The Banquets of the King

1 Now it happened in the days of ^(A)Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned ^(B)from India to ^[a]Cush over ^(C)127 provinces, ² in those days as King Ahasuerus ^(D)sat on his royal throne which was at the citadel in ^(E)Susa, ³ in the third year of his reign ^(F)he held a banquet for all his officials and attendants, the army officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the officials of his provinces, in his presence. ^4 [b]At that time he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days.

⁵ When these days were finished, the king held a banquet lasting seven days for all the people who were present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least, in the courtyard of ^(G)the garden of the king’s palace. ⁶ There were curtains of fine white and violet linen held by cords of fine purple linen on silver rings and marble columns, and ^(H)couches of gold and silver on a mosaic floor of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and mineral stones. ⁷ Drinks were served in golden vessels of various kinds, and the royal wine was plentiful ^(I)in proportion to the king’s ^[c]bounty. ⁸ But the drinking was done according to the royal law; there was no compulsion, for so the king had given orders to each official of his household, that he was to do as each person pleased. ⁹ Queen Vashti also held a banquet for the women in the ^[d]palace which belonged to King Ahasuerus.

Queen Vashti’s Refusal

¹⁰ On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was ^(J)cheerful with wine, he ordered Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus, ¹¹ to bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal ^(K)turban in order to display her beauty to the people and the officials, for she was beautiful. ¹² But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s order ^[e]delivered by the eunuchs. So the king became very angry, and his wrath burned within him.

¹³ Then the king said to ^(L)the wise men ^(M)who understood the times—for it was the custom of the king to speak this way before all who knew Persian law and justice ¹⁴ and were close to him, namely, Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven officials of Persia and Media ^(N)who ^[f]had access to the king’s presence and sat in the first place in the kingdom— ¹⁵ “According to law, what is to be done with Queen Vashti, since she did not ^[g]obey the command of King Ahasuerus ^[h]delivered by the eunuchs?” ¹⁶ And in the presence of the king and the other officials, Memucan said, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king but also all the officials and all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. ¹⁷ For the queen’s conduct will ^[i]become known to all the women so as to make their own husbands despicable in their sight, when they say, ‘King Ahasuerus ^[j]commanded that Queen Vashti be brought in to his presence, but she did not come.’ ¹⁸ And this day the wives of the officials of Persia and Media who have heard about the queen’s conduct will talk about it to all the king’s officials, and there will be plenty of contempt and anger. ¹⁹ If it pleases the king, let a royal ^[k]edict be issued by him and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media so ^(O)that it cannot ^[l]be repealed, that Vashti may not come into the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king give her royal position to ^[m]another who is more worthy than she. ²⁰ When the king’s edict which he will make is heard throughout his kingdom, ^[n]great as it is, then ^(P)all women will give honor to their husbands, great and small.”

²¹ Now this word pleased the king and the officials, and the king did ^[o]as Memucan proposed. ²² So he sent letters to all the king’s provinces, ^(Q)to each province according to its script and to every people according to their language, that every man was to ^(R)be the ruler in his own house and the one who speaks in the language of his own people.

Vashti’s Successor Sought

2 After these things, ^(A)when the anger of King Ahasuerus had subsided, he remembered Vashti and what she had done, and ^(B)what had been decided regarding her. ² Then the king’s attendants, who served him, said, “^(C)Let beautiful young virgins be sought for the king. ³ And may the king appoint overseers in ^(D)all the provinces of his kingdom, and have them ^[a]bring every beautiful young virgin to the citadel of Susa, to the harem, into the custody of ^(E)Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who is in charge of the women; and ^(F)let their cosmetics be given to them. ⁴ Then let the young woman who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti.” And the ^[b]suggestion pleased the king, and he did accordingly.

⁵ There was a Jew at the citadel in Susa whose name was ^(G)Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite, ^6 (H)who had been taken from Jerusalem with the exiles who had been deported with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had deported. ⁷ He was the guardian to Hadassah, that is ^(I)Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had no father or mother. Now the young woman was beautiful of form and ^[c]face, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.

Esther Finds Favor

⁸ So it came about, when the command and decree of the king were heard and ^(J)many young ladies were gathered to the citadel of Susa into the ^[d]custody of ^(K)Hegai, that Esther was taken to the king’s ^[e]palace into the custody of Hegai, who was in charge of the women. ⁹ Now the young lady pleased him and found favor with him. So he quickly provided her with her ^(L)cosmetics and ^[f]food, gave her seven choice female attendants from the king’s palace, and transferred her and her attendants to the best place in the harem. ^10 (M)Esther did not reveal her people or her kindred, because Mordecai had instructed her that she was not to reveal them. ¹¹ And every day Mordecai walked back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem to learn how Esther was and what was happening to her.

¹² Now when the turn came for each young woman to go in to King Ahasuerus, after the end of her twelve months under the regulations for the women—for the days of their beauty treatment were completed as follows: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with balsam oil and the cosmetics for women— ¹³ the young woman would go in to the king in this way: anything that she ^[g]desired was given her to ^[h]take with her from the harem to the king’s palace. ¹⁴ In the evening she would enter and in the morning she would return to the second harem, to the ^[i]custody of Shaashgaz, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the concubines. She would not go in to the king again, unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by name.

¹⁵ Now when the turn of Esther, ^(N)the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai who had taken her as his daughter, came to go in to the king, she did not request anything except what ^(O)Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the women, ^[j]advised. And Esther was finding favor in the eyes of all who saw her. ¹⁶ So Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus in his royal palace in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.

Esther Becomes Queen

¹⁷ The king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found favor and kindness with him more than all the virgins, so that ^(P)he set the royal turban on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. ¹⁸ Then ^(Q)the king held a great banquet, Esther’s banquet, for all his officials and his servants; he also made a holiday for the provinces and gave gifts ^(R)in proportion to the king’s bounty.

^19 (S)Now when the virgins were gathered together for the second time, then Mordecai ^(T)was sitting at the king’s gate. ^20 (U)Esther still had not revealed her relatives or her people, just as Mordecai had instructed her; for Esther did ^[k]what Mordecai told her just as she had ^(V)when under his care.

Mordecai Saves the King

²¹ In those days, while Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, ^(W)Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s officials from those who guarded the door, became angry and sought to ^[l]attack King Ahasuerus. ²² But the ^[m]plot became known to Mordecai and ^(X)he informed Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in Mordecai’s name. ²³ Then when the plot was investigated and found to be so, they were both hanged on a wooden gallows; and it was written in ^(Y)the Book of the Chronicles in the king’s presence.

Haman’s Plot against the Jews

3 After these events King Ahasuerus ^(A)honored Haman, the son of Hammedatha ^(B)the Agagite, and ^(C)promoted him and ^[a]established his authority over all the officials who were with him. ² All the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate bowed down and paid ^[b]homage to Haman; for so the king had commanded regarding him. But ^(D)Mordecai neither bowed down nor paid ^[c]homage. ³ Then the king’s servants who were at ^(E)the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “^(F)Why are you violating the king’s command?” ⁴ Now it was when they had spoken daily to him and he would not listen to them, that they told Haman to see whether Mordecai’s reason would ^[d]stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew. ⁵ When Haman saw that ^(G)Mordecai neither bowed down nor paid ^[e]homage to him, Haman was filled with rage. ⁶ But he ^[f]considered it beneath his dignity to ^[g]kill Mordecai alone, for they had told him who the people of Mordecai were; so Haman ^(H)sought to annihilate all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, who were found throughout the kingdom of Ahasuerus.

⁷ In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, ^[h]Pur, that is the lot, was ^(I)cast before Haman from day to day and from month to month, ^[i]until the twelfth month, that is ^(J)the month Adar. ⁸ Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom; ^(K)their laws are different from those of all other people and they do not ^[j]comply with the king’s laws, so it is not in the king’s interest to let them remain. ⁹ If it is pleasing to the king, let it be ^[k]decreed that they be eliminated, and I will pay ^[l]ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who carry out the king’s business, to put into the king’s treasuries.” ¹⁰ Then ^(L)the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha ^(M)the Agagite, ^(N)the enemy of the Jews. ¹¹ And the king said to Haman, “The silver is ^[m]yours, and the people also, to do with them as you please.”

^12 (O)Then the king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and it was written just as Haman commanded to ^(P)the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province and to the officials of each people, each province according to its script, each people according to its language, being written ^(Q)in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king’s signet ring. ¹³ Letters were sent by ^(R)couriers to all the king’s provinces ^(S)to annihilate, kill, and destroy all the Jews, both young and old, women and children, ^(T)in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to ^(U)seize their possessions as plunder. ^14 (V)A copy of the edict to be ^[n]issued as law in every province was published to all the peoples so that they would be ready for this day. ¹⁵ The couriers went out, speeded by the king’s ^[o]order while the decree was ^[p]issued at the citadel in Susa; and while the king and Haman sat down to drink, ^(W)the city of Susa was agitated.

The Revelation of Jesus Christ

1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which ^(A)God gave Him to ^(B)show to His bond-servants, ^(C)the things which must soon take place; and He sent and ^[a]communicated it ^(D)by His angel to His bond-servant ^(E)John, ² who testified to ^(F)the word of God and to ^(G)the testimony of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw. ^3 (H)Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and ^[b]keep the things which are written in it; ^(I)for the time is near.

Message to the Seven Churches

^4 (J)John to ^(K)the seven churches that are in ^(L)Asia: ^(M)Grace to you and peace from ^(N)Him who is, and who was, and who ^[c]is to come, and from ^(O)the ^[d]seven spirits who are before His throne, ⁵ and from Jesus Christ, ^(P)the faithful witness, the ^(Q)firstborn of the dead, and the ^(R)ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who ^(S)loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— ⁶ and He made us into a ^(T)kingdom, ^(U)priests to ^[e](V)His God and Father—^(W)to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. ^7 (X)Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and ^(Y)every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will ^(Z)mourn over Him. ^[f]So it is to be. Amen.

⁸ “I am ^(AA)the Alpha and the Omega,” says the ^(AB)Lord God, “^(AC)who is and who was and who ^[g]is to come, the Almighty.”

The Patmos Vision

^9 (AD)I, John, your ^(AE)brother and ^(AF)fellow participant in the tribulation and ^(AG)kingdom and ^[h](AH)perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos ^(AI)because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. ¹⁰ I was ^(AJ)in the ^[i]Spirit on ^(AK)the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice ^(AL)like the sound of a trumpet, ¹¹ saying, “^(AM)Write ^[j]on a scroll what you see, and send it to the ^(AN)seven churches: to ^(AO)Ephesus, ^(AP)Smyrna, ^(AQ)Pergamum, ^(AR)Thyatira, ^(AS)Sardis, ^(AT)Philadelphia, and ^(AU)Laodicea.”

¹² Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And after turning I saw ^(AV)seven golden lampstands; ¹³ and ^(AW)in the middle of the lampstands I saw one ^(AX)like ^[k]a son of man, ^(AY)clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and ^(AZ)wrapped around the chest with a golden sash. ¹⁴ His head and His ^(BA)hair were white like white wool, like snow; and ^(BB)His eyes were like a flame of fire. ¹⁵ His ^(BC)feet were like ^[l]burnished bronze when it has been heated to a glow in a furnace, and His ^(BD)voice was like the sound of many waters. ¹⁶ In His right hand He held ^(BE)seven stars, and out of His mouth came a ^(BF)sharp two-edged sword; and His ^(BG)face was like ^(BH)the sun ^[m]shining in its strength.

¹⁷ When I saw Him, I ^(BI)fell at His feet like a dead man. And He ^(BJ)placed His right hand on me, saying, “^(BK)Do not be afraid; ^(BL)I am the first and the last, ¹⁸ and the ^(BM)living One; and I ^[n](BN)was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have ^(BO)the keys of death and of Hades. ¹⁹ Therefore ^(BP)write ^(BQ)the things which you have seen, ^[o]and the things which are, and the things which will take place ^(BR)after these things. ²⁰ As for the ^(BS)mystery of the ^(BT)seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the ^(BU)seven golden lampstands: the ^(BV)seven stars are the angels of ^(BW)the seven churches, and the seven ^(BX)lampstands are the seven churches.

God’s Omnipresence and Omniscience.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.