Esther 1
1 And it came to pass after these things in the days of Artaxerxes, —(this Artaxerxes ruled over a hundred and twenty-seven provinces from India)—
Now it came about in the days of Ahasuerus, (that Ahasuerus who was ruler of a hundred and twenty-seven divisions of the kingdom, from India as far as Ethiopia: )
2 in those days, when king Artaxerxes was on the throne in the city of Susa,
That in those days, when King Ahasuerus was ruling in Shushan, his strong town,
3 in the third year of his reign, he made a feast to his friends, and the other nations, and to the nobles of the Persians and Medes, and the chief of the satraps.
In the third year of his rule he gave a feast to all his captains and his servants; and the captains of the army of Persia and Media, the great men and the rulers of the divisions of his kingdom, were present before him;
4 And after this, after he had shown to them the wealth of his kingdom, and the abundant glory of his wealth during a hundred and eighty days,
And for a long time, even a hundred and eighty days, he let them see all the wealth and the glory of his kingdom and the great power and honour which were his.
5 when, [I say], the days of the marriage feast were completed, the king made a banquet to the nations who were present in the city six days, in the court of the king's house,
And at the end of that time, the king gave a feast for all the people who were present in Shushan, the king's town, small as well as great, for seven days, in the outer square of the garden of the king's house.
6 [which was] adorned with [hangings] of fine linen and flax on cords of fine linen and purple, fastened to golden and silver studs, on pillars of Parian marble and stone: [there were] golden and silver couches on a pavement of emerald stone, and of pearl, and of Parian stone, and open-worked coverings variously flowered, [having] roses worked round about;
There were fair hangings of white and green and blue, fixed with cords of purple and the best linen to silver rings and pillars of polished stone: the seats were of gold and silver on a floor of red and white and yellow and black stone.
7 gold and silver cups, and a small cup of carbuncle set out of the value of thirty thousand talents, abundant and sweet wine, which the king himself drank.
And they gave them drink in gold vessels, every vessel being different, and wine of the kingdom, freely given by the king.
8 And this banquet was not according to the appointed law; but so the king would have it: and he charged the stewards to perform his will and that of the company.
And the drinking was in keeping with the law; no one was forced: for the king had given orders to all the chief servants of his house to do as was pleasing to every man.
9 Also Astin the queen made a banquet for the women in the palace where king Artaxerxes [lived].
And Vashti the queen gave a feast for the women in the house of King Ahasuerus.
10 Now on the seventh day the king, being merry, told Aman, and Bazan, and Tharrha, and Barazi, and Zatholtha, and Abataza, and Tharaba, the seven chamberlains, servants of king Artaxerxes,
On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was glad with wine, he gave orders to Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven unsexed servants who were waiting before Ahasuerus the king,
11 to bring in the queen to him, to enthrone her, and crown her with the diadem, and to show her to the princes, and her beauty to the nations: for she was beautiful.
That Vashti the queen was to come before him, crowned with her crown, and let the people and the captains see her: for she was very beautiful.
12 But queen Astin listened not to him to come with the chamberlains: so the king was grieved and angered.
But when the servants gave her the king's order, Vashti the queen said she would not come: then the king was very angry, and his heart was burning with wrath.
13 And he said to his friends, Thus have Astin spoken: pronounce therefore upon this [case] law and judgement.
And the king said to the wise men, who had knowledge of the times, (for this was the king's way with all who were expert in law and in the giving of decisions:
14 So Arkesaeus, and Sarsathaeus, and Malisear, the princes of the Persians and Medes, who were near the king, who sat chief [in rank] by the king, drew near to him,
And second only to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven rulers of Persia and Media, who were friends of the king, and had the first places in the kingdom: )
15 and reported to him according to the laws how it was proper to do to queen Astin, because she had not done the things commanded of the king by the chamberlains.
What is to be done by law to Vashti the queen, because she has not done what King Ahasuerus, by his servants, gave her orders to do?
16 And Muchaeus said to the king and to the princes, Queen Astin has not wronged the king only, but also all the king's rulers and princes:
And before the king and the captains, Memucan gave his answer: Vashti the queen has done wrong, not only to the king, but to all the captains and to all the peoples in all the divisions of the kingdom of King Ahasuerus;
17 for he has told them the words of the queen, and how she disobeyed the king. As then, [said he], she refused [to obey] king Artaxerxes,
For news of what the queen has done will come to the ears of all women, and they will no longer give respect to their husbands when it is said to them, King Ahasuerus gave orders for Vashti the queen to come before him and she came not.
18 so this day shall the other ladies of the chiefs of the Persians and Medes, having heard what she said to the king, dare in the same way to dishonour their husbands.
And the wives of the captains of Persia and Media, hearing what the queen has done, will say the same to all the king's captains. So there will be much shame and wrath.
19 If then it seem good to the king, let him make a royal decree, and let it be written according to the laws of the Medes and Persians, and let him not alter [it]: and let not the queen come in to him any more; and let the king give her royalty to a woman better than she.
If it is pleasing to the king, let an order go out from him, and let it be recorded among the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it may never be changed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her place to another who is better than she.
20 And let the law of the king which he shall have made, be widely proclaimed, in his kingdom: and so shall all the women give honour to their husbands, from the poor even to the rich.
And when this order, given by the king, is made public through all his kingdom (for it is great), all the wives will give honour to their husbands, great as well as small.
21 And the saying pleased the king and the princes; and the king did as Muchaeus had said,
And this suggestion seemed good to the king and the captains; and the king did as Memucan said;
22 and sent into all his kingdom through the several provinces, according to their language, in order that men might be feared in their own houses.
And sent letters to all the divisions of the kingdom, to every division in the writing commonly used there, and to every people in the language which was theirs, saying that every man was to be the ruler in his house, and that this order was to be given out in the language of his people.
