Ester 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.

Ester 1:13

1:13 The king then inquired of the wise men who were discerners of the times – for it was the royal custom to confer with all those who were proficient in laws and legalities. ¹ 

Ester 5:14

5:14 Haman’s ²  wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows seventy-five feet ³  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.” ⁴ 

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

Ester 8:3

8:3 Then Esther again spoke with the king, falling at his feet. She wept and begged him for mercy, that he might nullify the evil of Haman the Agagite which he had intended against the Jews. ⁵ 

Ester 5:2

5:2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she met with his approval. ⁶  The king extended to Esther the gold scepter that was in his hand, and Esther approached and touched the end of the scepter.

Ester 7:3

7:3 Queen Esther replied, “If I have met with your approval, ⁷  O king, and if the king is so inclined, grant me my life as my request, and my people as my petition.

Ester 4:8

4:8 He also gave him a written copy of the law that had been disseminated ⁸  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.

Ester 1:21

1:21 The matter seemed appropriate to the king and the officials. So the king acted on the advice of Memucan.

Ester 7:5

7:5 Then King Ahasuerus responded ⁹  to Queen Esther, “Who is this individual? Where is this person to be found who is presumptuous enough ¹⁰  to act in this way?”

Ester 1:22

1:22 He sent letters throughout all the royal provinces, to each province according to its own script and to each people according to its own language, ¹¹  that every man should be ruling his family ¹²  and should be speaking the language of his own people. ¹³ 

Ester 1:18

1:18 And this very day the noble ladies of Persia and Media who have heard the matter concerning the queen will respond in the same way to all the royal officials, and there will be more than enough contempt and anger!

Ester 10:3

10:3 Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Ahasuerus. He was the highest-ranking ¹⁴  Jew, and he was admired by his numerous relatives. ¹⁵  He worked enthusiastically ¹⁶  for the good of his people and was an advocate for the welfare of ¹⁷  all his descendants. ¹⁸ 

[1:13]  ¹ tn Heb “judgment” (so KJV); NASB, NIV “justice”; NRSV “custom.”

[5:14]  ² tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:14]  ³ 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]  ⁴ tn Or “joyful”; NRSV “in good spirits”; TEV “happy.”

[8:3]  ⁵ sn As in 7:4 Esther avoids implicating the king in this plot. Instead Haman is given sole responsibility for the plan to destroy the Jews.

[5:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “she obtained grace in his eyes”; NASB “she obtained favor in his sight”; NIV “he was pleased with her”; NLT “he welcomed her.”

[7:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “If I have found grace in your eyes” (so also in 8:5); TEV “If it please Your Majesty.”

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

[7:5]  ⁹ tc The second occurrence of the Hebrew verb וַיּאמֶר (vayyo’mer, “and he said”) in the MT should probably be disregarded. The repetition is unnecessary in the context and may be the result of dittography in the MT.

[7:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “has so filled his heart”; NAB “who has dared to do this.”

[1:22]  ¹¹ sn For purposes of diplomacy and governmental communication throughout the far-flung regions of the Persian empire the Aramaic language was normally used. Educated people throughout the kingdom could be expected to have competence in this language. But in the situation described in v. 22 a variety of local languages are to be used, and not just Aramaic, so as to make the king’s edict understandable to the largest possible number of people.

[1:22]  ¹² tn Heb “in his house”; NIV “over his own household.”

[1:22]  ¹³ tc The final prepositional phrase is not included in the LXX, and this shorter reading is followed by a number of English versions (e.g., NAB, NRSV, NLT). Some scholars suggest the phrase may be the result of dittography from the earlier phrase “to each people according to its language,” but this is not a necessary conclusion. The edict was apparently intended to reassert male prerogative with regard to two things (and not just one): sovereign and unquestioned leadership within the family unit, and the right of deciding which language was to be used in the home when a bilingual situation existed.

[10:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “great among the Jews” (so KJV, NASB); NIV “preeminent among the Jews”; NRSV “powerful among the Jews.”

[10:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “brothers”; NASB “kinsmen”; NIV “fellow Jews.”

[10:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “he was seeking”; NAB “as the promoter of his people’s welfare.”

[10:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “he was speaking peace to”; NRSV “and interceded for the welfare of.”

[10:3]  ¹⁸ sn A number of additions to the Book of Esther appear in the apocryphal (or deuterocanonical) writings. These additions supply further information about various scenes described in the canonical book and are interesting in their own right. However, they were never a part of the Hebrew Bible. The placement of this additional material in certain Greek manuscripts of the Book of Esther may be described as follows. At the beginning of Esther there is an account (= chapter 11) of a dream in which Mordecai is warned by God of a coming danger for the Jews. In this account two great dragons, representing Mordecai and Haman, prepare for conflict. But God responds to the prayers of his people, and the crisis is resolved. This account is followed by another one (= chapter 12) in which Mordecai is rewarded for disclosing a plot against the king’s life. After Esth 3:13 there is a copy of a letter from King Artaxerxes authorizing annihilation of the Jews (= chapter 13). After Esth 4:17 the account continues with a prayer of Mordecai (= part of chapter 13), followed by a prayer of Esther (= chapter 14), and an account which provides details about Esther’s appeal to the king in behalf of her people (= chapter 15). After Esth 8:12 there is a copy of a letter from King Artaxerxes in which he denounces Haman and his plot and authorizes his subjects to assist the Jews (= chapter 16). At the end of the book, following Esth 10:3, there is an addition which provides an interpretation to Mordecai’s dream, followed by a brief ascription of genuineness to the entire book (= chapter 11).