¹⁴ The couriers who rode on royal horses went out, hastened and pressed on by the king’s command. And the decree was issued in ^[a]Shushan the ^[b]citadel.

² I saw in the vision, and it so happened while I was looking, that I was in ^(A)Shushan,^[a] the ^[b]citadel, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision that I was by the River Ulai.

¹⁵ The couriers went out, hastened by the king’s command; and the decree was proclaimed in ^[a]Shushan the ^[b]citadel. So the king and Haman sat down to drink, but ^(A)the city of Shushan was ^[c]perplexed.

^10 (A)Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your ^(B)might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

³ and let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather all the beautiful young virgins to ^[a]Shushan the ^[b]citadel, into the women’s quarters, under the custody of ^[c]Hegai the king’s eunuch, custodian of the women. And let beauty preparations be given them.

² in those days when King Ahasuerus ^(A)sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in ^(B)Shushan^[a] the ^[b]citadel,

Nehemiah Prays for His People

1 The words of ^(A)Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah.

It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the ^(B)twentieth year, as I was in ^(C)Shushan^[a] the ^[b]citadel,

⁸ And David said to Ahimelech, “Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.”