Teresh

Teresh is a Persian chamberlain at the court of Ahasuerus. With his fellow threshold-keeper Bigthan, he plots against the king's life; the conspiracy is uncovered and reported by Mordecai through Queen Esther. The episode is told once and then recalled later when it becomes the lever for Mordecai's elevation.

The Plot Against Ahasuerus

Teresh first appears as a disaffected member of the inner palace guard: "In those days, while Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, two of the king's chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those who kept the threshold, were angry, and sought to lay hands on the king Ahasuerus" (Es 2:21). Mordecai catches wind of the design and reports it: "And the thing became known to Mordecai, who showed it to Esther the queen; and Esther told the king [of it] in Mordecai's name" (Es 2:22). The matter is investigated and the verdict carried out: "And when inquisition was made of the matter, and it was found to be so, they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the Book of the Chronicles before the king" (Es 2:23).

The Record Re-Read

Years later, on the sleepless night that turns the plot of the book, the royal chronicles are read aloud and the entry concerning Teresh is found: "And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king's chamberlains, of those who kept the threshold, who had sought to lay hands on the king Ahasuerus" (Es 6:2). The recovery of this record sets in motion the public honoring of Mordecai.