Esther 1

Modern

Literal

Xerxes’ Royal Feast

¹This is what happened in the days of Xerxes,^a who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Cush.^b

¹And it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus—he was the Ahasuerus reigning from India and as far as Cush, seven and twenty and a hundred provinces—

²In those days King Xerxes sat on his royal throne in the citadel of Susa.

²in those days, when King Ahasuerus sat upon the throne of his kingdom, which was in Susa the citadel,

³In the third year of his reign, Xerxes held a feast for all his officials and servants. The military leaders of Persia and Media were there, along with the nobles and princes of the provinces.

³in the third year of his reigning, he made a feast for all his officials and his servants; the strength of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the officials of the provinces were before his face

⁴And for a full 180 days he displayed the glorious riches of his kingdom and the magnificent splendor of his greatness.

⁴in his showing the riches of the glory of his kingdom, and the splendor of the beauty of his greatness many days—eighty and a hundred days.

⁵At the end of this time, in the garden court of the royal palace, the king held a seven-day feast for all the people in the citadel of Susa, from the least to the greatest.

⁵And in the fullness of these days, the king made for all the people, the ones found in Susa the citadel, from great even to small, a feast for seven days in the court of the garden of the palace of the king.

⁶Hangings of white and blue linen were fastened with cords of fine white and purple material to silver rings on the marble pillars. Gold and silver couches were arranged on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones.

⁶White linen and blue hangings were fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on rings of silver and pillars of marble, and couches of gold and silver were on a pavement of porphyry, and marble, and pearl, and precious stone.

⁷Beverages were served in an array of goblets of gold, each with a different design, and the royal wine flowed freely, according to the king’s bounty.

⁷And serving drinks in vessels of gold, and the vessels were varying vessels, and the wine of royalty was abundant, according to the hand of the king.

⁸By order of the king, no limit was placed on the drinking, and every official of his household was to serve each man whatever he desired.

⁸And the drinking was according to the law—there is no compulsion—for so the king had established upon every overseer of his house, to do according to the pleasure of man by man.

Queen Vashti’s Refusal

⁹Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes.

⁹Also, Vashti the Queen made a feast for the women in the house of royalty that belonged to King Ahasuerus.

¹⁰On the seventh day, when the king’s heart was merry with wine, he ordered the seven eunuchs who served him—Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas—

¹⁰On the seventh day, as the heart of the king was good with the wine, he said to Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs ministering before the face of King Ahasuerus,

¹¹to bring Queen Vashti before him, wearing her royal crown, to display her beauty to the people and officials. For she was beautiful to behold.

¹¹to bring Vashti the queen before the face of the king in a crown of royalty, to show the peoples and the officials her beauty, for she was beautiful of appearance.

¹²Queen Vashti, however, refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs. And the king became furious, and his anger burned within him.

¹²And Queen Vashti refused to come at the word of the king that was by the hand of the eunuchs. And the king was very angry, and his rage burned within him.

Queen Vashti Deposed

¹³Then the king consulted the wise men who knew the times, for it was customary for him to confer with the experts in law and justice.

¹³And the king said to the wise men knowing the times—for thus was the manner of the king before the face of all those knowing law and judgment,

¹⁴His closest advisors were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media who had personal access to the king and ranked highest in the kingdom.

¹⁴and those near to him—Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, seven officials of Persia and Media, those seeing the face of the king, those sitting first in the kingdom—

¹⁵“According to law,” he asked, “what should be done with Queen Vashti, since she refused to obey the command of King Xerxes delivered by the eunuchs?”

¹⁵“According to the law, what is to be done with Queen Vashti, upon that she did not perform the command of King Ahasuerus by the hand of the eunuchs?”

¹⁶And in the presence of the king and his princes, Memucan replied, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king, but all the princes and the peoples in all the provinces of King Xerxes.

¹⁶And Memucan said before the faces of the king and the officials, “Not against the king alone has Vashti the Queen done perversely, but against all the officials and against all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus.

¹⁷For the conduct of the queen will become known to all women, causing them to despise their husbands^a and say, ‘King Xerxes ordered Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she did not come.’

¹⁷For the matter of the queen will go forth upon all the women, to despise their husbands in their eyes, when they say, ‘King Ahasuerus said to bring Vashti the queen before his face, and she did not come.’

¹⁸This very day the noble women of Persia and Media who have heard about the queen’s conduct will say the same thing to all the king’s officials, resulting in much contempt and wrath.

¹⁸And this day the noblewomen of Persia and Media who have heard the matter of the queen will speak to all the officials of the king, and there will be enough contempt and anger.

¹⁹So if it pleases the king, let him issue a royal decree, and let it be recorded in the laws of Persia and Media so that it cannot be repealed, that Vashti shall never again enter the presence of King Xerxes, and that her royal position shall be given to a woman better than she.

¹⁹So if upon the king it is good, let go out a word of royalty from before his face, and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media, and it shall not pass away, that Vashti shall not come before the face of King Ahasuerus, and let the king give her royalty to her female neighbor, the one better than she.

²⁰The edict the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom—and so all women, from the least to the greatest, will honor their husbands.”

²⁰And the edict of the king that he makes will be heard in all his kingdom—for it is great—and all the women will give honor to their husbands, from the great even to the small.”

²¹The king and his princes were pleased with this counsel; so the king did as Memucan advised.

²¹And the word was good in the eyes of the king and the officials, and the king did according to the word of Memucan,

²²He sent letters to all the provinces of the kingdom, to each province in its own script and to each people in their own language, proclaiming that every^a man should be master of his own household.

²²and he sent letters to all the provinces of the king, to province by province according to its writing, and to people by people according to its tongue, that every man should be ruling in his house, and speaking according to the tongue of his people.