Megillah as Divine Scripture: Rambam vs Raavad on Messianic Era

Full Summary

This shiur examines a fascinating machlokes between the Rambam (רמב"ם) and Raavad regarding the status of Tanach in the Messianic era. The Rambam holds that all sifrei nevi'im and kesuvim will become batel (nullified) in the times of Mashiach, except for Megillas Esther, which will remain like the five books of Torah (תורה) and like the laws of Torah she'ba'al peh. The Raavad strongly disagrees, calling this view 'devarim beteilim' (foolish words), arguing that no sefer will be nullified since every book contains wisdom to be learned. Rabbi Zweig presents two fundamental disputes between these positions. First, regarding genizah: the Rambam holds all other sifrei Tanach will require genizah (burial) while only Megillah remains, whereas the Raavad maintains all books retain their status for learning. Second, regarding public reading: the Raavad agrees that only Megillah will continue to be read publicly, but other books simply won't have a requirement of public reading - they won't be buried. The shiur addresses the Raavad's challenge by citing the Gemara (גמרא)'s statement that had Israel not sinned, they would have only received the five books of Torah and Sefer Yehoshua. This implies that all the wisdom in Nevi'im and Kesuvim could theoretically be derived from the Torah itself. Because of our sins, we needed this wisdom 'spoon-fed' to us through additional books. In the Messianic era, when we return to a higher spiritual level, we'll be able to derive all necessary wisdom directly from the Torah. A crucial element discussed is the Gemara's requirement that Megillas Esther needs sirtut (ruled lines) 'like a Sefer Torah.' Rabbi Zweig suggests this indicates that Megillah contains the actual words of Hashem (ה׳), not merely the prophet's interpretation of divine messages. Unlike other nevi'im who received divine visions and expressed them in their own words, Megillas Esther represents Hashem's own formulation - His version of events, not Esther's version. The shiur explores the Gemara's statement that the forty-eight prophets and seven prophetesses didn't add or subtract anything from the Torah, except for mikra Megillah. Rabbi Zweig interprets this not as referring to the mitzvah (מצוה) of reading Megillah, but to the text itself being a 'hosafah' (addition) to the Torah - additional words of Hashem discovered and recorded. The proof text 'v'nichtav b'sefarim' (and it was written in the books) is explained as indicating that Megillah is a 'signed document' - unlike Sefer Torah which we know is from Hashem through Moshe's testimony, the Megillah bears Hashem's own signature, as it were. This makes it unique among all post-Torah literature. The shiur concludes by explaining why Megillah, despite containing Hashem's words, cannot become part of the Torah itself: because it wasn't spoken by Hashem to Moshe Rabbeinu and then written down. Torah required both divine speech and Mosaic transcription, while Megillah was divinely written without being divinely spoken. This technical distinction maintains Megillah's special status while preserving the unique nature of Torah she'bichsav.