Discovery BoxEsther 5:9 
Context5:9 Now Haman went forth that day pleased and very much encouraged. 1 But when Haman saw Mordecai at the king’s gate, and he did not rise nor tremble in his presence, 2 Haman was filled with rage toward Mordecai.
Esther 5:5
Context5:5 The king replied, “Find Haman quickly so that we can do as Esther requests.”
So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
Esther 7:6
Context7:6 Esther replied, “The oppressor and enemy is this evil Haman!”
Then Haman became terrified in the presence of the king and queen.
Esther 3:11
Context3:11 The king replied to Haman, “Keep your money, 3 and do with those people whatever you wish.” 4
Esther 6:7
Context6:7 So Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king wishes to honor,
Esther 7:1
Context7:1 So the king and Haman came to dine 5 with Queen Esther.
Esther 6:6
Context6:6 So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done for the man whom the king wishes to honor?” Haman thought to himself, 6 “Who is it that the king would want to honor more than me?”
Esther 8:2
Context8:2 The king then removed his signet ring (the very one he had taken back from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther designated Mordecai to be in charge of Haman’s estate.
Esther 3:5
Context3:5 When Haman saw that Mordecai was not bowing or paying homage to him, he 7 was filled with rage.
Esther 9:10
Context9:10 the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not confiscate their property.
Esther 3:10
Context3:10 So the king removed his signet ring 8 from his hand and gave it to Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, who was hostile toward the Jews.
Esther 5:4
Context5:4 Esther replied, “If the king is so inclined, 9 let the king and Haman come today to the banquet that I have prepared for him.”
Esther 5:10
Context5:10 But Haman restrained himself and went on to his home.
He then sent for his friends to join him, 10 along with his wife Zeresh.
Esther 5:12
Context5:12 Haman said, “Furthermore, Queen Esther invited 11 only me to accompany the king to the banquet that she prepared! And also tomorrow I am invited 12 along with the king.
Esther 6:5
Context6:5 The king’s attendants said to him, “It is Haman who is standing in the courtyard.” The king said, “Let him enter.”
Esther 6:12
Context6:12 Then Mordecai again sat at the king’s gate, while Haman hurried away to his home, mournful and with a veil over his head.
Esther 6:14
Context6:14 While they were still speaking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived. They quickly brought Haman to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
Esther 7:10
Context7:10 So they hanged Haman on the very gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. The king’s rage then abated.
Esther 9:14
Context9:14 So the king issued orders for this to be done. A law was passed in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged.
Esther 5:14
Context5:14 Haman’s 13 wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows seventy-five feet 14 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.” 15
It seemed like a good idea to Haman, so he had the gallows built.
Esther 7:8-9
Context7:8 When the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet of wine, Haman was throwing himself down 16 on the couch where Esther was lying. 17 The king exclaimed, “Will he also attempt to rape the queen while I am still in the building!”
As these words left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 7:9 Harbona, 18 one of the king’s eunuchs, said, “Indeed, there is the gallows that Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke out in the king’s behalf. It stands near Haman’s home and is seventy-five feet 19 high.”
The king said, “Hang him on it!”
Esther 3:1
Context3:1 Some time later 20 King Ahasuerus promoted 21 Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, exalting him and setting his position 22 above that of all the officials who were with him.
Esther 3:15
Context3:15 The messengers 23 scurried forth 24 with the king’s order. 25 The edict was issued in Susa the citadel. While the king and Haman sat down to drink, the city of Susa was in an uproar! 26
Esther 4:7
Context4:7 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.
Esther 5:11
Context5:11 Haman then recounted to them his fabulous wealth, 27 his many sons, 28 and how the king had magnified him and exalted him over the king’s other officials and servants.
Esther 6:4
Context6:4 Then the king said, “Who is that in the courtyard?” Now Haman had come to the outer courtyard of the palace to suggest that the king hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had constructed for him.
Esther 7:7
Context7:7 In rage the king arose from the banquet of wine and withdrew to the palace garden. Meanwhile, Haman stood to beg Queen Esther for his life, 29 for he realized that the king had now determined a catastrophic end for him. 30
Esther 8:1
Context8:1 On that same day King Ahasuerus gave the estate 31 of Haman, that adversary of the Jews, to Queen Esther. Now Mordecai had come before the king, for Esther had revealed how he was related to her.
Esther 8:3
Context8:3 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. 32
Esther 8:7
Context8:7 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 33 against the Jews.
Esther 9:13
Context9:13 Esther replied, “If the king is so inclined, let the Jews who are in Susa be permitted to act tomorrow also according to today’s law, and let them hang the ten sons of Haman on the gallows.”
Esther 9:24
Context9:24 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.
Esther 3:2
Context3:2 As a result, 34 all the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate were bowing and paying homage to Haman, for the king had so commanded. However, Mordecai did not bow, 35 nor did he pay him homage.
Esther 3:4
Context3:4 And after they had spoken to him day after day 36 without his paying any attention to them, they informed Haman to see whether this attitude on Mordecai’s part would be permitted. 37 Furthermore, he had disclosed to them that he was a Jew. 38
Esther 3:6-8
Context3:6 But the thought of striking out against 39 Mordecai alone was repugnant to him, for he had been informed 40 of the identity of Mordecai’s people. 41 So Haman sought to destroy all the Jews (that is, the people of Mordecai) 42 who were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus.
3:7 In the first month (that is, the month of Nisan), in the twelfth year 43 of King Ahasuerus’ reign, pur 44 (that is, the lot) was cast before Haman in order to determine a day and a month. 45 It turned out to be the twelfth month (that is, the month of Adar). 46
3:8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a particular people 47 that is dispersed and spread among the inhabitants 48 throughout all the provinces of your kingdom whose laws differ from those of all other peoples. Furthermore, they do not observe the king’s laws. It is not appropriate for the king to provide a haven for them. 49
Esther 5:8
Context5:8 If I have found favor in the king’s sight and if the king is inclined 50 to grant my request and perform my petition, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet that I will prepare for them. At that time 51 I will do as the king wishes. 52
Esther 6:10-11
Context6:10 The king then said to Haman, “Go quickly! Take the clothing and the horse, just as you have described, and do as you just indicated to Mordecai the Jew who sits at the king’s gate. Don’t neglect 53 a single thing of all that you have said.”
6:11 So Haman took the clothing and the horse, and he clothed Mordecai. He led him about on the horse throughout the plaza of the city, calling before him, “So shall it be done to the man whom the king wishes to honor!”
Esther 6:13
Context6:13 Haman then related to his wife Zeresh and to all his friends everything that had happened to him. These wise men, 54 along with his wife Zeresh, said to him, “If indeed this Mordecai before whom you have begun to fall is Jewish, 55 you will not prevail against him. No, you will surely fall before him!”
Esther 9:12
Context9:12 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.”
Esther 9:25
Context9:25 But when the matter came to the king’s attention, the king 56 gave written orders that Haman’s 57 evil intentions that he had devised against the Jews should fall on his own head. He and his sons were hanged on the gallows.
Esther 3:12
Context3:12 So the royal scribes 58 were summoned in the first month, on the thirteenth day of the month. Everything Haman commanded was written to the king’s satraps 59 and governors who were in every province and to the officials of every people, province by province according to its script and people by people according to its language. In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written and sealed with the king’s signet ring.
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, 60 which he wrote in order to destroy the Jews who are throughout all the king’s provinces.
1 tn Heb “happy and good of heart”; NASB “glad and pleased of heart”; NIV “happy and in high spirits.”
2 tn Heb “tremble from before him”; NIV “nor showed fear in his presence”; TEV “or show any sign of respect as he passed.”
3 tn Heb “the silver is given to you”; NRSV “the money is given to you”; CEV “You can keep their money.” C. A. Moore (Esther [AB], 40) understands these words somewhat differently, taking them to imply acceptance of the money on Xerxes’ part. He translates, “Well, it’s your money.”
4 tn Heb “according to what is good in your eyes”; NASB “do with them as you please.”
5 tn Heb “to drink”; NASB “to drink wine.” The expression is a metaphor for lavish feasting, cf. NRSV “to feast”; KJV “to banquet.”
6 tn Heb “said in his heart” (so ASV); NASB, NRSV “said to himself.”
7 tn Heb “Haman.” The pronoun (“he”) was used in the translation for stylistic reasons. Repeating the proper name here is redundant according to contemporary English style, although the name is repeated in NASB and NRSV.
8 sn Possessing the king’s signet ring would enable Haman to act with full royal authority. The king’s ring would be used to impress the royal seal on edicts, making them as binding as if the king himself had enacted them.
9 tn Heb “If upon the king it is good”; NASB “If it please the king.”
10 tn Heb “sent and brought.” The expression is probably a hendiadys (a figure of speech in which a single idea is expressed through two words or phrases), in which case the two verbs could be translated simply as “summoned” (so NAB) or “sent for” (NASB).
11 tn Heb “caused to come”; KJV “did let no man come in…but myself.”
12 tn Heb “called to her”; KJV “invited unto her”; NAB “I am to be her guest.”
13 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
14 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.”
15 tn Or “joyful”; NRSV “in good spirits”; TEV “happy.”
16 tn Heb “falling”; NAB, NRSV “had (+ just TEV) thrown himself (+ down TEV).”
17 tn Heb “where Esther was” (so KJV, NASB). The term “lying” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “was reclining.”
18 sn Cf. 1:10, where Harbona is one of the seven eunuchs sent by the king to summon Queen Vashti to his banquet.
19 tn Heb “fifty cubits.” See the note on this expression in Esth 5:14.
20 tn Heb “after these things” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV “After these events.”
21 tn Heb “made great”; NAB “raised…to high rank”; NIV “honored.”
sn The promotion of Haman in 3:1 for reasons unexplained contrasts noticeably with 2:19-23, where Mordecai’s contribution to saving the king’s life goes unnoticed. The irony is striking.
22 tn Heb “chair”; KJV, NRSV “seat”; NASB “established his authority.”
23 tn Heb “runners.” So also in 8:10, 14. Cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “couriers.”
24 tn Or “went forth in haste” (so ASV).
25 tn Heb “with the word of the king.”
26 sn The city of Susa was in an uproar. This final statement of v. 15 is a sad commentary on the pathetic disregard of despots for the human misery and suffering that they sometimes inflict on those who are helpless to resist their power. Here, while common people braced for the reckless loss of life and property that was about to begin, the perpetrators went about their mundane activities as though nothing of importance was happening.
27 tn Heb “the glory of his riches” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “the splendor of his riches.”
28 sn According to Esth 9:10 Haman had ten sons.
29 sn There is great irony here in that the man who set out to destroy all the Jews now finds himself begging for his own life from a Jew.
30 tn Heb “for he saw that calamity was determined for him from the king”; NAB “the king had decided on his doom”; NRSV “the king had determined to destroy him.”
31 tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV; also in vv. 2, 7). Cf. TEV “all the property.”
32 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.
33 tn Heb “sent forth his hand”; NAB, NIV “attacked”; NLT “tried to destroy.” Cf. 9:2.
34 tn Heb “and” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). Other modern English versions leave the conjunction untranslated here (NAB, NIV, NCV, NLT).
35 sn Mordecai did not bow. The reason for Mordecai’s refusal to bow before Haman is not clearly stated here. Certainly the Jews did not refuse to bow as a matter of principle, as though such an action somehow violated the second command of the Decalogue. Many biblical texts bear witness to their practice of falling prostrate before people of power and influence (e.g., 1 Sam 24:8; 2 Sam 14:4; 1 Kgs 1:16). Perhaps the issue here was that Haman was a descendant of the Amalekites, a people who had attacked Israel in an earlier age (see Exod 17:8-16; 1 Sam 15:17-20; Deut 25:17-19).
36 sn Mordecai’s position in the service of the king brought him into regular contact with these royal officials. Because of this association the officials would have found ample opportunity to complain of Mordecai’s refusal to honor Haman by bowing down before him.
37 tn Heb “Will the matters of Mordecai stand?”; NASB “to see whether Mordecai’s reason would stand.”
38 sn This disclosure of Jewish identity is a reversal of the practice mentioned in 1:10, 20.
39 tn Heb “to send a hand against”; KJV, NRSV “to lay hands on.”
40 tn Heb “they had related to him.” For stylistic reasons this has been translated as a passive construction.
41 tc The entire first half of the verse is not included in the LXX.
42 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.
43 sn This year would be ca. 474
44 tn The term פּוּר (pur, “lot”) is an Akkadian loanword; the narrator therefore explains it for his Hebrew readers (“that is, the lot”). It is from the plural form of this word (i.e., Purim) that the festival celebrating the deliverance of the Jews takes its name (cf. 9:24, 26, 28, 31).
45 tc The LXX adds the following words: “in order to destroy in one day the race of Mordecai, and the lot fell on the fourteenth day of the month.” The LXX reading is included by NAB.
tn Heb “from day to day and from month to month” (so KJV, NASB).
46 tn Since v. 7 seems to interrupt the flow of the narrative, many scholars have suggested that it is a late addition to the text. But there is not enough evidence to warrant such a conclusion. Even though its placement is somewhat awkward, the verse supplies to the reader an important piece of chronological information.
47 tn Heb “one people.” Note the subtle absence at this point of a specific mention of the Jewish people by name.
48 tn Heb “peoples” (so NASB, NIV); NAB “nations”
49 tn Heb “to cause them to rest”; NASB “to let them remain”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “to tolerate them.”
50 tn Heb “if upon the king it is good.” Cf. the similar expression in v. 4, which also occurs in 7:3; 8:5; 9:13.
51 tn Heb “and tomorrow” (so NASB); NAB, NRSV “and then.”
52 tn Heb “I will do according to the word of the king,” i.e., answer the question that he has posed. Cf. NCV “Then I will answer your question about what I want.”
53 tn Heb “do not let fall”; NASB “do not fall short.”
54 tc Part of the Greek tradition and the Syriac Peshitta understand this word as “friends,” probably reading the Hebrew term רֲכָמָיו (rakhamayv, “his friends”) rather than the reading of the MT חֲכָמָיו (hakhamayv, “his wise men”). Cf. NLT “all his friends”; the two readings appear to be conflated by TEV as “those wise friends of his.”
55 tn Heb “from the seed of the Jews”; KJV, ASV similar.
56 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
57 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Haman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
58 tn Or “secretaries” (so NIV, NRSV, NLT).
59 tn Or “princes” (so NLT); CEV “highest officials.”
60 tc The LXX does not include the expression “the Agagite.”
