Ester 3:6

3:6 But the thought of striking out against ¹  Mordecai alone was repugnant to him, for he had been informed ²  of the identity of Mordecai’s people. ³  So Haman sought to destroy all the Jews (that is, the people of Mordecai) ⁴  who were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus.

Ester 3:9

3:9 If the king is so inclined, ⁵  let an edict be issued ⁶  to destroy them. I will pay ten thousand talents of silver ⁷  to be conveyed to the king’s treasuries for the officials who carry out this business.”

Ester 3:13

3:13 Letters were sent by the runners to all the king’s provinces stating that ⁸  they should destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jews, from youth to elderly, both women and children, ⁹  on a particular day, namely the thirteenth day ¹⁰  of the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar), and to loot and plunder their possessions.

Ester 4:7-8

4:7 Then Mordecai related to him everything that had happened to him, even the specific amount of money that Haman had offered to pay to the king’s treasuries for the Jews to be destroyed. 4:8 He also gave him a written copy of the law that had been disseminated ¹¹  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 4:14

4:14 “Don’t imagine that because you are part of the king’s household you will be the one Jew ¹²  who will escape. If you keep quiet at this time, liberation and protection for the Jews will appear ¹³  from another source, ¹⁴  while you and your father’s household perish. It may very well be ¹⁵  that you have achieved royal status ¹⁶  for such a time as this!”

Ester 4:16-17

4:16 “Go, assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa and fast in my behalf. Don’t eat and don’t drink for three days, night or day. My female attendants and I ¹⁷  will also fast in the same way. Afterward I will go to the king, even though it violates the law. ¹⁸  If I perish, I perish!”

4:17 So Mordecai set out to do everything that Esther had instructed him.

Ester 7:4

7:4 For we have been sold ¹⁹  – both I and my people – to destruction and to slaughter and to annihilation! If we had simply been sold as male and female slaves, I would have remained silent, for such distress would not have been sufficient for troubling the king.”

Ester 8:5-7

8:5 She said, “If the king is so inclined and if I have met with his approval and if the matter is agreeable to the king and if I am attractive to him, let an edict be written rescinding those recorded intentions of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, ²⁰  which he wrote in order to destroy the Jews who are throughout all the king’s provinces. 8:6 For how can I watch the calamity that will befall my people, and how can I watch the destruction of my relatives?” ²¹ 

8:7 King Ahasuerus replied to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Look, I have already given Haman’s estate to Esther, and he has been hanged on the gallows because he took hostile action ²²  against the Jews.

Ester 8:11-12

8:11 The king thereby allowed the Jews who were in every city to assemble and to stand up for themselves – to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any army of whatever people or province that should become their adversaries, including their women and children, ²³  and to confiscate their property. 8:12 This was to take place on a certain day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus – namely, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar).

Ester 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.

Ester 9:5-6

9:5 The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, bringing death and destruction, and they did as they pleased with their enemies. 9:6 In Susa the citadel the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men.

Ester 9:12

9:12 Then the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men and the ten sons of Haman! What then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? What is your request? It shall be given to you. What other petition do you have? It shall be done.”

Ester 9:24

9:24 For Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised plans against the Jews to destroy them. He had cast pur (that is, the lot) in order to afflict and destroy them.

Ester 10:3

10:3 Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Ahasuerus. He was the highest-ranking ²⁴  Jew, and he was admired by his numerous relatives. ²⁵  He worked enthusiastically ²⁶  for the good of his people and was an advocate for the welfare of ²⁷  all his descendants. ²⁸ 

[3:6]  ¹ tn Heb “to send a hand against”; KJV, NRSV “to lay hands on.”

[3:6]  ² tn Heb “they had related to him.” For stylistic reasons this has been translated as a passive construction.

[3:6]  ³ tc The entire first half of the verse is not included in the LXX.

[3:6]  ⁴ tc This parenthetical phrase is not included in the LXX. Some scholars emend the MT reading עַם (’am, “people”) to עִם (’im, “with”), arguing that the phrase is awkwardly placed and syntactically inappropriate. While there is some truth to their complaint, the MT makes sufficient sense to be acceptable here, and is followed by most English versions.

[3:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “If upon the king it is good”; KJV “If it please the king.”

[3:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “let it be written” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “let it be decreed.”

[3:9]  ⁷ sn The enormity of the monetary sum referred to here can be grasped by comparing this amount (10,000 talents of silver) to the annual income of the empire, which according to Herodotus (Histories 3.95) was 14,500 Euboic talents. In other words Haman is offering the king a bribe equal to two-thirds of the royal income. Doubtless this huge sum of money was to come (in large measure) from the anticipated confiscation of Jewish property and assets once the Jews had been destroyed. That such a large sum of money is mentioned may indicate something of the economic standing of the Jewish population in the empire of King Ahasuerus.

[3:13]  ⁸ tn The words “stating that” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[3:13]  ⁹ tn Heb “children and women.” The translation follows contemporary English idiom, which reverses the order.

[3:13]  ¹⁰ tc The LXX does not include the words “on the thirteenth day.”

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

[4:14]  ¹² tn Heb “from all the Jews”; KJV “more than all the Jews”; NIV “you alone of all the Jews.”

[4:14]  ¹³ tn Heb “stand”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT “arise.”

[4:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “place” (so KJV, NIV, NLT); NRSV “from another quarter.” This is probably an oblique reference to help coming from God. D. J. A. Clines disagrees; in his view a contrast between deliverance by Esther and deliverance by God is inappropriate (Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther [NCBC], 302). But Clines’ suggestion that perhaps the reference is to deliverance by Jewish officials or by armed Jewish revolt is less attractive than seeing this veiled reference as part of the literary strategy of the book, which deliberately keeps God’s providential dealings entirely in the background.

[4:14]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “And who knows whether” (so NASB). The question is one of hope, but free of presumption. Cf. Jonah 3:9.

[4:14]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “have come to the kingdom”; NRSV “to royal dignity”; NIV “to royal position”; NLT “have been elevated to the palace.”

[4:16]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “I and my female attendants.” The translation reverses the order for stylistic reasons.

[4:16]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “which is not according to the law” (so KJV, NASB); NAB “contrary to the law.”

[7:4]  ¹⁹ sn The passive verb (“have been sold”) is noncommittal and nonaccusatory with regard to the king’s role in the decision to annihilate the Jews.

[8:5]  ²⁰ tc The LXX does not include the expression “the Agagite.”

[8:6]  ²¹ tn Heb “my kindred” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB “my race”; NIV “my family”; NLT “my people and my family.”

[8:7]  ²² tn Heb “sent forth his hand”; NAB, NIV “attacked”; NLT “tried to destroy.” Cf. 9:2.

[8:11]  ²³ tn Heb “children and women.” As in 3:13, the translation follows contemporary English idiom, which reverses the order.

[10:3]  ²⁴ tn Heb “great among the Jews” (so KJV, NASB); NIV “preeminent among the Jews”; NRSV “powerful among the Jews.”

[10:3]  ²⁵ tn Heb “brothers”; NASB “kinsmen”; NIV “fellow Jews.”

[10:3]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he was seeking”; NAB “as the promoter of his people’s welfare.”

[10:3]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he was speaking peace to”; NRSV “and interceded for the welfare of.”

[10:3]  ²⁸ 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).