This week's parsha details the commandment to construct the Mishkan. One of the vessels in the Mishkan is the Shulchan for the Lechem HaPanim. There were three vessels in the Mishkan which had a golden crown - the Shulchan, the Aron, and the Mizbeach. Chazal teach us that these correspond to three crowns - the Shulchan corresponds to the crown of Malchus, the Aron corresponds to the crown of Torah, and the Mizbeach corresponds to the crown of Kehuna.

I believe that the allocation of these three crowns can answer a question that had puzzled me.  The Tanach, and later the Gemara, describe how Dovid escapes from Shaul who is seeking to kill him and how he finds refuge in Nov Ir HaKohanim which was the home of the mishkan.  Dovid, who was fleeing for his life, had not eaten in a very long time and was ravenously hungry.  He approached Achimelech the Kohen Gadol and asked him if there was any bread to spare.  The only bread available was that of the lechem hapanim which was always placed on the shulchan on Erev Shabbos and eaten on Shabbos a week later by the Kohanim.  Under normal circumstances, of course, a non-Kohen is forbidden to partake of the lechem hapanim. However, realizing that Dovid was in a state of pikuach nefesh Achimelech gave David the lechem hapanim because the saving of a life takes precedence.

Dovid HaMelech arrived in Nov on Shabbos, the day of the changing of the duty roster of the Kohanim.  There were therefore twenty-four loaves on the shulchan - twelve for the mishmar which had just finished and twelve for the new mishmar.  From the fact that Dovid ate a huge amount of bread we can deduce that he must have been extremely hungry. Why did Hashem make Dovid HaMelech so hungry that he was forced to consume bread generally forbidden to one who is not a descendant of Aharon HaKohen? Did Hashem not wish to keep him alive? Furthermore, could Hashem not have produced bread other than the Lechem HaPanim for Dovid to eat?

I believe Hashem engineered things in order to hand Dovid HaMelech the

keser malchus in this manner.  As we mentioned, because he was not a descendant of Aharon, David was not entitled to partake of the bread on the shulchan.  By placing him in a state of pikuach nefesh, he now had the right to the food on the shulchan, in this way also taking possession of the crown adorning it - the keser malchus.  

Every korban which is offered brings blessing. The Lechem HaPanim brings bracha to our food, while we find in the Gemara in Rosh Hashana that the Omer offered on Pesach brings bracha to the wheat, the Shtei HaLechem of Shavuos brings bracha to the fruits, while the nisuch hamayim of Sukkos brings bracha to the water. These and other korbanos bring bracha to the entire world.   We find in the Gemara that while the Beis HaMikdash was standing the wine of Yehuda used for nisuch hayaayin was blessed.

We find in the Zohar that a person should have 12 challos on Shabbos corresponding to the twelve loaves of the Lechem HaPanim. There were many Chassidic Rebbes who had this practice. The Vilna Gaon cites the Gemara which states that we should use two challos. The Gaon claims that the Zohar and the Gemara differ on only one issue and this is not it. How then does the Gaon reconcile the Zohar which states that one should use twelve challos on Shabbos with the Gemara which requires two challos? He claims that at each meal both challos should be cut (not only the bottom at night or the top during the day as is the general practice). When both challos are cut it is as if there are four challos on the table. Four challos at each of three Shabbos meals means a total of twelve for the entire Shabbos.

Parshas Emor details all of the moadim beginning with Shabbos. This section of the parsha is followed by details concerning the menorah. The Rokeach comments that the juxtaposition teaches us that this alludes to a future Yom Tov M'D'Rabbanan referring to Chanukah. We then find a description of the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim. Some commentaries claim that this is an allusion to a Yom Tov relating to the Shulchan - Purim.

What is the connection between Purim and the Shulchan? The miracle of Purim came about through Esther's two feasts Esther made. To commemorate this, Purim was established as a Yom Tov of feasting.

The Gemara cites the following discussion:

"The disciples asked R' Shimon ben Yochai: 'why did the enemies of Israel of that generation deserve extermination?'

He said to them: 'You say the reason'.

They said to him: 'Because they derived pleasure from the feast of that wicked one (Achashverosh)'.

R' Shimon ben Yochai replied to them: 'if so, if Haman's decree was a punishment for their enjoying the king's banquet, only the Jews of Shushan should have been ordered killed for only they partook on of the fest. However the Jews in the rest of the entire world should not have been ordered killed.'

The students said to him: 'since our answer is not satisfactory, you tell us why all the Jews were liable'.

He said to them: 'Because they prostrated themselves to an image in the days of Nebuchadnezzar'" (Megillah 12a).

The decree was even approved and accepted in Heaven. Following the people repenting and having accepted the leadership of Mordechai and Esther the decree was annulled.

The Chassam Sofer explains why the transgression of eating from the feast of Achashverosh was worthy of such severe punishment.   The seudah in itself, as Chazal teach us, was Glatt Kosher - all hechsherim were available. In today's terms we would say that one who insisted on Bada"tz Eida Chareidis was able to find food as was one who only ate Bada"tz Beis Yosef. The problem was that the basis for the seudah was "not kosher" for two reasons. Firstly, the feast was Achashverosh celebrating the fact that the Beis HaMikdash was not yet constructed. He went so far as to adorn the celebration with vessels from the Beis HaMikdash. A Jew should certainly not join such a celebration. Secondly, Achashverosh's plan was for the Jewish people to assimilate among the non-Jews.

Mordechai told them not go. Not only did they not heed Mordechai's directive but they blamed his not bowing down to Haman for all their troubles. The Chassam Sofer states that the idol bowed down to during the days of Nebuchadnezzar was not a real avoda zara but was a statue which Nebuchadnezzar erected in his honor as a symbol of his kingship. Had they refused to bow they would have created a great Kiddush Hashem. The fact that only Chananya, Mishael, and Azaryah wished to make such a Kiddush Hashem angered Hashem.

According to the first reason, that Purim is the people's repenting for having partaken in the feast of Achasheverosh, we fast on Ta'anit Esther as a tikkun for perhaps having eaten too much.

The Rambam writes about the importance of having a seudah on Purim, but says that more should be spent on Matanot LaEvyonim. Those who speak English can find an allusion in the Megillah itself: "these days were called Purim - al shem haPur - for the lottery." If we spell haPur - as hapoor - this means that the name Purim was given on account of the poor.

We mentioned that the Jewish people were angry at Mordechai for not bowing down to Haman and blamed him for all their troubles. They then repented and the decree of Haman was retracted - they acknowledged that Mordechai had been right all along.

We find another well-known question posed by the Chassam Sofer. Purim is a celebration of the days in which the Jewish people rested after having defeated the enemy - the prazim on the fourteenth and Shushan along with the walled cities on the fifteenth. The Chassam Sofer wonders why we do not celebrate Purim on the thirteenth of Adar when we achieved victory over our enemies, that way the entire nation would celebrate together. The Chassam Sofer explains that if the entire nation would celebrate Purim on the same day then there would be an entire day in which Torah is not learned - this would be disastrous for the Klal Yisrael and for the entire world. Now that we divide it up over two days, when the prazim are drinking and feasting then the mukafim are learning, and the following day when the mukafim are drinking and feasting the prazim are learning Torah.

This is a beautiful answer, but I would like to suggest another explanation. In Shushan the Jewish people issued a "modaa raba l'Oraysa" that their acceptance of the Torah had been under duress when Hashem placed a mountain over them and threatened to annihilate them should they not accept the Torah.  The acceptance of the Torah was therefore not out of their own volition but out of being forced.

It appears from Yechezkel that following the destruction they wished even less to observe the Torah. They were told that the destruction would last for only 70 years. At the conclusion of 70 years Coresh ordered the construction of the second Beit HaMikdash. They all were happy to see that the prophets were right. However, then came a decree to stop the construction, fearing that they were planning a revolt against Coresh. He therefore issued a letter instructing them to cease construction. For the following 18 years, during the reign of Achashverosh, construction was halted. The people now thought that perhaps the prophets were mistaken.

They therefore issued a "modaa rabba l'Oraysa" that they do not wish to accept the Torah, for they see no end to the churban.   Following the miracle victory when they saw Hashem's hand, they accepted the Torah this time out of free will. In the words of the Gemara, which has become a popular Purim song: "hadur kibluha bimei Achashverosh" "they accepted it again during the days of Achashverosh." We are unable to celebrate on the day of the victory of the war because until the victory was complete they were still accepting the Torah out of fear. It was only after the war ended, when they no longer were under the threat of their enemies that the acceptance of the Torah was out of free will. Celebrating the days in which they rested from their enemies means that the prazim celebrate on the 14th while the people of Shushan celebrate on the 15th.

The Purim celebration is not only for having rested, but for having accepted the Torah out of free will which took place on the day they rested from the enemies. Our simcha is not only because Hashem saved us from Haman and his cohorts but due to our having accepted the Torah out of our own free will. We therefore feast, send mishloach manos, give matanos laevyonim to show that we are not only thankful for being saved from the evil Haman but for having reaccepted the Torah out of our own free will. Purim is a third kabbalas HaTorah, the first was on Shavuos, the second after the chet haegel, and the third was on Purim.