When the prophets were around and leadership was strong, heresy was much more difficult. A prophet talked to God and he'd straighten a heretic right out. No one could deny basic tenets of Judaism in the face of prophecy and open miracles. In the period of the Judges and the First Temple an individual could always make a free-will decision to reject Judaism, worship idols and even use the impure spirituality of idolatry to perform magic and divination, but the presence of prophets and strong leadership made it virtually impossible to undermine the philosophy and practices of Judaism.
But when prophecy disappeared and central authority was weakened, it became easier for people to stray and for various holy institutions (like the High Priesthood) to become corrupt.
Prophecy disappeared because the Jewish people had damaged their relationship with God. They were spiritually weaker and could not do the same intense spiritual work required to achieve prophecy(6). To be a prophet you have to perfect yourself spiritually, you have to have total self control. It's the ultimate Jewish expression of who being a great man is. The sages say, "Who is a great man? He who conquers his inclination (controls himself)." [Ethics of the Fathers, 4:1]
Prophecy in the Jewish understanding is not just the ability to predict the future. It is a state of transcendence of the physical world. It means the prophet has entered such a high plane of understanding that he or she is able to communicate with the Infinite and access information and understanding inaccessible to a normal person.
Moses was the ultimate prophet ― that is he reached the highest level of prophecy that is humanly possible. But there were many others ― hundreds of thousands, according to the Talmud ― who achieved lesser levels and were prophets. In the story of Saul, we talked about how the Jewish people consulted the prophets on everything, including lost objects. But that phenomenon disappears during the early years of the second Temple. "After the later prophets, Haggai, Zecharia, and Malachi, had died, the prophetic spirit disappeared from the Jewish people..." (Yoma 9b)(7)
If anyone is interested in how to become a prophet there is an instruction book available. It called "Path of the Just" and it was written in the 18th century by the great Kabbalist, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato, also known as the Ramchal. This is a guidebook on how to get complete control of yourself physically, emotionally and spiritually so you can transcend this world and become a prophet. In his book, The Way of God, Rabbi Luzzatto clearly defines the concept of prophecy:
The main concept of true prophecy is therefore that a living person achieves such an attachment and bond with God. This in itself is certainly a very high degree of perfection. Besides this, however, it is often accompanied by certain information and enlightenment. Through prophecy one can gain knowledge of many lofty truths among God's hidden mysteries. These things are perceived very clearly... Part of a prophet's career may include being sent on a mission by God(8).
But even if you master that book, you will not be a prophet. Why not? Because the gates of prophecy are closed to us. Why? Because prophecy is only possible if the rest of the Jewish people are also spiritually elevated.
As an individual you can reach a tremendously high level but you can only reach so high. To get all the way to the top and break through the threshold, you've got to "stand on the shoulders" of the Jewish people because there has to be a minimum level of spirituality of the entire nation upon which to rest yourself so that you can reach the level of prophecy. If the nation drops below that level, that threshold, it doesn't matter how much you stand on your tippy-toes and reach up, you're not going to succeed. And during the Second Temple period, we're going to see the Jewish people dropping below a certain threshold of spirituality which they're never going to attain again during the entire period.
As we saw from the Purim story-by the time we arrive at the period of the Second Temple, God's presence is hidden, the Ark of the Covenant is hidden as is prophecy.
The Talmud says there were definitely individuals living at this time, who, had they lived earlier, would most certainly have been prophets. "There is one among you who deserves that the Shechina (Divine Presence) should rest on him as it did on Moses, but his generation is not deserving." (Sanhedrin 11a) But the door to prophecy had been slammed in the face of the Jewish people. And we are told that it will not be opened again until the Messianic Era.
Following the destruction of the First Temple when it became apparent that the Jewish people were growing weaker spiritually, a group of wise leaders came together ― expanding the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Supreme Court, from 70 to 120 members ― with a special aim of preserving and strengthening Judaism in the Diaspora and afterward. They were the Men of the Great Assembly.
1) See Talmud ― Yoma 52b-53b.
2) Talmud ― Yoma 53b
3) Nechemia 10:30-31.
4) See Talmud ― Yoma 9a.
5) See: Talmud ― Yoma 19b-for an account of Sadducee High Priest who dies due to his improper actions while in the Holy of Holies.
6) See: Rashi on Shir HaShirim 6:5.
7) See also: Talmud ― Sanhedrin 11a
8) Luzzatto, Derech Hashem III:3:4 & III:4:6; see also Talmud ― Nedarim.
2) Talmud ― Yoma 53b
3) Nechemia 10:30-31.
4) See Talmud ― Yoma 9a.
5) See: Talmud ― Yoma 19b-for an account of Sadducee High Priest who dies due to his improper actions while in the Holy of Holies.
6) See: Rashi on Shir HaShirim 6:5.
7) See also: Talmud ― Sanhedrin 11a
8) Luzzatto, Derech Hashem III:3:4 & III:4:6; see also Talmud ― Nedarim.
History Crash Course #26: The Great Assembly
Extraordinary sages define the essence of Judaism for the Jews of Israel and the Diaspora.
The Men of the Great Assembly -- in Hebrew, Anshei Knesset HaGedolah -- was an unusual group of Jewish personalities who assumed the reigns of Jewish leadership between 410 BCE and 310 BCE. This time period follows the destruction of the First Temple, and includes the early decades of the Second Temple, up until the invasion of the Greeks, led by Alexander the Great.
Realizing that the Jewish people were growing weaker spiritually, a group of wise leaders came together -- expanding the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Supreme Court, from 70 to 120 members -- with a special aim of strengthening Judaism. Initially gathered together by Ezra, they defined Judaism in this tumultuous time when prophecy and kingship were all but gone from the Jewish people.
(Today's Israeli Parliament, which is called "the Knesset," also has 120 members in imitation of the Great Assembly although the Knesset of today serves an entirely different function of the Great Assembly of 2,500 years ago.)
Among them we count the last of the prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, as well as the sages Mordechai, (of the Purim story), Yehoshua, (the High Priest), Nechemia (the chief architect of rebuilding of Jerusalem), Shimon HaTzaddik (also a High Priest).
Keep in mind that at this time the Talmud has not yet been compiled. Knowing how to live a Jewish life depends on knowing the commandments of the Torah and their interpretations and applications which have been passed down orally -- in short, knowing what is known as the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, both of which date back to Moses' teachings at Sinai.
It is impossible to understand the Written Torah without its Oral complement. For example, when the Written Torah states: "And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart ... and you shall write them upon the door-posts of your house and upon your gateways," it is the Oral Torah that explains which "words" the Written Torah is referring to, and that these words should be penned on a small scroll and affixed to the door frame. Without the Oral Torah we wouldn't know about the mezuzah and countless other ways of day-to-day Judaism.
ACCURATE TRANSMISSION
The destruction of the first Temple and ensuing exile were incredibly traumatic experiences for the Jewish people: The Temple and its daily service were gone as was the monarchy. The Jews found themselves in an alien land with none of the normative institutions fundamental to Judaism. (Ironically, the Jewish world is still in the same situation. The difference is that after 2,500 years the exile is so comfortable that what is really an abnormal situation is now accepted as totally normal) As the Jewish people struggle with the aftermath of exile, accurate transmission of this oral tradition becomes essential. And here is where the Men of the Great Assembly make the greatest contribution.(1)
As we see in history, to the extent that the Jews stop living according to Jewish law and tradition (i.e. that which makes them Jewish), to that extent they assimilate and disappear. Therefore, the contributions of these men can be said to account to a large measure for Jewish survival.
The Mishna pays them great homage:
Moses received the Torah from Sinai and conveyed to Joshua, Joshua to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets to the Men of the Great Assembly ... Shimon HaTzaddik was one of the remnants of the Great Assembly. He used to say, "The world stands on three things: on the Torah; on the service of God, and upon acts of loving-kindness..." (Ethics of the Fathers, 1:1)
THE CONTENTS OF THE BIBLE
In addition to insuring the accurate transmission of the Oral Torah, the Men of the Great Assembly decide which of the multitude of Jewish holy writings should be in the Bible. The Jewish people have produced hundreds of thousands of prophets (both men and women). Which of their writings should be preserved for future generations and which had limited applicability?
The Men of the Great Assembly make this decision and give us what is known as the Hebrew Bible today -- or the Tanach. (Tanach is a Hebrew acronym which stands for Torah, Prophets, Writings.)
This is what the Christians call the "Old Testament" but traditionally Jews never call it that. "Testament" is derived from the Latin wordtestari meaning "to be a witness." The Hebrew Bible was named the Old Testament by the Christians because of their belief that God cancelled the covenant he made with the Jews and made a new covenant, "New Testament," with the followers of Jesus. As Jews deny that God would ever "change His mind" after promising the Jews they would be His "eternal nation", they find that term insulting.
The Hebrew Bible consists of the five books of the Torah, eight books of the prophets (the last of which consists of twelve short books) and 11 books of various writings, which include the Psalms (largely attributed to King David), the writings of King Solomon (Song of Songs, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes), the books of Job, Ruth, Esther and Daniel etc.
PRAYER
The last thing that the Men of the Great Assembly do is formalize prayer. They actually begin a process which is not finished until the 2nd century CE, after the destruction of the Second Temple, but they lay down the key principles and basic structure of formalized prayer.(2)
During the First Temple period, there was no need for formalized Jewish prayer liturgy, because God's presence was more manifest. It was much easier for the individual to have a close, intense, personal relationship with God. Additionally, a great deal of what is now the object of prayer was formally accomplished through the offering of sacrifices and the Temple service. Of course, when the Second Temple was rebuilt, sacrifices resumed, but most of the Jews had not returned to the land of Israel and therefore had no access to this medium of connecting to God via the Temple. In addition, as mentioned previously, even with the Temple rebuilt, the connection during the Second temple period was much weaker.
Therefore, the times of the formalized prayer are designed to correspond to times when things were done in the Temple: the morning prayer is designed to correspond to the Shacharit Service in the Temple; the afternoon prayer corresponds to the Mincha Service; a the evening prayer, Ma'ariv, corresponds to the nightly duties (as there were no sacrifices as night).
The centerpiece of each selection of prayers (repeated three times a day) is the Shmonei Esrai, "The Eighteen Blessings." Each "blessing" is stated in the plural, to underscore the interdependency of the Jewish people, and each blessing is rooted in Torah and Kabbalah.
The mystical depth of this prayer -- a masterpiece of writing by the Great Assembly -- is astounding. For example, the blessing for healing is composed of 27 words, corresponding to the 27 words in the verse in the Torah (Exodus 15:26) where God promises to be the Healer of the Jewish people. It is said (Nefesh HaChaim 2:13) that the text of the Shmonei Esrai is so spiritually powerful that even when recited without intention, feeling or understanding, its words have a great impact on the world.
Through Divine inspiration and sheer genius the Men of the Great Assembly were able to create out of the ashes of a physically destroyed nation, a spiritually thriving people. Their work defined and anchored Jewish religious and national identity and created focus, unity and uniformity for the Jewish people, no matter where in the world they might be scattered.
The last surviving member of the Great Assembly was Shimon HaTzaddik. Under him, according to the ancient historian Josephus (Contra Apion 1:197), the Jews of Israel prospered and Jewish population in the land reached 350,000.
It helped the Jews physically (if not spiritually) that the Persians were such benevolent dictators. But the picture was about the change with the growing power of the Greek Empire looming on the horizon.
1) See Talmud-Nedarim 37b; Kiddushin 30a
2) See Talmud-Megillah 17b. The process was completed after the destruction of the Second Temple by the Sanhedrin in Yavne. In addition to prayer, the Men of the Great Assembly also instituted the blessings said before and after food and the performance of various commandments as well as Kiddush and Havdallah before and after the Sabbath.
2) See Talmud-Megillah 17b. The process was completed after the destruction of the Second Temple by the Sanhedrin in Yavne. In addition to prayer, the Men of the Great Assembly also instituted the blessings said before and after food and the performance of various commandments as well as Kiddush and Havdallah before and after the Sabbath.
