Esther 6
1 That night sleep escaped the king; so he ordered the Book of Records, the Chronicles, to be brought in and read to him.
That night the king was unable to sleep, so he [summoned] a servant [and] told [him] to bring the records of what had happened during all the time he had been king. [So the servant brought the records] and read some of them to the king.
2 And there it was found recorded that Mordecai had exposed Bigthana and Teresh, two of the eunuchs who guarded the king’s entrance, when they had conspired to assassinate King Xerxes.
[The servant read about] Bigthana and Teresh, the two men who had guarded the entrance to the king’s rooms. He read the account of when Mordecai had found out that they planned to assassinate the king [and that he had told the king about it].
3 The king inquired, “What honor or dignity has been bestowed on Mordecai for this act?” “Nothing has been done for him,” replied the king’s attendants.
The king asked [some of his servants], “What did we do to reward Mordecai or show that we appreciate what he did?” The servants replied, “We did not do anything for him.”
4 “Who is in the court?” the king asked. Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the palace to ask the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows he had prepared for him.
At that moment, Haman entered the outer courtyard of the palace. He wanted to talk to the king about hanging Mordecai on the gallows that he had [just] set up. The king [saw him and] said, “Who is [that out there] in the courtyard?”
5 So the king’s attendants answered him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.” “Bring him in,” ordered the king.
His servants replied, “That is Haman standing there in the courtyard.” The king said, “Bring him in [here]!”
6 Haman entered, and the king asked him, “What should be done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor?” Now Haman thought to himself, “Whom would the king be delighted to honor more than me?”
When Haman came in, the king asked him, “What should I do for a man whom I want to honor?” Haman thought to himself, “(Whom would the king like to honor more than me?/I think there is no one whom the king would like to honor more than me!)” [RHQ]
7 And Haman told the king, “For the man whom the king is delighted to honor,
So he replied to the king, “If there is someone you wish to honor,
8 have them bring a royal robe that the king himself has worn and a horse on which the king himself has ridden—one with a royal crest placed on its head.
you should [tell your servants to] bring him one of the robes you wear [you to show that you are] the king. Also tell them to bring one of the horses you have ridden. Tell them to put a fancy headdress on the horse’s head to show that it belongs to you, the king.
9 Let the robe and the horse be entrusted to one of the king’s most noble princes. Let them array the man the king wants to honor and parade him on the horse through the city square, proclaiming before him, ‘This is what is done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor!’”
Then tell one of your very important officials to put the robe on the man whom you want to honor, and tell that man to sit on the horse, and then lead the horse through the city streets. And tell that official to keep shouting, ‘This is what (the king does/is doing) for the man whom he wants to honor!’”
10 “Hurry,” said the king to Haman, “and do just as you proposed. Take the robe and the horse to Mordecai the Jew, who is sitting at the king’s gate. Do not neglect anything that you have suggested.”
The king replied to Haman, “[Fine]! Go and do what you said immediately! Get my robe and my horse, and do just what you suggested! Do it for Mordecai, the Jew, who is sitting [outside] at the gate of the palace. Do not forget anything that you suggested!”
11 So Haman took the robe and the horse, arrayed Mordecai, and paraded him through the city square, crying out before him, “This is what is done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor!”
So Haman did what the king said. He got the robe and the horse. He put the robe on Mordecai, and as Mordecai sat on the horse, Haman led the horse through the city streets proclaiming “This is what the king (does/is doing) for the man whom the king wants to honor!”
12 Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman rushed home, with his head covered in grief.
Then, Mordecai returned [and sat] at the gate of the palace. But Haman hurried home, covering his face [because he felt] completely disgraced/humiliated.
13 Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened. His advisers and his wife Zeresh said to him, “Since Mordecai, before whom your downfall has begun, is Jewish, you will not prevail against him—for surely you will fall before him.”
He told his wife Zeresh and his friends everything that had happened to him that day. Then his wife and his friends said to him, “Mordecai, the man who has caused you to be completely disgraced/humiliated, is a Jew. [It is clear that the God whom the Jews worship is fighting for them.] So you will never be able to defeat Mordecai. He will defeat you!”
14 While they were still speaking with Haman, the king’s eunuchs arrived and rushed him to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
And while they were still talking, some of the king’s officials arrived to take Haman quickly to the banquet/feast that Esther had prepared.
