We've reached the high point of the Book of Tobit. This fourteen day feast is clearly larger and more celebratory than the one thrown for Tobit on his arrival in 7:0. A seven day celebration was typical for Jewish weddings. That's why it is surprising that Raguel wants to double the days. One commentator suggested that the 14 day celebration would have balanced the seven calamities of Tobit and seven calamities of Sarah. It's also possible that the father of an only daughter who had lost seven sons-in-law before they could even have such a celebration was so ecstatic at breaking the curse and being able to publicly celebrate his new son that he doubled the time. It serves to allow Raphael to travel to Rages to get the original objective of the journey, the money from Gabael. however, that money seems somewhat less important now that Tobiah has just married the sole heir to Raguel's wealth which, by all accounts, seems rather substantial. Nonetheless, it allows Gabael to meet Tobiah and gives us a glimpse into the change that's happened to Tobiah. You can imagine Tobiah, in the first few chapters, timidly leaving his father and mother with the strong assistance of Raphael. now you can hear tha Tobiah is clearly in charge when he tells Raphael what to do (see for instance 9:2ff). Tobiah has become a man
The unfortunate consequence of Raguel's lavish wedding celebration is that Tobit has become concerned and Anna has worried herself to the point of a nervous breakdown. Unfortunately, there is a mistranslation in our current version because, in 10:6, when Tobit tells his wife "hush" and tries to comfort her about the trustworthiness of Raphael, he tells her (prophetically) that they have probably just taken care of some unexpected business. Anna's response, in 10:7, should be literally translated "Hush yourself!" instead of "Stop it" to show that it was the kind of response a frustrated spouse. Nonetheless, despite Anna's conviction that her son is dead, she remains vigilant in keeping watch throughout the day, a side of how strong this mother must have been in trying circumstances. This is an interesting use of a "story within a story" to help remind the reader of what still needs to happen.
The party continues in Ecbatana and Tobiah is getting worried about his family so he finally asks Raguel if he can go home. The very similar speeches that both Raguel and Edna give tell of the priorities of the day. Both long to see grandchildren. Both worry about the safety of the travelers. It is interesting that Raguel is concerned about how Sarah will act toward her future in-laws while Edna is concerned with how Tobiah will treat Sarah. Tobiah feels "full of happiness and joy at the prospect of traveling back home to see his mother and father.
As they leave, Raphael gets the idea of running ahead at some point .There are some geographic difficulties again as the town of Kaerin has never been found and may be a mistranslation of the original manuscript. Still, our hearts can feel nothing but joy at the return of our traveling companion, the dog, overpowers any confusion regarding the names of towns.
As Tobiah and Raphael run together toward Nineveh, Raphael reminds him of what he must to to heal his father, a description that somewhat loses its effect since we've known for a while that he has what he needs to complete this part of the mission. As the two draw near home, Anna receives the reward for her patient waiting as she runs to her town, throws her arms around, him and (apparently) knocks him down (11:14 "Tobit got up")
Without telling his father what he's up to, Tobiah applies the remedy to the cataracts and pulled with both hands to allow his father to be able to see again, There is a close connection to the Book of Job in Tobit's view of his affliction. (See Job 1:20-21). He has an understanding which seems to say that we should expect both good and bad things from god. Tobit "bursts into tears", the same expression used when he found out he was blind in 3:1. All of this causes great joy in Tobit and Anna, who next learn about their new daughter-in-law. Just as Raguel took joy at his wedding feast partially because of the fact that he didn't have to bury another son-in-law, so Tobit takes pride in the fact that he can see. In fact, all the Jews exiled in Nineveh take pride in the wedding of Tobiah and Sarah and it becomes a source of celebration in the difficult circumstances of being held captive on foreign soil.
One interesting detail is the mention of Ahiqar (and his nephew), a name mentioned in a non-biblical book called The Story of Ahikar, Grand Vizier of Assyria. Available online by clicking on the previous title, this story tells how Ahiqar raises his nephew, Nadan, as his successor since he has not children of his won. Nadan turns on his Uncle and almost gets him killed. Ahiqar, however, is so respected that the executioner refuses to carry out King Sennacherib's orders. When Sennacherib finds that no one is as good of a worker as Ahiqar was, he laments trying to have him killed. That's when the executioner fesses up. When Ahiqar returns to Babylon, he locks up Nadan and confuses him with parables until his Nephew dies. This story would have been familiar to the listeners of Tobit and may have indicated that his wedding was so great that even Ahiqar let his evil nephew out for the week to attend.
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