Estè 2
1 Apre bagay sa yo, lè kòlè a Wa Assuérus te vin kalme, li te sonje Vasthi ak sa li te fè a, e dekrè ki te fèt kont li an.
After a while, King Xerxes quit being so angry. He thought about Vashti, and he thought about the law he had made because of what she [had done, and he wanted another wife].
2 Alò, asistan a wa a ki te sèvi li yo, te di: “Annou fè rechèch pou jwenn jenn vyèj ki byen bèl pou wa a.
So his personal servants said to him, “[Your majesty, ] you should send some men to search throughout the empire for some beautiful young women/virgins for you.
3 Kite wa a apwente sipèvizè nan tout pwovens a wayòm li yo pou yo kab rasanble tout bèl vyèj pou vin parèt nan sitadèl Suse la, antre nan kay fanm a wa a ki sou kontwòl Hégué a, enik a wa a, ki an chaj fanm yo. Kite yo byen prepare ak tout bagay pou fè yo bèl yo.
[After they find some, ] you can appoint some officials in each province to bring them to the place where you keep (your wives/the women you sleep with) here in Susa. Then Hegai, the man who is in charge of these women, can arrange for ointments to be put [on their bodies] to make them [more] beautiful.
4 Alò, kite jenn fi ki bay wa a plezi a, vin regne la nan plas a Vasthi a.” Koze a te fè wa a kontan e se konsa li te fè l.
Then the woman who pleases you most can become queen instead of Vashti.” The king liked what they suggested, so he did it.
5 Te gen nan sitadèl Suse la, yon Jwif ki te rele Mardochée, fis a Jaïr, fis a Schimeï, fis a Kis, yon Benjamit,
At that time there was a Jew [living] in Susa, the capital, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair. Jair was a descendant of Shimei. Shimei was a descendant of [King Saul’s father] Kish. [They were all] from the tribe descended from Benjamin.
6 ki te ale an egzil soti Jérusalem avèk kaptif ki te ekzile avèk Jeconia yo, wa Juda ke Nebudkanetsar, wa Babylone nan, te fè ekzile a.
[Many years before that, ] King Nebuchadnezzar had taken (Mordecai/Mordecai’s family) [and brought them from Jerusalem] to Babylon, at the same time he brought King Jehoiachin of Judah and many other people to Babylon.
7 Li t ap elve Hadassa, sa vle di, Esther, fi a tonton li an, paske li pa t gen papa ni manman. Alò, jenn demwazèl la te byen bèl sou fòm ni figi li e lè papa li avèk manman li te mouri, Mardochée te pran li kon pwòp fi pa li.
Mordecai had a cousin whose [Hebrew] name was Hadassah. She had a beautiful face and beautiful body/figure. Her [Persian] name was Esther. After her father and mother died, Mordecai took care of Esther as though she were his own daughter.
8 Konsa, li te vin rive ke lè kòmand avèk dekrè a wa a te tande e anpil jèn fi te ranmase nan sitadèl Suse la sou sipèvizyon a Hégaï, ke Esther te pran pou antre nan palè a wa a, anba sipèvizyon a Hégaï, ki te responsab fanm yo.
After the king commanded [that they search for some beautiful women], they brought Esther and many other young women to the king’s palace [in Susa], and (the king put Hegai/Hegai was put) in charge of them.
9 Alò, jèn fi a te fè l plezi e te twouve favè devan l. Pou sa, li te bay li tout atik twalèt avèk manje san fè reta, e li te ba li sèt sèvant de chwa nan palè a wa a, e te voye li avèk sèvant li yo nan pi bon kote pami fanm a wa yo.
Hegai was very pleased with Esther, and he treated her well. He immediately arranged for her to be given ointments to make her [even more] beautiful, and [he ordered that] special food [would be given to her]. [He arranged that] seven maids from the king’s palace [would take care of her], and arranged that she/they would stay in the best rooms.
10 Esther pa t fè pèsòn konnen ras pèp li a ni fanmi li yo, paske Mardochée te enstwi li pou li pa ta dwe fè sa rekonèt.
Esther did not tell anyone that she was a Jew, because Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone.
11 Chak jou, Mardochée te mache ale retou devan lakou fanm a wa yo pou vin aprann jan Esther te ye ak jan afè l t ap mache.
Every day Mordecai walked near the courtyard of the place where those women stayed. He asked [people who entered the courtyard] to find out [and tell him] what was happening to Esther.
12 Alò, lè chans a chak jèn demwazèl te vin rive pou antre kote wa Assuérus la, lè l te fin fè preparasyon douz mwa anba règleman pou fanm yo—paske jou pou konplete preparasyon bèlte yo te fini konsa: si mwa avèk lwil lami a, e si mwa avèk aplikasyon epis ak pafen pou fanm—
Before these women were taken to the king, they put ointments on [the bodies of] these women for one year to make them more beautiful. For six months they [rubbed olive] oil mixed with myrrh [on their bodies each day]. For [the next] six months they rubbed ointments and perfumes on their bodies.
13 Men kòman jèn fi a ta antre kote wa a: nenpòt bagay ke li te dezire, ta bay a li menm pou pran avè l soti lakay fanm yo pou rive nan palè a wa a.
Then, when one of these women [was summoned to] go to the king, she was allowed to wear whatever clothes and jewelry she chose.
14 Nan aswè, li ta ale ladann e nan maten, li ta retounen nan dezyèm kay fanm yo, sou responsabilite Schaaschgaz, enik a wa a ki te an chaj konkibin a wa yo. Li pa t antre kote wa a ankò sof ke wa a te kontan anpil avèk li e te rele li eksprè pa non l.
In the evening, they would take her [to the king’s own room]. The next morning, they would take her to another place where the women [who had slept with the king] stayed. There another official whose name was Shaashgaz was in charge [of those women]. [Those women would live there for the rest of their lives, and] one of those women would go back to the king again only if the king very much wanted her to come again, and only if he told Shaashgaz the name of the woman.
15 Alò lè lè pou Esther, fi de Abichaïl la, tonton li, Mardochée, ki te pran li kon pwòp pitit pa li, te rive antre kote wa a, li pa t mande anyen sof ke sa ke Hégaï, enik a wa a ki te an chaj fanm yo, te konseye yo. Epi Esther te jwenn favè nan zye a tout moun ki te wè l yo.
Everyone who saw Esther liked her. After King Xerxes had been ruling for seven years, it was Esther’s turn to go to him. When they took her to the king, it was during the middle part of the winter. She wore only the things that Hegai suggested.
16 Pou sa, Esther te mennen vè Wa Assuérus nan palè wayal li a nan dezyèm mwa ki nan mwa Tébeth la, nan setyèm ane pouvwa li a.
17 Wa a te renmen Esther plis pase tout fanm yo, e li te twouve gras avèk favè devan li menm plis pase tout lòt vyèj yo, jiskaske li te mete kouwòn wayal la sou tèt li e te fè li rèn nan plas a Vasthi a.
The king liked Esther more than he liked any of the other women [that they brought to him]. He liked her so much that he put on her head the queen’s crown, and he declared that Esther would be the queen instead of Vashti.
18 Epi wa a te bay yon gran bankè pou tout chèf li yo ak sèvitè li yo. Li te rele l bankè Esther. Li te pwokame l yon jou fèt pou pwovens yo, epi li te bay yo kado selon jenewozite a wa a.
To celebrate her [becoming the queen], he had a big banquet/feast prepared for all his administrators and [other] officials. He generously gave [expensive] gifts to everyone, and he declared that in all the provinces there would be a holiday, [a time when people did not have to pay taxes].
19 Lè vyèj yo te reyini ansanm yon dezyèm fwa a, alò, Mardochée t ap chita nan pòtay a wa a.
Later all those women who had spent a night with the king were gathered together again. By that time Mordecai had become an official at the palace.
20 Esther potko fè yo konnen fanmi li yo, ni pèp li a, jis jan ke Mardochée te bay li lòd fè a, jis jan li te fè lè se te li ki t ap swaye li a.
But Esther still did not tell anyone that she was a Jew. She continued to do what Mordecai had told her to do.
21 Nan jou sa yo, pandan Mardochée te chita nan pòtay palè a wa a, Bigthan avèk Théresch, de ofisye a wa yo ki t ap veye pòt la, te vin fache, e te chache mete men sou wa Assuérus.
One day when Mordecai was doing his work in the palace, two of the king’s officials were there. Their names were Bigthana and Teresh. They were the guards who stood outside the king’s own rooms. They became angry [with the king], and they were planning how they could assassinate/kill him.
22 Men konplo a te vin rekonèt pa Mardochée e li te pale rèn Esther, e Esther te pale wa a nan non a Mardochée.
But Mordecai heard about what they were planning, and he told that to Queen Esther. Then she told the king what Mordecai had found out.
23 Alò, lè yo fè rechèch nan konplo a e jwenn bout li, yo tou de te pann sou yon bwa; epi sa te ekri nan Liv Achiv Kwonik Yo nan prezans wa a.
The king investigated and found out that Mordecai’s report was true. So the king ordered that those two men be hanged. When that was done, (an official wrote a report/a report was written) about it in a book called ‘The book that records what happened while Xerxes was king’.
