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On that day hath the king Ahasuerus given to Esther the queen the house of Haman, adversary of the Jews, and Mordecai hath come in before the king, for Esther hath declared what he [is] to her,

and the king turneth aside his signet, that he hath caused to pass away from Haman, and giveth it to Mordecai, and Esther setteth Mordecai over the house of Haman.

And Esther addeth, and speaketh before the king, and falleth before his feet, and weepeth, and maketh supplication to him, to cause the evil of Haman the Agagite to pass away, and his device that he had devised against the Jews;

and the king holdeth out to Esther the golden sceptre, and Esther riseth, and standeth before the king,

and saith, `If to the king [it be] good, and if I have found grace before him, and the thing hath been right before the king, and I [be] good in his eyes, let it be written to bring back the letters -- a device of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite -- that he wrote to destroy the Jews who [are] in all provinces of the king,

for how do I endure when I have looked on the evil that doth find my people? and how do I endure when I have looked on the destruction of my kindred?'

And the king Ahasuerus saith to Esther the queen, and to Mordecai the Jew, `Lo, the house of Haman I have given to Esther, and him they have hanged on the tree, because that he put forth his hand on the Jews,

and ye, write ye for the Jews, as [it is] good in your eyes, in the name of the king, and seal with the signet of the king -- for the writing that is written in the name of the king, and sealed with the signet of the king, there is none to turn back.'

And the scribes of the king are called, at that time, in the third month -- it [is] the month of Sivan -- in the three and twentieth of it, and it is written, according to all that Mordecai hath commanded, unto the Jews, and unto the lieutenants, and the governors, and the heads of the provinces, that [are] from Hodu even unto Cush, seven and twenty and a hundred provinces -- province and province according to its writing, and people and people according to its tongue, and unto the Jews according to their writing, and according to their tongue.

10 And he writeth in the name of the king Ahasuerus, and sealeth with the signet of the king, and sendeth letters by the hand of the runners with horses, riders of the dromedary, the mules, the young mares,

11 that the king hath given to the Jews who [are] in every city and city, to be assembled, and to stand for their life, to cut off, to slay, and to destroy the whole force of the people and province who are distressing them, infants and women, and their spoil to seize.

12 In one day, in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth of the twelfth month -- it [is] the month of Adar --

13 a copy of the writing to be made law in every province and province is revealed to all the peoples, and for the Jews being ready at this day to be avenged of their enemies.

14 The runners, riding on the dromedary, [and] the mules, have gone out, hastened and pressed by the word of the king, and the law hath been given in Shushan the palace.

15 And Mordecai went out from before the king, in royal clothing of blue and white, and a great crown of gold, and a garment of fine linen and purple, and the city of Shushan hath rejoiced and been glad;

16 to the Jews hath been light, and gladness, and joy, and honour,

17 and in every province and province, and in every city and city, the place where the word of the king, even his law, is coming, gladness and joy [are] to the Jews, a banquet, and a good day; and many of the peoples of the land are becoming Jews, for a fear of the Jews hath fallen upon them.

Esther Saves the Jews

On that day King Ahasuerus gave Queen Esther the house of Haman, the (A)enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told (B)how he was related to her. So the king took off (C)his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai; and Esther appointed Mordecai over the house of Haman.

Now Esther spoke again to the king, fell down at his feet, and implored him with tears to counteract the evil of Haman the Agagite, and the scheme which he had devised against the Jews. And (D)the king held out the golden scepter toward Esther. So Esther arose and stood before the king, and said, “If it pleases the king, and if I have found favor in his sight and the thing seems right to the king and I am pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to revoke the (E)letters devised by Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to annihilate the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces. For how can I endure to see (F)the evil that will come to my people? Or how can I endure to see the destruction of my countrymen?”

Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and Mordecai the Jew, “Indeed, (G)I have given Esther the house of Haman, and they have hanged him on the gallows because he tried to lay his hand on the Jews. You yourselves write a decree concerning the Jews, [a]as you please, in the king’s name, and seal it with the king’s signet ring; for whatever is written in the king’s name and sealed with the king’s signet ring (H)no one can revoke.”

(I)So the king’s scribes were called at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day; and it was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded, to the Jews, the satraps, the governors, and the princes of the provinces (J)from India to Ethiopia, one hundred and twenty-seven provinces in all, to every province (K)in its own script, to every people in their own language, and to the Jews in their own script and language. 10 (L)And he wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus, sealed it with the king’s signet ring, and sent letters by couriers on horseback, riding on royal horses [b]bred from swift steeds.

11 By these letters the king permitted the Jews who were in every city to (M)gather together and protect their lives—to (N)destroy, kill, and annihilate all the forces of any people or province that would assault them, both little children and women, and to plunder their possessions, 12 (O)on one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of [c]Adar. 13 (P)A copy of the document was to be issued as a decree in every province and published for all people, so that the Jews would be ready on that day to avenge themselves on their enemies. 14 The couriers who rode on royal horses went out, hastened and pressed on by the king’s command. And the decree was issued in [d]Shushan the [e]citadel.

15 So Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of [f]blue and white, with a great crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple; and (Q)the city of [g]Shushan rejoiced and was glad. 16 The Jews had (R)light and gladness, joy and honor. 17 And in every province and city, wherever the king’s command and decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast (S)and a holiday. Then many of the people of the land (T)became Jews, because (U)fear of the Jews fell upon them.

Footnotes

  1. Esther 8:8 Lit. as is good in your eyes
  2. Esther 8:10 Lit. sons of the swift horses
  3. Esther 8:12 LXX adds the text of the letter here
  4. Esther 8:14 Or Susa
  5. Esther 8:14 palace
  6. Esther 8:15 violet
  7. Esther 8:15 Or Susa

Esther Saves the Jews

On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, (A)the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told (B)what he was to her. (C)And the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.

Then Esther spoke again to the king. She fell at his feet and wept and pleaded with him to avert the evil plan of Haman (D)the Agagite and the plot that he had devised against the Jews. (E)When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king. And she said, “If it please the king, (F)and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to revoke (G)the letters devised by Haman (H)the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. For how can I bear (I)to see the calamity that is coming to my people? Or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?” Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Behold, (J)I have given Esther the house of Haman, and they have hanged him on the gallows,[a] because he intended to lay hands on the Jews. But you may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, (K)and seal it with the king's ring, for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king's ring (L)cannot be revoked.”

(M)The king's scribes were summoned at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day. And an edict was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded concerning the Jews, to (N)the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces (O)from India to Ethiopia, (P)127 provinces, (Q)to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language, and also to the Jews in their script and their language. 10 (R)And he wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus (S)and sealed it with the king's signet ring. Then he sent the letters by mounted couriers riding on (T)swift horses that were used in the king's service, bred from the royal stud, 11 saying that the king allowed the Jews who were in every city (U)to gather and defend their lives, (V)to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, children and women included, (W)and to plunder their goods, 12 (X)on one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. 13 (Y)A copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every province, being publicly displayed to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready on that day to take vengeance on their enemies. 14 So the couriers, mounted on their (Z)swift horses that were used in the king's service, rode out hurriedly, urged by the king's command. And the decree was issued in Susa the citadel.

15 Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king (AA)in royal robes of blue and white, with a great golden crown[b] and (AB)a robe of fine linen and purple, (AC)and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. 16 The Jews had (AD)light and gladness and joy and honor. 17 And in every province and in every city, wherever the king's command and his edict reached, there was gladness and joy among the Jews, a feast and (AE)a holiday. (AF)And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews, (AG)for fear of the Jews had fallen on them.

Footnotes

  1. Esther 8:7 Or wooden beam (see note on 2:23)
  2. Esther 8:15 Or headdress