Esther 1:12

1:12 But Queen Vashti refused ¹  to come at the king’s bidding ²  conveyed through the eunuchs. Then the king became extremely angry, and his rage consumed ³  him.

Esther 1:15

1:15 The king asked, ⁴  “By law, ⁵  what should be done to Queen Vashti in light of the fact that she has not obeyed the instructions of King Ahasuerus conveyed through the eunuchs?”

Esther 4:5

4:5 So Esther called for Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs who had been placed at her service, ⁶  and instructed him to find out the cause and reason for Mordecai’s behavior. ⁷ 

Esther 6:14

6:14 While they were still speaking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived. They quickly brought Haman to the banquet that Esther had prepared.

Esther 1:10

Queen Vashti is Removed from Her Royal Position

1:10 On the seventh day, as King Ahasuerus was feeling the effects of the wine, ⁸  he ordered Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs who attended him, ⁹ 

Esther 2:3

2:3 And let the king appoint officers throughout all the provinces of his kingdom to gather all the attractive young women to Susa the citadel, to the harem ¹⁰  under the authority of Hegai, the king’s eunuch who oversees the women, and let him provide whatever cosmetics they desire. ¹¹ 

Esther 2:14

2:14 In the evening she went, and in the morning she returned to a separate part ¹²  of the harem, to the authority of Shaashgaz the king’s eunuch who was overseeing the concubines. She would not go back to the king unless the king was pleased with her ¹³  and she was requested by name.

Esther 2:21

2:21 In those days while Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan ¹⁴  and Teresh, ¹⁵  two of the king’s eunuchs who protected the entrance, ¹⁶  became angry and plotted to assassinate ¹⁷  King Ahasuerus.

Esther 4:4

4:4 When Esther’s female attendants and her eunuchs came and informed her about Mordecai’s behavior, ¹⁸  the queen was overcome with anguish. Although she sent garments for Mordecai to put on so that he could remove his sackcloth, he would not accept them.

Esther 6:2

6:2 it was found written that Mordecai had disclosed that Bigthana ¹⁹  and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who guarded the entrance, had plotted to assassinate ²⁰  King Ahasuerus.

Esther 7:9

7:9 Harbona, ²¹  one of the king’s eunuchs, said, “Indeed, there is the gallows that Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke out in the king’s behalf. It stands near Haman’s home and is seventy-five feet ²²  high.”

The king said, “Hang him on it!”

Esther 2:15

2:15 When it became the turn of Esther daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai (who had raised her as if she were his own daughter ²³ ) to go to the king, she did not request anything except what Hegai the king’s eunuch, who was overseer of the women, had recommended. Yet Esther met with the approval of all who saw her.

¹ sn Refusal to obey the king was risky even for a queen in the ancient world. It is not clear why Vashti behaved so rashly and put herself in such danger. Apparently she anticipated humiliation of some kind and was unwilling to subject herself to it, in spite of the obvious dangers. There is no justification in the biblical text for an ancient Jewish targumic tradition that the king told her to appear before his guests dressed in nothing but her royal high turban, that is, essentially naked.

² tn Heb “at the word of the king”; NASB “at the king’s command.”

³ tn Heb “burned in him” (so KJV).

⁴ tn These words are not present in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for clarity (cf. NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT, all of which supply similar phrases).

⁵ tc The location of the prepositional phrase “according to law” is somewhat unusual in the Hebrew text, but not so much so as to require emendation. Some scholars suggest deleting the phrase as an instance of dittography from the final part of the immediately preceding word in v. 14. Others suggest taking the phrase with the end of v. 14 rather than with v. 15. Both proposals, however, lack adequate justification.

⁷ tn Heb “whom he caused to stand before her”; NASB “whom the king had appointed to attend her.”

⁸ tn Heb “concerning Mordecai, to know what this was, and why this was.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “as the heart of the king was good with the wine.” Here the proper name (King Ahasuerus) has been substituted for the title in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹¹ tn Heb “King Ahasuerus”; here the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons. Cf. similarly NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT “King Xerxes.”

¹³ tn Heb “the house of the women” (so KJV, ASV). So also in vv. 9, 11, 13, and 14.

¹⁴ tn Heb “their ointments”; cf. NIV, CEV, NLT “beauty treatments.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “second.” The numerical adjective שֵׁנִי (sheniy, “second”) is difficult here. As a modifier for “house” in v. 14 the word would presumably refer to a second part of the harem, one which was under the supervision of a separate official. But in this case the definite article would be expected before “second” (cf. LXX τὸν δεύτερον, ton deuteron). Some scholars emend the text to שֵׁנִית (shenit, “a second time”), but this does not completely resolve the difficulty since the meaning remains unclear. The translation adopted above follows the LXX and understands the word to refer to a separate group of women in the king’s harem, a group housed apparently in a distinct part of the residence complex.

¹⁷ tc The LXX does not include the words “was pleased with her.”

¹⁹ tn This individual is referred to as “Bigthana,” a variant spelling of the name, in Esth 6:2.

²⁰ tc The LXX does not include the names “Bigthan and Teresh” here.

²¹ tn Heb “guarders of the threshold”; NIV “who guarded the doorway.”

²² tn Heb “sought to send a hand against”; CEV “decided to kill.”

²² tn The words “about Mordecai’s behavior” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in translation for the sake of clarity. Cf. NIV, NLT “about Mordecai”; TEV, CEV “what Mordecai was doing.”

²⁵ tn This individual is referred to as “Bigthan,” a variant spelling of the name, in Esth 2:21.

²⁶ tn Heb “to send a hand against”; NASB “had sought to lay hands on.”

²⁸ sn Cf. 1:10, where Harbona is one of the seven eunuchs sent by the king to summon Queen Vashti to his banquet.

²⁹ tn Heb “fifty cubits.” See the note on this expression in Esth 5:14.

³¹ tn Heb “who had taken her to him as a daughter”; NRSV “who had adopted her as his own daughter.”