GetPassageurn:cts:pbc:bible.parallel.eng.darby:17urn:cts:pbc:bible.parallel.eng.darby:17And it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus ( that is , the Ahasuerus that reigned from India even to Ethiopia , over a hundred and twenty-seven provinces ) , in those days , when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom , which was in Shushan the fortress , in the third year of his reign , he made a feast to all his princes and his servants ; the power of Persia and Media , the nobles and the princes of the provinces being before him ; when he shewed the glorious wealth of his kingdom and the splendid magnificence of his grandeur many days , a hundred and eighty days . And when these days were expired , the king made a feast to all the people that were present in Shushan the fortress , both to great and small , seven days , in the court of the garden of the king's palace . White , green , and blue [ hangings ] were fastened with cords of byssus and purple to silver rings and pillars of white marble ; couches of gold and silver [ lay ] upon a pavement of red and white marble , and alabaster , and black marble . And they gave drink in vessels of gold ( the vessels being diverse one from another ) , and royal wine in abundance , according to the king's bounty . And the drinking was , according to commandment , without constraint ; for so the king had appointed to all the magnates of his house , that they should do according to every man's pleasure . Also the queen Vashti made a feast for the women of the royal house which belonged to king Ahasuerus . On the seventh day , when the king's heart was merry with wine , he commanded Mehuman , Biztha , Harbona , Bigtha , and Abagtha , Zethar , and Carcas , the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of king Ahasuerus , to bring Vashti the queen before the king with the royal crown to shew the peoples and the princes her beauty ; for she was of beautiful countenance . But the queen Vashti refused to come at the word of the king which was [ sent ] by the chamberlains ; and the king was very wroth , and his fury burned in him . And the king said to the wise men who knew the times ( for so was the king's business [ conducted ] before all that knew law and judgment ; and the next to him were Carshena , Shethar , Admatha , Tarshish , Meres , Marsena , [ and ] Memucan , the seven princes of Persia and Media , who saw the king's face , and who sat first in the kingdom ) , What shall be done to the queen Vashti according to law , because she has not performed the word of the king Ahasuerus by the chamberlains ? Then said Memucan before the king and the princes , The queen Vashti has not done wrong to the king only , but also to all the princes , and to all the peoples that are in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus . For the act of the queen will come abroad to all women , so as to render their husbands contemptible in their eyes , when they shall say , The king Ahasuerus commanded the queen Vashti to be brought in before him , and she came not ! And the princesses of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen's act , will say it this day to all the king's princes , and there will be contempt and anger enough . If it please the king , let a royal order go forth from him , and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes , that it may not pass , That Vashti come no more before king Ahasuerus ; and let the king give her royal estate to another that is better than she ; and when the king's edict which he shall make shall be heard throughout his realm -- for it is great -- all the wives shall give to their husbands honour , from the greatest to the least . And the saying pleased the king and the princes ; and the king did according to the word of Memucan . And he sent letters into all the king's provinces , into every province according to the writing thereof , and to every people according to their language , That every man should bear rule in his own house , and should speak according to the language of his people . After these things , when the fury of king Ahasuerus was appeased , he remembered Vashti , and what she had done , and what was decreed against her . Then said the king's servants that attended upon him , Let there be maidens , virgins of beautiful countenance , sought for the king ; and let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom , that they may gather together all the young virgins of beautiful countenance to Shushan the fortress , to the house of the women , unto the custody of Hegai the king's chamberlain , keeper of the women ; and let their things for purification be given . And let the maiden that pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti . And the thing pleased the king ; and he did so . There was in Shushan the fortress a certain Jew , whose name was Mordecai , the son of Jair , the son of Shimei , the son of Kish , a Benjaminite , who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captives who had been carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah , whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away . And he brought up Hadassah , that is , Esther , his uncle's daughter ; for she had neither father nor mother -- and the maiden was fair and beautiful -- and when her father and mother were dead , Mordecai took her for his own daughter . And it came to pass when the king's commandment and his decree was heard , and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the fortress , unto the custody of Hegai , that Esther also was brought into the king's house , unto the custody of Hegai , keeper of the women . And the maiden pleased him , and obtained favour before him ; and he speedily gave her her things for purification , and her portions , and the seven maidens selected to be given her , out of the king's house ; and he removed her and her maids to the best [ place ] of the house of the women . Esther had not made known her people nor her birth ; for Mordecai had charged her that she should not make it known . And Mordecai walked every day before the court of the women's house , to know how Esther did , and what should become of her . And when every maiden's turn came to go in to king Ahasuerus after that she had been treated for twelve months , according to the manner of the women ( for so were the days of their purification accomplished -- six months with oil of myrrh , and six months with spices , and with things for the purifying of the women , and thus came the maiden in unto the king ) , whatever she desired was given her to go with her out of the house of the women to the king's house . In the evening she went , and on the morrow she returned into the second house of the women , unto the custody of Shaashgaz , the king's chamberlain , keeper of the concubines . She came in to the king no more , unless the king delighted in her , and she were called by name . And when the turn of Esther , the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai , who had taken her for his daughter , came to go in to the king , she required nothing but what Hegai the king's chamberlain , keeper of the women , appointed . And Esther obtained grace in the sight of all them that saw her . So Esther was taken to king Ahasuerus , into his royal house , in the tenth month , that is , the month Tebeth , in the seventh year of his reign . And the king loved Esther above all the women , and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins , and he set the royal crown upon her head , and made her queen instead of Vashti . And the king made a great feast to all his princes and his servants , Esther's feast ; and he made a release to the provinces , and gave presents according to the king's bounty . And when the virgins were gathered together the second time , Mordecai sat in the king's gate . ( Esther , as Mordecai had charged her , had not yet made known her birth nor her people ; for Esther did what Mordecai told her , like as when she was brought up with him . ) In those days , while Mordecai sat in the king's gate , two of the king's chamberlains , Bigthan and Teresh , of those which kept the threshold , were wroth , and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus . And the thing became known to Mordecai , and he related it to Esther the queen , and Esther told it to the king in Mordecai's name . And the matter was investigated and found out ; and they were both hanged on a tree . And it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king . After these things king Ahasuerus promoted Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite , and advanced him , and set his seat above all the princes that were with him . And all the king's servants that were in the king's gate bowed and did Haman reverence , for the king had so commanded concerning him . But Mordecai bowed not , nor did [ him ] reverence . Then the king's servants , who were in the king's gate , said to Mordecai , Why transgressest thou the king's commandment ? And it came to pass as they spoke daily to him , and he hearkened not to them , that they informed Haman , to see whether Mordecai's matters would stand ; for he had told them that he was a Jew . And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not , nor did him reverence , Haman was full of fury . But he scorned to lay hands on Mordecai alone ; for they had made known to him the people of Mordecai ; therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus -- the people of Mordecai . In the first month , that is , the month Nisan , in the twelfth year of king Ahasuerus , they cast Pur , that is , the lot , before Haman for each day and for each month , to the twelfth [ month ] , that is , the month Adar . And Haman said to king Ahasuerus , There is a people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of thy kingdom ; and their laws are diverse from [ those of ] every people , and they keep not the king's laws ; and it is not for the king's profit to suffer them . If it please the king , let it be written that they may be destroyed , and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those that have charge of the affairs , to bring [ it ] into the king's treasuries . And the king took his ring from his hand , and gave it to Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite , the Jews' enemy . And the king said to Haman , The silver is given to thee , the people also , to do with them as seems good to thee . Then were the king's scribes called , in the first month , on the thirteenth day of the [ month ] , and there was written according to all that Haman commanded unto the king's satraps , and to the governors over every province , and to the princes of every people ; to every province according to the writing thereof , and to every people according to their language : in the name of king Ahasuerus was it written , and sealed with the king's ring . And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king's provinces , to destroy , to kill , and to cause to perish , all Jews , both young and old , little children and women , in one day , upon the thirteenth of the twelfth month , that is , the month Adar , and [ to take ] the spoil of them for a prey . That the decree might be given in every province , a copy of the writing was published to all peoples , that they should be ready against that day . The couriers went out , being hastened by the king's commandment , and the decree was given in Shushan the fortress . And the king and Haman sat down to drink ; but the city of Shushan was in consternation . And when Mordecai knew all that was done , Mordecai rent his garments , and put on sackcloth with ashes , and went out into the midst of the city , and cried with a loud and bitter cry , and came even before the king's gate ; for none might enter into the king's gate clothed with sackcloth . And in every province , wherever the king's commandment and his decree came , there was great mourning among the Jews , and fasting , and weeping , and wailing : many lay in sackcloth and ashes . And Esther's maids and her chamberlains came and told [ it ] her ; and the queen was exceedingly grieved : and she sent raiment to clothe Mordecai , and to take away his sackcloth from him ; but he received [ it ] not . Then Esther called for Hatach , [ one ] of the king's chamberlains , whom he had appointed to wait upon her , and gave him a commandment to Mordecai , to know what it was , and why it was . And Hatach went forth to Mordecai , unto the public place of the city which was before the king's gate . And Mordecai told him of all that had happened to him , and of the sum of money that Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasuries for the Jews , to destroy them . And he gave him a copy of the writing of the decree that had been given at Shushan to destroy them , to shew [ it ] to Esther , and to declare [ it ] to her , and to charge her that she should go in unto the king , to make supplication to him , and to make request before him , for her people . And Hatach came and told Esther the words of Mordecai . And Esther spoke to Hatach , and gave him commandment unto Mordecai : All the king's servants and the people of the king's provinces do know that whoever , whether man or woman , shall come to the king into the inner court , who is not called , there is * one * law , to put [ him ] to death , except [ such ] to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre , that he may live ; and I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days . And they told Mordecai Esther's words . And Mordecai bade to answer Esther : Imagine not in thy heart that thou shalt escape in the king's house , more than all the Jews . For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time , then shall there arise relief and deliverance to the Jews from another place ; but thou and thy father's house shall perish . And who knows whether thou art [ not ] come to the kingdom for such a time as this ? And Esther bade to answer Mordecai : Go , gather together all the Jews that are found in Shushan , and fast for me , and neither eat nor drink three days , night or day : I also and my maidens will fast likewise , and so will I go in unto the king , which is not according to the law ; and if I perish , I perish . And Mordecai went his way , and did according to all that Esther had commanded him . And it came to pass on the third day , that Esther put on royal apparel , and stood in the inner court of the king's house , over against the king's house . And the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house , over against the entrance to the house . And it was so , when the king saw the queen Esther standing in the court , that she obtained grace in his sight ; and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand ; and Esther drew near , and touched the top of the sceptre . And the king said to her , What wilt thou , queen Esther ? and what is thy request ? it shall be given thee even to the half of the kingdom . And Esther said , If it seem good to the king , let the king and Haman come this day to the banquet that I have prepared for him . And the king said , Hasten Haman , that it may be done as Esther has said . And the king and Haman came to the banquet that Esther had prepared . And the king said to Esther at the banquet of wine , What is thy petition ? and it shall be granted thee ; and what is thy request ? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be done . And Esther answered and said , My petition and my request is , If I have found grace in the sight of the king , and if it please the king to grant my petition , and to perform my request , let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare for them , and I will do to-morrow according to the king's word . And Haman went forth that day joyful and glad of heart ; but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate , that he stood not up nor moved for him , he was full of fury against Mordecai . But Haman controlled himself , and came home ; and he sent and called for his friends , and Zeresh his wife . And Haman told them of the glory of his riches , and the multitude of his children , and all wherein the king had promoted him , and how he had advanced him above the princes and servants of the king . And Haman said , Yea , Esther the queen let no man come in with the king to the banquet that she had prepared but myself ; and to-morrow also I am invited to her with the king . Yet all this is of no avail to me so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate . Then said Zeresh his wife and all his friends to him , Let a gallows be made of fifty cubits high , and in the morning speak to the king that Mordecai may be hanged on it : then go in merrily with the king to the banquet . And the thing pleased Haman ; and he caused the gallows to be made . On that night sleep fled from the king . And he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles ; and they were read before the king . And it was found written , that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh , two of the king's chamberlains , keepers of the threshold , who had sought to lay hand on king Ahasuerus . And the king said , What honour and dignity has been done to Mordecai for this ? And the king's servants that attended upon him said , Nothing has been done for him . And the king said , Who is in the court ? Now Haman had come into the outward court of the king's house , to speak to the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him . And the king's servants said to him , Behold , Haman is standing in the court . And the king said , Let him come in . So Haman came in . And the king said to him , What is to be done with the man whom the king delights to honour ? Now Haman thought in his heart , To whom would the king delight to do honour more than to me ? And Haman answered the king , For the man whom the king delights to honour , let the royal apparel be brought with which the king arrays himself , and the horse that the king rides upon , and on the head of which the royal crown is set ; and let the apparel and horse be delivered into the hand of one of the king's most noble princes , and let them array the man whom the king delights to honour , and cause him to ride on the horse through the street of the city , and proclaim before him , Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honour ! And the king said to Haman , Make haste , take the apparel and the horse , as thou hast said , and do so to Mordecai the Jew , who sits at the king's gate : let nothing fail of all that thou hast said . And Haman took the apparel and the horse , and arrayed Mordecai , and caused him to ride through the street of the city , and proclaimed before him , Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honour ! And Mordecai came again to the king's gate . But Haman hasted to his house , mourning and having his head covered . And Haman recounted to Zeresh his wife and to all his friends all that had befallen him . Then said his wise men and Zeresh his wife to him , If Mordecai be of the seed of the Jews , before whom thou hast begun to fall , thou shalt not prevail against him , but wilt certainly fall before him . While they were yet talking with him , the king's chamberlains came , and hasted to bring Haman to the banquet that Esther had prepared . And the king and Haman came to drink with Esther the queen . And the king said again to Esther on the second day , at the banquet of wine , What is thy petition , queen Esther ? and it shall be granted thee ; and what is thy request ? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be done . And Esther the queen answered and said , If I have found grace in thy sight , O king , and if it please the king , let my life be given me at my petition , and my people at my request ; for we are sold , I and my people , to be destroyed , to be slain , and to perish . But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen , I had held my tongue , although the adversary could not compensate the king's damage . And king Ahasuerus spoke and said to Esther the queen , Who is he , and where is he that has filled his heart to do so ? And Esther said , The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman . Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen . And the king in his wrath rose up from the banquet of wine , [ and went ] into the palace garden ; but Haman stayed to make request for his life to Esther the queen , for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king . And the king returned out of the palace garden into the house of the banquet of wine , and Haman was fallen upon the couch on which Esther was . And the king said , Will he even force the queen before me in the house ? The word went forth out of the king's mouth , and they covered Haman's face . And Harbonah , one of the chamberlains , said before the king , Behold , also , the gallows fifty cubits high , that Haman made for Mordecai , who spoke good for the king , stands in the house of Haman . And the king said , Hang him on it ! So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai . And the king's wrath was appeased . On that day did king Ahasuerus give the house of Haman the Jews' oppressor to Esther the queen . And Mordecai came before the king ; for Esther had told what he was to her . And the king took off his ring , which he had taken from Haman , and gave it to Mordecai . And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman . And Esther spoke yet again before the king , and fell down at his feet , and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite , and his device which he had devised against the Jews . And the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther . And Esther arose and stood before the king , and said , If it please the king and if I have found grace before him , and the thing seem right to the king , and I be pleasing in his sight , let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite , which he wrote to destroy the Jews that are in all the king's provinces . For how shall I endure to see the evil that shall befall my people ? and how shall I endure to see the destruction of my kindred ? And king Ahasuerus said to queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew , Behold , I have given Esther the house of Haman , and him they have hanged upon the gallows , because he stretched forth his hand against the Jews . Write ye then for the Jews as seems good to you , in the king's name , and seal [ it ] with the king's ring . For a writing that is written in the king's name , and sealed with the king's ring , cannot be reversed . Then were the king's scribes called at that time , in the third month , that is , the month Sivan , on the three and twentieth [ day ] thereof ; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded , to the Jews , and to the satraps , and the governors , and the princes of the provinces which are from India even to Ethiopia , a hundred and twenty-seven provinces , to every province according to the writing thereof , and to every people according to their language , and to the Jews according to their writing and according to their language . And he wrote in the name of king Ahasuerus , and sealed [ it ] with the king's ring , and sent letters by couriers on horseback riding on coursers , horses of blood reared in the breeding studs : [ stating ] that the king granted the Jews that were in every city to gather themselves together , and to stand for their life , to destroy , to slay , and to cause to perish , all the power of the people and province that might assault them , [ their ] little ones and women , and to [ take ] the spoil of them for a prey , upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus , upon the thirteenth of the twelfth month , that is , the month Adar . That the decree might be given in every province , a copy of the writing was published to all the peoples , and that the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies . The couriers mounted on coursers [ and ] horses of blood went out , being hastened and pressed on by the king's commandment . And the decree was given at Shushan the fortress . And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white , and with a great crown of gold , and with a mantle of byssus and purple ; and the city of Shushan shouted and was glad . The Jews had light , and joy , and gladness , and honour . And in every province , and in every city , wherever the king's commandment and his decree came , the Jews had joy and gladness , a feast and a good day . And many among the peoples of the land became Jews ; for the fear of the Jews had fallen upon them . And in the twelfth month , that is , the month Adar , on the thirteenth day thereof , when the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put in execution , in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them ( but it was turned to the contrary , that the Jews had power over them that hated them ) , the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout the provinces of king Ahasuerus , to lay hand on such as sought their hurt . And no man could withstand them ; for the fear of them had fallen upon all the peoples . And all the princes of the provinces , and the satraps , and the governors and officers of the king , helped the Jews ; for the fear of Mordecai had fallen upon them . For Mordecai was great in the king's house , and his fame went forth throughout the provinces ; for the man Mordecai became continually greater . And the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of the sword and slaughter and destruction , and did what they would to those that hated them . And in Shushan the fortress the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men . And Parshandatha , and Dalphon , and Aspatha , and Poratha , and Adalia , and Aridatha , and Parmashta , and Arisai , and Aridai , and Vajezatha , the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha , the oppressor of the Jews , they slew ; but they laid not their hands on the prey . On that day the number of those that were slain in Shushan the fortress was brought before the king . And the king said to Esther the queen , The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men in Shushan the fortress , and the ten sons of Haman ; what have they done in the rest of the king's provinces ? And what is thy petition ? and it shall be granted thee ; and what is thy request further ? and it shall be done . And Esther said , If it please the king , let it be granted to the Jews that are in Shushan to do to-morrow also according to this day's decree , and let Haman's ten sons be hanged upon the gallows . And the king commanded it so to be done : and the decree was given at Shushan ; and they hanged Haman's ten sons . And the Jews that were in Shushan gathered themselves together on the fourteenth day also of the month Adar , and slew three hundred men at Shushan ; but they laid not their hand on the prey . And the other Jews that were in the king's provinces gathered themselves together , and stood for their life , and had rest from their enemies ; and they slew of them that hated them seventy-five thousand ( but they laid not their hand on the prey ) , on the thirteenth day of the month Adar ; and on the fourteenth of the same they rested , and made it a day of feasting and joy . But the Jews that were at Shushan gathered themselves together on the thirteenth [ day ] thereof , and on the fourteenth thereof ; and on the fifteenth of the same they rested , and made it a day of feasting and joy . Therefore the Jews of the villages that dwell in the country towns make the fourteenth of the month Adar a day of joy and feasting , and a good day , and on which they send portions one to another . And Mordecai wrote these things , and sent letters to all the Jews near and far that were in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus , to establish [ this ] among them , that they should keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar , and the fifteenth day of the same , yearly , as the days on which the Jews rested from their enemies , and the month that was turned to them from sorrow to joy , and from mourning into a good day ; that they should make them days of feasting and joy , and of sending portions one to another , and gifts to the poor . And the Jews undertook to do as they had begun , and as Mordecai had written to them . For Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite , the oppressor of all the Jews , had devised against the Jews to destroy them , and had cast Pur , that is , the lot , to consume them and to destroy them ; and when [ Esther ] came before the king , he commanded by letters that his wicked device , which he had devised against the Jews , should return upon his own head ; and they hanged him and his sons on the gallows . Therefore they called these days Purim after the name of Pur . Therefore , according to all the words of this letter , and for what they had seen concerning this matter and what had happened to them , the Jews ordained and took upon them , and upon their seed , and upon all such as joined themselves to them , so that it should not fail , that they would observe these two days according to their writing and according to their fixed time , every year ; and that these days should be remembered and observed throughout every generation , in every family , every province , and every city , and that these days of Purim should not fail from among the Jews , nor the memorial of them cease from among their seed . And queen Esther the daughter of Abihail , and Mordecai the Jew , wrote with all authority to confirm this second letter of Purim . And he sent letters to all the Jews , to the hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus , words of peace and truth , to confirm these days of Purim in their fixed times , according as Mordecai the Jew and queen Esther had enjoined them , and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed , as to the matters of the fastings and their cry . And the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim ; and it was written in the book . And king Ahasuerus laid a tribute upon the land and the isles of the sea . And all the acts of his power and of his might , and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai , to which the king advanced him , are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia ? For Mordecai the Jew was second to king Ahasuerus , and great among the Jews , and accepted of the multitude of his brethren , seeking the welfare of his people , and speaking peace to all his seed .