Discovery BoxEsther 1:19 
Context1:19 If the king is so inclined, 1 let a royal edict go forth from him, and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media that cannot be repealed, 2 that Vashti 3 may not come into the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king convey her royalty to another 4 who is more deserving than she. 5
Esther 5:14
Context5:14 Haman’s 6 wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows seventy-five feet 7 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.” 8
It seemed like a good idea to Haman, so he had the gallows built.
Esther 8:5
Context8:5 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, 9 which he wrote in order to destroy the Jews who are throughout all the king’s provinces.
Esther 8:8
Context8:8 Now you write in the king’s name whatever in your opinion is appropriate concerning the Jews and seal it with the king’s signet ring. Any decree that is written in the king’s name and sealed with the king’s signet ring cannot be rescinded.
1 sn Heb “If upon the king it is good”; KJV “If it please the king.” Deferential language was common in ancient Near Eastern court language addressing a despot; it occurs often in Esther.
2 sn Laws…that cannot be repealed. On the permanence of the laws of Media and Persia see also Esth 8:8 and Dan 6:8, 12, 15.
3 sn Previously in this chapter the word “queen” accompanies Vashti’s name (cf. vv. 9, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17). But here, in anticipation of her demotion, the title is dropped.
4 tn Heb “her neighbor”; NIV “someone else.”
5 tn Heb “who is better than she.” The reference is apparently to worthiness of the royal position as demonstrated by compliance with the king’s wishes, although the word טוֹב (tob, “good”) can also be used of physical beauty. Cf. NAB, NASB, NLT “more worthy than she.”
6 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 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.”
8 tn Or “joyful”; NRSV “in good spirits”; TEV “happy.”
9 tc The LXX does not include the expression “the Agagite.”
