Esther 9

1 And, in the twelfth month, the same, is the month Adar, on the thirteenth day thereof, when the word of the king and his edict arrived to be put in execution, —on the day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, though it, was changed, so that the Jews themselves should have power over them who hated them,

Now on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, when the time came for the king's order to be put into effect, on the very day when the haters of the Jews had been hoping to have rule over them; though the opposite had come about, and the Jews had rule over their haters;

2 the Jews assembled themselves together in their cities, throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, to thrust forth a hand against them who were seeking their hurt, and, no man, stood before them, for the dread of them had fallen upon all the peoples.

On that day, the Jews came together in their towns through all the divisions of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, for the purpose of attacking all those who were attempting evil against them: and everyone had to give way before them, for the fear of them had come on all the peoples.

3 And, all the rulers of the provinces, and the satraps and the pashas, and the doers of business that pertained to the king, were extolling the Jews, —for the dread of Mordecai, had fallen upon them;

And all the chiefs and the captains and the rulers and those who did the king's business gave support to the Jews; because the fear of Mordecai had come on them.

4 since great was Mordecai, in the house of the king, and, his fame, was going forth throughout all the provinces, —for, the man Mordecai, went on waxing great.

For Mordecai was great in the king's house, and word of him went out through every part of the kingdom: for the man Mordecai became greater and greater.

5 So then the Jews smote all their enemies, with the smiting of the sword and slaughter, and destruction, —and they dealt with them who hated them according to their pleasure.

So the Jews overcame all their attackers with the sword and with death and destruction, and did to their haters whatever they had a desire to do.

6 Yea, in Shusan the palace, did the Jews slay and destroy five hundred men.

And in Shushan the Jews put to death five hundred men.

7 And Parshandatha and Dalphon, and Aspatha;

They put to death Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,

8 and Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha;

Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha,

9 and Parmashta, and Arisai, and Aridai, and Vaizatha; —

Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha,

10 the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the adversary of the Jews, slew they, —but, on the spoil, thrust they not forth their hand.

The ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the hater of the Jews; but they put not a hand on any of their goods.

11 On that day, came in the number of the slain into Shusan the palace, before the king.

On that day the number of those who had been put to death in the town of Shushan was given to the king.

12 Then said the king unto Esther the queen, In Shusan the palace, have the Jews slain and caused to perish five hundred men, and the ten sons of Haman, —in the rest of the provinces of the king, what have they done? What, then, is thy petition, that it may be granted thee? and what is thy request further, that it may he performed?

And the king said to Esther the queen, The Jews have put five hundred men to death in Shushan, as well as the ten sons of Haman: what then have they done in the rest of the kingdom! Now what is your prayer? for it will be given to you; what other request have you? and it will be done.

13 Then said Esther, If, unto the king, it seem good, let it be granted, to-morrow also, unto the Jews who are in Shusan, to do according to the edict of to-day, —and that, the ten sons of Haman, be hanged upon the gallows.

Then Esther said, If it is the king's pleasure, let authority be given to the Jews in Shushan to do tomorrow as has been done today, and let orders be given for the hanging of Haman's ten sons.

14 And the king commanded it to be done so, and there was given an edict, in Shusan, —and, the ten sons of Haman, they hanged.

And the king said that this was to be done, and the order was given out in Shushan, and the hanging of Haman's ten sons was effected.

15 So the Jews who were in Shusan assembled themselves together, on the fourteenth day also, of the month Adar, and slew in Shusan three hundred men, —but, on the spoil, thrust they not forth their hand.

For the Jews who were in Shushan came together again on the fourteenth day of the month Adar and put to death three hundred men in Shushan; but they put not a hand on their goods.

16 And, the remainder of the Jews who were in the provinces of the king, assembled themselves together and stood for their life, and then had rest from their enemies, having slain of them that hated them seventy-five thousand, —but, on the spoil, thrust they not forth their hand:

And the other Jews in every division of the kingdom came together, fighting for their lives, and got salvation from their haters and put seventy-five thousand of them to death; but they did not put a hand on their goods.

17 on the thirteenth day of the month Adar, —and then had rest on the fourteenth day thereof, and made it a day of banqueting and rejoicing.

This they did on the thirteenth day of the month Adar; and on the fourteenth day of the same month they took their rest, and made it a day of feasting and joy.

18 But, the Jews who were in Shusan, assembled themselves together on the thirteenth day thereof, and on the fourteenth day thereof, —and then had rest on the fifteenth day thereof, and made it a day of banqueting and rejoicing.

But the Jews in Shushan came together on the thirteenth and on the fourteenth day of the month; and on the fifteenth day they took their rest, and made it a day of feasting and joy.

19 For this cause, the country Jews, who dwelt in the country towns, were making the fourteenth day of the month Adar one of rejoicing and banqueting, and a day of happiness, —and of sending portions every one to his neighbour.

So the Jews of the country places living in unwalled towns make the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of feasting and joy and a good day, a day for sending offerings one to another.

20 And Mordecai wrote these things, —and sent letters unto all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, near, and far off;

And Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews in every division of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, near and far,

21 to establish for them, that they should continue to observe the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day thereof, —always year by year;

Ordering them to keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and the fifteenth day of the same month, every year,

22 according to the days wherein the Jews found rest from their enemies, and the month which was turned for them, from sorrow to joy, and from mourning to a happy day, —that they should make them days of banqueting and rejoicing, and of sending portions, every one to his neighbour, and gifts, unto the needy.

As days on which the Jews had rest from their haters, and the month which for them was turned from sorrow to joy, and from weeping to a good day: and that they were to keep them as days of feasting and joy, of sending offerings to one another and good things to the poor.

23 And the Jews took upon them that which they had begun to do, —and that which Mordecai had written unto them;

And the Jews gave their word to go on as they had been doing and as Mordecai had given them orders in writing;

24 because, Haman, son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the adversary of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews, to cause them to perish, —and had cast Pur, the same, is the Lot, to terrify them, and to destroy them;

Because Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the hater of all the Jews, had made designs for their destruction, attempting to get a decision by Pur (that is, chance) with a view to putting an end to them and cutting them off;

25 but, by [Esther’s] going in before the king, he commanded by letter, that his wicked plot which he had plotted against the Jews, should return, upon his own head, —and that he and his sons should be hanged upon the gallows.

But when the business was put before the king, he gave orders by letters that the evil design which he had made against the Jews was to be turned against himself; and that he and his sons were to be put to death by hanging.

26 For this cause, called they these days Purim, after the name Pur, for this cause, —for all the words of this epistle, —and what they had seen concerning such a matter, and what had reached unto them.

So these days were named Purim, after the name of Pur. And so, because of the words of this letter, and of what they had seen in connection with this business, and what had come to them,

27 The Jews established and took upon themselves—and upon their seed, and upon all who should join themselves unto them, that it might not pass away, that they would continue to keep these two days, according to the writing concerning them and at their set time, —always year by year.

The Jews made a rule and gave an undertaking, causing their seed and all those who were joined to them to do the same, so that it might be in force for ever, that they would keep those two days, as ordered in the letter, at the fixed time every year;

28 And, these days, were to be remembered and to be kept, always from generation to generation, by every family, every province, and every city, —that, these days of Purim, should not pass away, out of the midst of the Jews, and, the memorial of them, not cease from their seed.

And that those days were to be kept in memory through every generation and every family, in every division of the kingdom and every town, that there might never be a time when these days of Purim would not be kept among the Jews, or when the memory of them would go from the minds of their seed.

29 Then wrote Esther the queen daughter of Abihail and Mordecai the Jew, with all authority, —to confirm this second epistle concerning the Purim;

Then Esther the queen, daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, sent a second letter giving the force of their authority to the order about the Purim.

30 and he sent letters unto all the Jews, throughout the hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, —words of peace and stability:

And he sent letters to all the Jews in the hundred and twenty-seven divisions of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with true words of peace,

31 to establish these days of the Purim, in their set times, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined upon them, and according as they had enjoined upon their own soul, and upon their seed, —the story of the fastings and of their outcry.

Giving the force of law to these days of Purim at their fixed times, as they had been ordered by Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen, and in keeping with the rules they had made for themselves and their seed, in connection with their time of going without food and their cry for help.

32 And, the command of Esther, confirmed the story of these Purim, —and it was written in a book.

The order given by Esther gave the force of law to the rules about the Purim; and it was recorded in the book.