On the thirteenth day of the month Adar; and on the fourteenth day of the same rested they, and made it a day of feasting and gladness.
Both sides came armed and ready, for both knew what was coming; this was no ambush but a fair trial. The Jews' enemies were stubborn fools who refused to learn from Haman's fall and Mordecai's rise, and chose instead to rush toward their own destruction. Had they only sat still, not a hair of their heads would have fallen; but they could not resist the urge to meddle, and so they rolled a stone upon themselves that crushed them.
AI summary
Commenting on Esther 9:1-19
The villages kept the fourteenth day as their festival because they dwelt in unwalled towns, while Shushan and other walled cities kept the fifteenth. The Jewish canons fix this by what was walled in Joshua's time, though Shushan is excepted because a miracle occurred there. Each day became a public rejoicing for deliverance, marked by sending portions to one another and gifts to the poor.
AI summary
On the thirteenth day of the month Adar; and on the fourteenth day of the same rested they, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. (i) Meaning, in all places saving Shushan.