Another example of Intelligent Design or Divine Design in the scriptures
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Chapters
ESTHER 1
1 NOW it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is the same Ahasuerus,
Which
reigned from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty
provinces;)
2 That in those days when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne, which was in Shushan the palace,
3 In the third year of his reign, he made a feast unto all his princes and his
servants,
The power of Persia and Media, the nobles and princes being before
him;
4 When he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom,
And the honor of his
excellent majesty many days, even an hundred and fourscore days.
5 And when these days were expired, the king made a feast unto all the people,
That were present in Shushan the palace, both unto great and small,
Seven days in the court of the garden of the king's palace;
6 Where were white, green, and blue, hangings,
Fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and
pillars of marble;
The beds were of gold
and silver, upon a pavement of red, and blue, and white, and black, marble.
7 And they gave them drink in vessels of gold, (the vessels being diverse one
from another,)
And royal wine in abundance, according to the state of the king.
8 And the drinking was according to the law; none did compel;
For so the king
had appointed to all the officers of his house,
That they should do according to
every man's pleasure.
9 Also Vashti the queen made a feast,
For the women in the royal house which belonged to king Ahasuerus.
10 On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was made merry with wine,
He
commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas,
The
seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king,
11 To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal,
To show the people and the princes her beauty;
For she was fair to look upon.
12 But the queen Vashti refused to come,
At the king's commandment by his chamberlains;
Therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned.
13 And then the king said unto the wise men, which knew the times,
(for so was the
king's manner toward all that knew the law and the judgment;
14 And the next unto him was Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres,
Marsena, and Memucan,
The seven princes of Persia and Media, which saw the
king's face, and which sat first in the kingdom;)
15 What shall we do unto the queen Vashti according to law,
Because she hath not
performed the commandment,
Of the king Ahasuerus by the chamberlains?
16 And Memucan answered before the king and the princes,
Vashti the queen hath
not done wrong to the king only, but also to all the princes,
And to all the
people that are in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus.
17 For this deed of the queen shall come abroad unto all women,
So that they
shall despise their husbands in their eyes,
When it shall be reported, The king Ahasuerus,
Commanded Vashti the queen to be brought in before him, but she came
not.
18 Likewise shall the ladies of Persia and Media say this day unto all the
king's princes,
Which have heard of the deed of the queen; thus shall there
arise too much contempt and wrath.
19 If it please the king, let there go a royal commandment from him, and let it
be written,
Among the laws of the Persians and the Medes, that it be not altered,
That Vashti come no more before king Ahasuerus;
And let the king give her royal
estate,
Unto another that is better than she.
20 And when the king's decree,
Which he shall make shall be published throughout
all his empire,
(for it is great,) all the wives shall give to their husbands honor, both to great and small.
21 And the saying pleased the king and the princes; and the king did according
to the word of Memucan;
22 For he sent letters into all the king's provinces, into every province
according to the writing thereof,
And to every people after their language, that
every man should bear rule in his own house,
And that it should be published
according to the language of every people.
ESTHER 2
1 AFTER these things, when the wrath of king Ahasuerus was appeased,
He
remembered Vashti, and what she had done, and what was decreed against her.
2 Then said the king's servants that ministered unto him,
Let there be fair
young virgins sought for the king;
3 And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom,
That
they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace,
To
the house of the women, unto the custody of Hege the king's chamberlain, keeper
of the women;
And let their things for purification be given them;
4 And let the maiden which pleaseth the king,
Be queen instead of Vashti.
And the
thing pleased the king; and he did so.
5 Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was
Mordecai,
The son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;
6 Who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captivity,
Which had been
carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah,
Whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of
Babylon had carried away.
7 And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle's daughter;
For she
had neither father nor mother, and the maid was fair and beautiful;
Whom
Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took her for his own daughter.
8 So it came to pass, when the king's commandment and his decree was heard,
And
when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the palace,
To the custody
of Hegai, that Esther was brought also,
To the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women.
9 And the maiden pleased him,
And she obtained kindness of him;
And he speedily
gave her things for purification,
With such things as belonged to her, and
seven other maidens,
Which were meet to be given her, out of the king's house; and
he preferred her,
And her maids unto the best place of the house of the women.
10 Esther had not showed her people nor her kindred;
For Mordecai had given her charge,
That she should not show it.
11 And Mordecai walked every day,
Before the court of the women's house,
To know
how Esther did, and what should become of her.
12 Now when every maid's turn was come to go in to king Ahasuerus,
After that
she had been twelve months, according to the manner of the women,
(for so were
the days of their purifications accomplished, to wit, six months with oil of
myrrh,
And six months with sweet odors, and with other things for the
purifying of the women;)
13 Then thus came every maiden unto the king; whatsoever she desired was given
her,
To go with her out of the house of the women unto the king's house.
14 In the evening she went, and on the morrow she returned,
Into the second house
of the women,
To the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's chamberlain,
Which kept
the concubines; she came in unto the king no more,
Except the king delighted in
her, and that she were called by name.
15 Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai,
Who had taken her for his daughter, was come to go in unto the king, she
required nothing
But what Hegai the king's chamberlain, the keeper of the women,
appointed.
And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all them that looked upon
her.
16 So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus's house the tenth
month,
Which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.
17 And the king loved Esther above all the women,
And she obtained grace and
favor in his sight more than all the virgins;
So that he set the royal crown
upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
18 Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants,
even Esther's feast;
And he made a release to the provinces, and gave gifts,
according to the state of the king.
19 And when the virgins were gathered together the second time,
Then Mordecai
sat in the king's gate.
20 Esther had not yet showed her kindred nor her people;
As Mordecai had
charged her; for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai,
Like she had always done when she was
brought up with him; and in those days,
While Mordecai sat in the king's gate, two of the king's
chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh,
Of those which kept the door, were wroth, and
sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus.
22 And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen;
And
Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai's name.
23 And when inquisition was made of the matter,
It was found out; therefore they
were both hanged on a tree;
And it was written in the book of the chronicles
before the king.
ESTHER 3
1 AFTER these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman,
The son of Hammedatha
the Agagite,
And advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that
were with him.
2 And all the king's servants that were in the king's gate bowed and
reverenced Haman;
For the king had so commanded concerning him; but Mordecai
bowed not, nor did him reverence.
3 Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai,
Why transgressest thou the king's commandment?
4 Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him,
And he hearkened not unto
them, that they told Haman,
To see whether Mordecai's matters would stand; for
he had told them that he was a Jew.
5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.
6 And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had showed him
the people of Mordecai;
Wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that
were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.
7 In the first month, that is, the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of king Ahasuerus,
They cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day,
And
from month to month, to the twelfth month,
That is, the month Adar.
8 And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus,
There is a certain people scattered abroad,
And dispersed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom;
And their
laws are diverse from all people; neither keep they the king's laws;
Therefore
it is not for the king's profit to suffer them.
9 If it please the king,
Let it be written that they may be destroyed;
And I
will pay ten thousand talents of silver to the hands of those,
That have the
charge of the business, to bring it into the king's treasuries.
10 And the king took his ring from his hand, and gave it unto Haman,
The son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the Jews' enemy.
11 And the king said unto Haman,
The silver is given to thee,
The people also,
to do with them as it seemeth good to thee.
12 Then were the king's scribes called on the thirteenth day of the first month,
And there was written according to all that Haman had commanded unto the king's
lieutenants,
And to the governors that were over every province, and to the
rulers of every people,
Of every province according to the writing thereof,
And to every people after their language;
In the name of king Ahasuerus was it
written, and sealed with the king's ring.
13 And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy,
to kill,
And to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children
and women,
In one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month,
Which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey.
14 The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province,
Was
published unto all people, that they should be ready against that day.
15 The posts went out, being hastened by the king's commandment,
And the decree
was given in Shushan the palace.
And the king and Haman sat down to drink;
But
the city Shushan was perplexed.
ESTHER 4
1 WHEN Mordecai perceived all that was done,
Mordecai rent his clothes, and
put on sackcloth with ashes,
And went out into the midst of the city, and cried
with a loud and a bitter cry;
2 And came even before the king's gate; for none might enter into the king's
gate clothed with sackcloth.
3 And in every province, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree
came,
There was great mourning among the Jews, and fasting,
And weeping, and
wailing;
And many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 So Esther's maids and her chamberlains came and told it her.
Then was the
queen exceedingly grieved; and she sent raiment to clothe Mordecai,
And to take
away his sackcloth from him; but he received the clothes not.
5 Then called Esther for Hatach, one of the king's chamberlains,
Whom he had
appointed to attend upon her,
And gave him a commandment to Mordecai,
To know
what it was, and why it was.
6 So Hatach went forth to Mordecai,
Unto the street of the city, which was
before the king's gate.
7 And Mordecai told him of all that had happened unto him, and of the
money
That Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasuries for the Jews, to
destroy them.
8 Also he gave him the copy of the writing of the decree that was given at Shushan
To destroy them, to show it unto Esther, and to declare it unto her,
And to charge her that she should go in unto the king,
To make supplication unto
him,
And to make request before him for her people.
9 And Hatach came and told Esther the words of Mordecai.
10 Again Esther spake unto Hatach, and gave him commandment unto Mordecai;
11 All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know,
that whosoever,
Whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner
court,
Who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death,
Except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden scepter, that he may
live;
But I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days.
12 And they told to Mordecai Esther's words.
13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself
That thou
shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews.
14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time,
Then shall there
enlargement and deliverance,
Arise to the Jews from another place;
But thou and
thy father's house shall be destroyed;
And who knoweth whether thou art come to
the kingdom for such a time as this?
15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer, Go, gather together all the Jews
That are present in Shushan, and fast ye for
me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day;
I also and my maidens
will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king,
Which is not according
to the law; and if I perish, I perish.
17 So Mordecai went his way, and did according to all that Esther had commanded
him.
ESTHER 5
1 NOW it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel,
And stood in the inner court of the king's house, over against the
king's house;
And the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house, over
against the gate of the house.
2 And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court,
That she obtained favor in his sight;
And the king held out to Esther the
golden scepter that was in his hand.
So Esther drew near, and touched the top
of the scepter.
3 Then said the king unto her,
What wilt thou, queen Esther? and thy
request?
It shall be even given thee to the half of the kingdom.
4 And Esther answered, If it seem good unto the king, let the king
And Haman
come this day unto the banquet that I have prepared for him.
5 Then the king said, Cause Haman to make haste, that he may do as Esther hath
said.
So the king and Haman came to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
6 And the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine,
What is thy petition?
it shall be granted thee;
And what is thy request?
Even to the half the
kingdom it shall be performed.
7 Then answered Esther, and said, My petition and my request is;
8 If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to
grant my petition,
And to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to the
banquet,
That I shall prepare for them, and I will do tomorrow as the king hath
said.
9 Then went Haman forth that day joyful and with a glad heart; but when Haman
saw Mordecai in the king's gate, that he stood not up, nor moved for him, he was
full of indignation against Mordecai.
10 Nevertheless Haman refrained himself; and when he came home,
He sent and
called for his friends, and Zeresh his wife.
11 And Haman told them of the glory of his riches,
And the multitude of his
children,
And all the things wherein the king had promoted him,
And how he had
advanced him above the princes and servants of the king.
12 Haman said moreover, Yea, Esther the queen did let no man come in with the
king,
Unto the banquet that she had prepared but myself; and tomorrow,
Am I
invited unto her also with the king.
13 Yet all this availeth me nothing,
So long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting
at the king's gate.
14 Then said Zeresh his wife and all his friends unto him, Let a gallows be made
fifty cubits high,
And tomorrow speak thou unto the king that Mordecai may
be hanged thereon;
Then go thou in merrily with the king unto the banquet.
And
the thing pleased Haman;
And he caused the gallows to be made.
ESTHER 6
1 ON that night could not the king sleep,
And he commanded to bring the book
of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king.
2 And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh,
Two
of the king's chamberlains, the keepers of the door,
Who sought to lay hand on
the king Ahasuerus.
3 And the king said, What honor and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for
this?
Then said the king's servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing
done for him.
4 And the king said, Who is in the court? Now Haman was come into the
outward court of the king's house,
To speak unto the king to hang Mordecai on
the gallows that he had prepared for him.
5 And the king's servants said unto him, Behold, Haman standeth in the court.
And the king said, Let him come in.
6 So Haman came in. And the king said unto him,
What shall be done unto the man
whom the king delighteth to honor?
Now Haman thought in his heart, To whom
would the king delight to do honor more than to myself?
7 And Haman answered the king, For the man whom the king delighteth to honor,
8 Let the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to wear,
And the horse
that the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head;
9 And let this apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king's
most noble princes,
That they may array the man withal whom the king
delighteth to honor,
And bring him on horseback through the street of the city,
And proclaim before him,
Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king
delighteth to honor.
10 Then the king said to Haman, Make haste, and take the apparel and the
horse, as thou hast said,
And do even so to Mordecai the Jew, that sitteth at
the king's gate;
Let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken.
11 Then took Haman the apparel and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai,
And brought
him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaimed before him,
Thus
shall it be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honor.
12 And Mordecai came again to the king's gate.
But Haman hasted to his house
mourning, having his head covered.
13 And Haman told Zeresh his wife and all his friends every thing that had
befallen him.
Then said his wise men and Zeresh his wife unto him,
If Mordecai
be of the seed of the Jews, before whom thou hast begun to fall,
Thou shalt
not prevail against him, but shalt surely fall before him.
14 And while they were yet talking with him,
Came the king's chamberlains,
And
hasted to bring Haman unto the banquet that Esther had prepared.
ESTHER 7
1 SO the king and Haman came to banquet with Esther the queen.
2 And the king said again unto Esther on the second day at the banquet of wine,
What is thy petition, queen Esther? and it shall be granted thee; and what is thy request?
And it shall be performed, even to the half of the kingdom.
3 Then Esther the queen answered and said, O king,
If I have found favor in thy sight,
And if it please the king,
Let my life be given me at my petition, and
my people at my request;
4 For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish.
But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue,
Although the enemy could not countervail the king's damage.
5 Then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the queen,
Who is he,
and where is he, that durst presume in his heart to do so?
6 And Esther said, The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman.
Then Haman
was afraid before the king and the queen.
7 And the king arising from the banquet of wine,
In his wrath went into the
palace garden;
And Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther;
For he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king.
8 Then the king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet
of wine;
And Haman was fallen upon the bed whereon Esther was reclining at
the banquet.
Then said the
king, Will he force the queen also before me in the house?
As the word went out
of the king's mouth, they covered Haman's face.
9 And Harbonah, one of the chamberlains, said before the king,
Behold also, the
gallows fifty cubits high,
Which Haman made for Mordecai, who had spoken
good for the king,
Standeth in the house of Haman; and then the king said, Hang him
thereon.
10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows he prepared for Mordecai.
Then
was the king's wrath pacified.
ESTHER 8
1 ON that day did the king Ahasuerus give the house of Haman the Jews' enemy
unto Esther the queen.
And Mordecai came before the king; for Esther had told
what he was unto her.
2 And the king took off his ring, which he had taken from Haman,
And gave it
unto Mordecai.
And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.
3 And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet,
And
besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite,
And his device that he had devised against the Jews through the
king.
4 Then the king held out the golden scepter toward Esther.
So Esther arose, and
stood before the king,
5 And said, If it please the king,
And if I have found favor in his sight,
And
the thing also seem right before the king,
And I be found pleasing in his eyes, let it
be written,
To reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the
Agagite,
Which he wrote to destroy all the Jews which are in all the king's
provinces;
6 For how can I endure to see the evil that shall come unto my people?
Or how
can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred?
7 Then the king Ahasuerus said unto Esther the queen,
And to Mordecai the Jew,
Behold, I have given Esther the house of Haman,
And him they have hanged upon
the gallows, because he laid his hand upon the Jews.
8 Write ye also for the Jews, as it liketh you, in the king's name, and seal
it with the king's ring;
For the writing which is written in the king's name,
and sealed with the king's ring, may no man reverse.
9 Then were the king's scribes called at that time in the third month, that
is, the month Sivan,
On the three and twentieth day thereof;
And it was
written according to all that Mordecai commanded
Unto the Jews, and to the
lieutenants, and the deputies and rulers of the provinces
Which are from India in the east unto Ethiopia in the west, an hundred twenty and seven provinces,
Unto every province
according to the writing thereof, and unto every people after their language,
And also to the Jews according to their writing, and according to their language.
10 And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus' name, and sealed it with the king's
ring,
And sent letters by posts on horseback, and riders on mules, camels, and
young dromedaries;
11 Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather
themselves together,
And to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to
cause to perish,
All the power of the people and province that would assault
them,
Both little ones and women, and to take them for a spoil,
12 Upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus,
Namely, upon the
thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar.
13 The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was
published unto all people,
And that the Jews should be ready against that day to
avenge themselves on their enemies.
14 So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out,
Being hastened and
pressed on by the king's commandment; And the decree was given at Shushan the
palace.
15 And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of
blue and white,
And with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen
and purple;
And the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.
16 The Jews had light, and gladness,
And joy, and honor.
17 And in every province, and in every city,
Whithersoever the king's
commandment and his decree came,
The Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a
good day.
And many of the people of the land became Jews;
For the fear of the
Jews fell upon them.
ESTHER 9
1 NOW in the twelfth month, that is, the month Adar, on the thirteenth day
of the same,
When the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put in
execution,
In the day the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over
them,
(though it was turned to the contrary,
That the Jews had rule over them
that hated them;)
2 The Jews gathered themselves together in all their cities,
Throughout all the
provinces of the king Ahasuerus to lay hand on such,
A sought their hurt; and
no man could withstand them;
For the fear of them fell upon all people.
3 And all the rulers of the provinces,
And the lieutenants, and the deputies,
And officers of the king, helped the Jews;
Because the fear of Mordecai fell
upon them.
4 For Mordecai was very great in the king's house,
And his fame went out throughout
all the provinces;
For this man Mordecai waxed greater and greater in power.
5 Thus the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of the sword,
And
slaughter, and destruction, and did what they would unto those that hated them.
6 And in Shushan the palace the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men.
7 And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
8 And Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha,
9 And Parmashta, and Arisai, and Aridai, and Vajezatha,
10 The ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, slew
they;
But on the spoil laid they not their hand.
11 On that day the number of those that were slain in Shushan the palace was
brought before the king.
12 And the king said unto Esther, The Jews have slain and destroyed
five hundred men in Shushan the palace,
And the ten sons of Haman; what have
they done in the rest of the king's provinces?
Now what is thy petition? and
it shall be granted unto thee;
Or what is thy request further? and it shall be
done.
13 Then said Esther, If it please the king,
Let it be granted to the Jews which
are in Shushan
To do to morrow also according unto this day's decree,
And let Haman's ten sons be hanged on the gallows.
14 And the king commanded it so to be done;
And the decree was given at Shushan;
and they hanged Haman's ten sons.
15 For the Jews that were in Shushan gathered themselves together
On the
fourteenth day also of the month Adar,
And slew three hundred men at Shushan;
but on the prey they laid not their hand.
16 And the other Jews that were in the king's provinces gathered themselves
together,
And stood for their lives, and had rest from their enemies,
And slew
of their foes seventy and five thousand,
But they laid not their hands on the
prey,
17 And on the thirteenth day of the month Adar;
And on the fourteenth day of the
same rested they,
And made it a day of feasting and gladness.
18 And the Jews that were at Shushan assembled together
On the thirteenth
day thereof, and on the fourteenth thereof;
And on the fifteenth day of the
same they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness.
19 Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns,
Made
the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting,
And a
good day, and of sending portions one to another.
20 And Mordecai wrote these things and sent letters unto all the Jews,
That
were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both nigh and far,
21 To establish this among them, that they should keep the fourteenth day of
the month Adar,
And the fifteenth day of the same, yearly,
22 As the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies,
And the month which
was turned unto them from sorrow to joy,
And from mourning into a good day; that
they should make them days of feasting and joy,
And of sending portions one to
another, and gifts to the poor.
23 And the Jews undertook to do as they had begun,
And as Mordecai had written
unto them;
24 Because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite,
The enemy of the Jews,
devised against the Jews to destroy them,
And had cast Pur, that is, the
lot, to consume them, and to destroy them;
25 But when Esther came before the king, he commanded by letters that his
wicked device,
Which he devised against the Jews, should return upon his own
head,
And that he and his sons should be hanged upon the gallows.
26 Wherefore they called these days Purim,
After the name of Pur.
Therefore for
all the words of this letter,
And of that which they had seen concerning this
matter,
Which had come unto them, the Jews ordained and took upon them,
And upon their seed, and upon all such
as joined themselves unto them,
So as it should not fail that they would keep
these two days in remembrance,
According to their writing, and according to their same appointed
time every year;
28 And that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every
generation,
Every family, every province, and every city wherever there are
Jews;
And that these days
of Purim should not fail from among the Jews,
Nor the memorial of these things perish
from their seed.
29 Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail,
And Mordecai the Jew, wrote
with authority,
To confirm this second letter of Purim.
30 And he sent the letters unto all the Jews,
To the hundred twenty and seven
provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus,
With words of peace and truth, to confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed,
According as
Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them,
And as they had decreed
for themselves and for their seed,
The matters of the fastings and their cry.
32 And the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim; and it was written
in the book.
ESTHER 10
1 AND the king Ahasuerus laid a tribute upon the land,
And upon the isles of
the sea.
2 And all the acts of his power and of his might,
And the declaration of the
greatness of Mordecai, whereunto the king advanced him,
Are they not written
in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
3 For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews,
And accepted of the multitude of his brethren,
Seeking the wealth of his people,
And speaking peace to all his seed.