The King Decrees Young Maidens be Brought to Him to Choose a New Queen |
Esther 2:1-23 The Book of Esther [in Smaller Chunks] |
After these things, when the [anger had subsided] of king Ahasuerus, [a.k.a. Xerxes,] he remembered what [queen] Vashtil had done & what was decreed against her. |
[Esther 1:11-12 To bring queen Vashti before the king with the royal crown, to [show] the people & the princes her beauty: for she was [pleasant to look at.] But queen Vashti refused to come at the king's [command] by his chamberlains, [a.k.a. eunuchs:] therefore, the king was very [angry] & his anger burned [within] him. |
Then, the king's servants [who] ministered to him said, Let [attractive,] young virgins, [a.k.a. maidens] be sought for the king. And let the king appoint officers in all his [kingdom's] provinces, [to] gather together all the fair young [maidens] to the palace [in] Shushan. |
[They will go] to the house of the women & [be in] the custody of Hege, [a.k.a. Hegai,] the king's chamberlain [a.k.a. eunuch,] keeper of the women. And let their things for purification be given [to] them. And let the maiden [who] pleases the king, be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king & he did so. |
Now, there was a certain Jew [near] the palace in Shushan, whose name was Mordecia, the son of Jair. [Jair was] the son of Shimei. |
[Shimei was] the son of Kish, a Benjamite, who had been carried away [captive] from Jerusalem with Jeconiah, [Judah's] king, whom Nebuchadnezzar, [Babylon's] king, had carried away. |
And [Mordecai continued to raise] Hadassah, [which] is Esther, his uncle's daughter. For she had neither father nor mother & the maid was [pleasant] & beautiful; whom Mordecai took for his own daughter, when her father & mother were dead. |
So, it [happened,] when the king's [command] & his decree was heard & when many maidens were gathered together to the palace [in] Shushan, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was also brought to the king's house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of women. |
And the maiden pleased [Hegai] & [Esther] obtained kindness [from] him. And he speedily gave her things for purification, [that] belonged to her & 7 maidens, [from] of the king's house, [which were appropriate] to be given [to] her. |
And [Hegai] preferred [Esther] & her maids, [& they were in] the best place of the house of women. Esther hadn't [revealed] her people, nor her [family:] for Mordecai had [ordered] that she shouldn't [reveal] it. |
And Mordecai walked everyday, [in front of] the [courtyard] of the women's house, to know how Esther did & what [would] become of her. Now, when every maid's turn [had] come to go in to king Ahasuerus, after she had been [purified] for 12 months, according to the [customs] of the women, |
(For the the days of their purification were accomplished with 6 months [using] oil of myrrh & 6 months with sweet [fragrences] & other things for the purifying of the women.) |
Then, every maiden came to the king [like this & whatever] she desired was given [to] her to go with her [from] the house of the women & into the king's house. She went in the evening. |
And the [next day,] she return into the 2nd house for the women, to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's chamberlain, [who] kept the [mistresses] & she [didn’t come] in to the king [anymore, unless] the king delighted in her & she [was] called by name. |
Now, when [it was] the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail, [who was] the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, [had] come & she was to go in to the king, she [didn't request anything,] but what Hegai, the king's chamberlain, the keeper of the women, [had advised.] |
And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all [those who] looked upon her. So, Esther was taken into the royal house of king Ahasuerus in the 10th month, which is the month, Tebeth, in the 7th year [Ahasuerus ruled.] |
And the king loved Esther above all the women & she obtained grace & favor in his sight, more than all the [maidens;] so he [put] the royal crown upon her head & made her queen instead of Vashti. |
Then, the king made a [large] feast [for] all his princes & his servants, even Esther's feast. And he made a release to the provinces & gave gifts, according to the [generosity] of the king. |
And when the [maidens] were gathered together the 2nd time, then Mordecai sat in the king's gate. Esther hadn't [revealed] her [family,] nor her people yet, [since] Mordecai had [ordered] her. For Esther [followed] the [command] of Mordecai, like when she was brought up [by] him. |
[During] those days, while Mordecai sat in the king's gate, 2 of the king's chamberlains, Bigthan & Teresh, [who were door keepers,] were [angry] & sought to [seize] king Ahasuerus. And [this] thing was known to Mordecai, who told it to queen Esther. |
And Esther [notified] the king [on Mordecai's behalf.] And when [inquiry] was made [about] the matter, it was found [to be true] & they were both [hung] on a tree & it was written in the Book of the Chronicles, [in front of] the king. |