On the very day the enemies of the Jews planned to execute their dark plot, the situation completely reversed. The five hundred men who were killed were not random casualties; they were sworn enemies who had openly provoked the Jews and announced their intentions to attack that day [ביאור שטיינזלץ].
The conflict specifically centered around the royal fortress rather than the general city. There are different ways to understand why the fighting was contained to the palace grounds. One perspective suggests that the Jews were afraid to gather in the open city, which was filled with Haman's supporters and descendants of Amalek. Instead, they sought safety in the royal fortress where the king and Mordecai resided. The enemies, fueled by bitterness and seeking revenge for their leader's downfall, marched right up to the fortress, where they met their end. Alternatively, the fighting was carried out specifically by Mordecai's men who served within the palace, leaving the general city completely untouched [מנות הלוי, אבן עזרא מהדורא תניינא]. Those who died were not ordinary citizens. They were prominent nobles and high-ranking officials who served directly in the royal court [יוסף אבן יחיא].
Even though the royal decree explicitly allowed the Jews to take the spoils of their enemies, they deliberately chose to leave the property untouched. This restraint was meant to show the king that their fight was purely for survival, completely free from any greed or desire for wealth [ישע אלהים]. Furthermore, leaving the spoils sent a clear message that the Jews were acting as the king's official agents. By treating their attackers as rebels against the crown, the Jews ensured that the enemies' wealth would naturally flow into the royal treasury, as was the custom for those executed for treason [אלשיך].
The deaths of these five hundred men are closely linked to the fate of Haman's ten sons. The primary approach among commentators is that separating the two events highlights the sheer wickedness of Haman's children; each son was equal in status and cruelty to all five hundred of the slain officials combined [יוסף אבן יחיא, ישע אלהים]. Another approach offers a different sequence of events, suggesting that the Jews only fought and killed the five hundred men. Haman's ten sons, gripped by overwhelming terror, actually turned their weapons on each other and died by their own hands. They were only hung afterward as a public display to broadcast the miracle and deter the rest of the population from further violence [ישע אלהים].
On a deeper, symbolic level, this historical battle mirrors the internal struggles within the human mind. The royal fortress represents the entire world, while the five hundred slain men symbolize the endless pursuit of wealth and material desires. Haman and his ten sons represent the negative urges and the various physical senses—such as sight, hearing, and taste—that can lead a person astray. Their ultimate destruction reflects the fading of these physical cravings, a natural process of inner growth that often happens as a person matures and learns to be happy with what they have [מחיר יין].