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, ¹  he ordered Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs who attended him, ² 

Esther 1:14

1:14 Those who were closest to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan. These men were the seven officials of Persia and Media who saw the king on a regular basis ³  and had the most prominent offices ⁴  in the kingdom.

Esther 1:16-17

1:16 Memucan then replied to the king and the officials, “The wrong of Queen Vashti is not against the king alone, but against all the officials and all the people who are throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. 1:17 For the matter concerning the queen will spread to all the women, leading them to treat their husbands with contempt, saying, ‘When King Ahasuerus gave orders to bring Queen Vashti into his presence, she would not come.’

Esther 2:9

2:9 This young woman pleased him, ⁵  and she found favor with him. He quickly provided her with her cosmetics and her rations; he also provided her with the seven specially chosen ⁶  young women who were from the palace. He then transferred her and her young women to the best quarters in the harem. ⁷ 

Esther 2:17

2:17 And the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she met with his loving approval ⁸  more than all the other young women. ⁹  So he placed the royal high turban on her head and appointed her queen ¹⁰  in place of Vashti.

Esther 3:7

3:7 In the first month (that is, the month of Nisan), in the twelfth year ¹¹  of King Ahasuerus’ reign, pur ¹²  (that is, the lot) was cast before Haman in order to determine a day and a month. ¹³  It turned out to be the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar). ¹⁴ 

Esther 4:8

4:8 He also gave him a written copy of the law that had been disseminated ¹⁵  in Susa for their destruction so that he could show it to Esther and talk to her about it. He also gave instructions that she should go to the king to implore him and petition him on behalf of her people.

Esther 5:14

5:14 Haman’s ¹⁶  wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows seventy-five feet ¹⁷  high built, and in the morning tell the king that Mordecai should be hanged on it. Then go with the king to the banquet contented.” ¹⁸ 

It seemed like a good idea to Haman, so he had the gallows built.

Esther 6:9

6:9 Then let this clothing and this horse be given to one of the king’s noble officials. Let him ¹⁹  then clothe the man whom the king wishes to honor, and let him lead him about through the plaza of the city on the horse, calling ²⁰  before him, ‘So shall it be done to the man whom the king wishes to honor!’”

Esther 6:11

6:11 So Haman took the clothing and the horse, and he clothed Mordecai. He led him about on the horse throughout the plaza of the city, calling before him, “So shall it be done to the man whom the king wishes to honor!”

Esther 7:8-9

7:8 When the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet of wine, Haman was throwing himself down ²¹  on the couch where Esther was lying. ²²  The king exclaimed, “Will he also attempt to rape the queen while I am still in the building!”

As these words left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 7:9 Harbona, ²³  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 ²⁴  high.”

The king said, “Hang him on it!”

Esther 8:1

The King Acts to Protect the Jews

8:1 On that same day King Ahasuerus gave the estate ²⁵  of Haman, that adversary of the Jews, to Queen Esther. Now Mordecai had come before the king, for Esther had revealed how he was related to her.

Esther 9:2

9:2 The Jews assembled themselves in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to strike out against those who were seeking their harm. No one was able to stand before them, for dread of them fell on all the peoples.

Esther 9:25

9:25 But when the matter came to the king’s attention, the king ²⁶  gave written orders that Haman’s ²⁷  evil intentions that he had devised against the Jews should fall on his own head. He and his sons were hanged on the gallows.

[1:10]  ¹ 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.

[1:10]  ² 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.”

[1:14]  ³ tn Heb “seers of the face of the king”; NASB “who had access to the king’s presence.”

[1:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “were sitting first”; NAB “held first rank in the realm.”

[2:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “was good in his eyes”; NLT “Hegai was very impressed with Esther.”

[2:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “being looked at (with favor).”

[2:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “of the house of the women” (so KJV, ASV). So also in vv. 11, 13, 14.

[2:17]  ⁷ tn Heb “grace and loyal love.” The expression is probably a hendiadys.

[2:17]  ⁸ tc The LXX does not include the words “more than all the other young women.”

[2:17]  ⁹ tn Heb “caused her to rule.”

[3:7]  ⁹ sn This year would be ca. 474 b.c. The reference to first month and twelfth month indicate that about a year had elapsed between this determination and the anticipated execution.

[3:7]  ¹⁰ tn The term פּוּר (pur, “lot”) is an Akkadian loanword; the narrator therefore explains it for his Hebrew readers (“that is, the lot”). It is from the plural form of this word (i.e., Purim) that the festival celebrating the deliverance of the Jews takes its name (cf. 9:24, 26, 28, 31).

[3:7]  ¹¹ tc The LXX adds the following words: “in order to destroy in one day the race of Mordecai, and the lot fell on the fourteenth day of the month.” The LXX reading is included by NAB.

[3:7]  ¹² tn Since v. 7 seems to interrupt the flow of the narrative, many scholars have suggested that it is a late addition to the text. But there is not enough evidence to warrant such a conclusion. Even though its placement is somewhat awkward, the verse supplies to the reader an important piece of chronological information.

[4:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “given” (so KJV); NASB, NRSV, TEV, NLT “issued”; NIV “published”; NAB “promulgated.”

[5:14]  ¹³ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “fifty cubits.” Assuming a standard length for the cubit of about 18 inches (45 cm), this would be about seventy-five feet (22.5 meters), which is a surprisingly tall height for the gallows. Perhaps the number assumes the gallows was built on a large supporting platform or a natural hill for visual effect, in which case the structure itself may have been considerably smaller. Cf. NCV “a seventy-five foot platform”; CEV “a tower built about seventy-five feet high.”

[5:14]  ¹⁵ tn Or “joyful”; NRSV “in good spirits”; TEV “happy.”

[6:9]  ¹⁵ tc The present translation reads with the LXX וְהִלְבִּישׁוֹ (vÿhilbisho, “and he will clothe him”) rather than the reading of the MT וְהִלְבִּישׁוּ (vÿhilbishu, “and they will clothe”). The reading of the LXX is also followed by NAB, NRSV, TEV, CEV, and NLT. Likewise, the later verbs in this verse (“cause him to ride” and “call”) are better taken as singulars rather than plurals.

[6:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and let them call” (see the previous note).

[7:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “falling”; NAB, NRSV “had (+ just TEV) thrown himself (+ down TEV).”

[7:8]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “where Esther was” (so KJV, NASB). The term “lying” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “was reclining.”

[7:9]  ¹⁹ sn Cf. 1:10, where Harbona is one of the seven eunuchs sent by the king to summon Queen Vashti to his banquet.

[7:9]  ²⁰ tn Heb “fifty cubits.” See the note on this expression in Esth 5:14.

[8:1]  ²¹ tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV; also in vv. 2, 7). Cf. TEV “all the property.”

[9:25]  ²³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:25]  ²⁴ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.