Haman Plots Against the Jews

3 After these things King Ahasuerus ^(A)promoted Haman ^(B)the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, ^(C)and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him. ² And all the king's servants who were at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, for the king had so commanded concerning him. ^(D)But Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage. ³ Then the king's servants who were ^(E)at the king's gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress ^(F)the king's command?” ⁴ And when they spoke to him day after day and he would not listen to them, they told Haman, in order to see whether Mordecai's words would stand, for he had told them that he was a Jew. ⁵ And when Haman saw that ^(G)Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage to him, Haman was ^(H)filled with fury. ⁶ But he disdained^[a] to lay hands on Mordecai alone. So, as they had made known to him the people of Mordecai, Haman sought to destroy^[b] all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.

⁷ In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, ^(I)they cast Pur (that is, they cast lots) before Haman day after day; and they cast it month after month till the twelfth month, which is ^(J)the month of Adar. ⁸ Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. ^(K)Their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king's laws, so that it is not to the king's profit to tolerate them. ⁹ If it please the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay 10,000 talents^[c] of silver into the hands of those who have charge of the king's business, that they may put it into the king's treasuries.” ^10 (L)So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman ^(M)the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, ^(N)the enemy of the Jews. ¹¹ And the king said to Haman, “The money is given to you, the people also, to do with them as it seems good to you.”

^12 (O)Then the king's scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and an edict, according to all that Haman commanded, was written to the king's ^(P)satraps and to the governors over all the provinces and to the officials of all the peoples, ^(Q)to every province in its own script and every people in its own language. It was written ^(R)in the name of King Ahasuerus ^(S)and sealed with the king's signet ring. ¹³ Letters were sent ^(T)by couriers to all the king's provinces with instruction ^(U)to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all Jews, young and old, women and children, ^(V)in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, ^(W)and to plunder their goods. ^14 (X)A copy of the document was to be issued as a decree in every province by proclamation to all the peoples to be ready for that day. ^15 (Y)The couriers went out hurriedly by order of the king, and the decree was issued in Susa the citadel. And the king and Haman sat down to drink, ^(Z)but the city of Susa was thrown into confusion.

Esther Agrees to Help the Jews

4 When Mordecai learned all that had been done, Mordecai tore his clothes ^(AA)and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and he cried out with a loud and bitter cry. ² He went up to the entrance of the king's gate, for no one was allowed to enter the king's gate clothed in sackcloth. ³ And in every province, wherever the king's command and his decree reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, ^(AB)with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and many of them ^(AC)lay in sackcloth and ashes.

⁴ When Esther's young women and her eunuchs came and told her, the queen was deeply distressed. She sent garments to clothe Mordecai, so that he might take off his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. ⁵ Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king's eunuchs, who had been appointed to attend her, and ordered him to go to Mordecai to learn what this was and why it was. ⁶ Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king's gate, ⁷ and Mordecai told him all that had happened to him, ^(AD)and the exact sum of money that Haman had promised to pay into the king's treasuries for the destruction of the Jews. ⁸ Mordecai also gave him ^(AE)a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for their destruction,^[d] that he might show it to Esther and explain it to her and command her to go to the king to beg his favor and plead with him^[e] on behalf of her people. ⁹ And Hathach went and told Esther what Mordecai had said. ¹⁰ Then Esther spoke to Hathach and commanded him to go to Mordecai and say, ¹¹ “All the king's servants and the people of the king's provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside ^(AF)the inner court without being called, ^(AG)there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one ^(AH)to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.”

¹² And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. ¹³ Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king's palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. ¹⁴ For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” ¹⁵ Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, ¹⁶ “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for ^(AI)three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, ^(AJ)and if I perish, I perish.”^{[f] 17} Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.

Esther Prepares a Banquet

5 ^(AK)On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in ^(AL)the inner court of the king's palace, in front of the king's quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. ² And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, ^(AM)she won favor in his sight, ^(AN)and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. ³ And the king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you, even ^(AO)to the half of my kingdom.” ⁴ And Esther said, “If it please the king,^[g] let the king and Haman come today to a feast that I have prepared for the king.” ⁵ Then the king said, “Bring Haman quickly, so that we may do as Esther has asked.” So the king and Haman came to the feast that Esther had prepared. ^6 (AP)And as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king said to Esther, ^(AQ)“What is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? ^(AR)Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.”^{[h] 7} Then Esther answered, “My wish and my request is: ^8 (AS)If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king^[i] to grant my wish and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come to ^(AT)the feast that I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has said.”

Haman Plans to Hang Mordecai

⁹ And Haman went out that day ^(AU)joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai ^(AV)in the king's gate, ^(AW)that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. ¹⁰ Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and ^(AX)his wife Zeresh. ¹¹ And Haman recounted to them the splendor of his riches, ^(AY)the number of his sons, all the promotions with which ^(AZ)the king had honored him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. ¹² Then Haman said, “Even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. ¹³ Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting ^(BA)at the king's gate.” ¹⁴ Then ^(BB)his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, ^(BC)“Let a gallows^[j] fifty cubits^[k] high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mordecai hanged upon it. Then go joyfully with the king to the feast.” This idea pleased Haman, and he had the gallows made.

The King Honors Mordecai

6 On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring ^(BD)the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. ² And it was found written how ^(BE)Mordecai had told about ^(BF)Bigthana^[l] and ^(BG)Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. ³ And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king's young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” ⁴ And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered ^(BH)the outer court of the king's palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on ^(BI)the gallows^[m] that he had prepared for him. ⁵ And the king's young men told him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let him come in.” ⁶ So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man ^(BJ)whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” ⁷ And Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king delights to honor, ⁸ let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, ^(BK)and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head ^(BL)a royal crown^[n] is set. ⁹ And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king's most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, ^(BM)proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’” ¹⁰ Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits ^(BN)at the king's gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” ¹¹ So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.”

¹² Then Mordecai returned to the king's gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning ^(BO)and with his head covered. ¹³ And Haman told ^(BP)his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.”

Esther Reveals Haman's Plot

¹⁴ While they were yet talking with him, the king's eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman ^(BQ)to the feast that Esther had prepared.

7 So the king and Haman went in to feast with Queen Esther. ² And on the second day, as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king again said to Esther, ^(BR)“What is your wish, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? ^(BS)Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” ³ Then Queen Esther answered, ^(BT)“If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish, and my people for my request. ^4 (BU)For we have been sold, I and my people, ^(BV)to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and women, I would have been silent, for our affliction is not to be compared with the loss to the king.” ⁵ Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who has dared^[o] to do this?” ⁶ And Esther said, ^(BW)“A foe and enemy! This wicked Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen.

Haman Is Hanged

⁷ And the king arose in his wrath from the wine-drinking and went into ^(BX)the palace garden, but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he saw that harm was determined against him by the king. ⁸ And the king returned from ^(BY)the palace garden to the place where they were drinking wine, as Haman was falling on ^(BZ)the couch where Esther was. And the king said, “Will he even assault the queen in my presence, in my own house?” As the word left the mouth of the king, they covered Haman's face. ⁹ Then ^(CA)Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, ^(CB)the gallows^[p] that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, ^(CC)whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman's house, fifty cubits^[q] high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.” ^10 (CD)So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. ^(CE)Then the wrath of the king abated.

Esther Saves the Jews

8 On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, ^(CF)the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told ^(CG)what he was to her. ^2 (CH)And the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.

³ Then Esther spoke again to the king. She fell at his feet and wept and pleaded with him to avert the evil plan of Haman ^(CI)the Agagite and the plot that he had devised against the Jews. ^4 (CJ)When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king. ⁵ And she said, “If it please the king, ^(CK)and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to revoke ^(CL)the letters devised by Haman ^(CM)the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. ⁶ For how can I bear ^(CN)to see the calamity that is coming to my people? Or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?” ⁷ Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Behold, ^(CO)I have given Esther the house of Haman, and they have hanged him on the gallows,^[r] because he intended to lay hands on the Jews. ⁸ But you may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, ^(CP)and seal it with the king's ring, for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king's ring ^(CQ)cannot be revoked.”

^9 (CR)The king's scribes were summoned at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day. And an edict was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded concerning the Jews, to ^(CS)the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces ^(CT)from India to Ethiopia, ^(CU)127 provinces, ^(CV)to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language, and also to the Jews in their script and their language. ^10 (CW)And he wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus ^(CX)and sealed it with the king's signet ring. Then he sent the letters by mounted couriers riding on ^(CY)swift horses that were used in the king's service, bred from the royal stud, ¹¹ saying that the king allowed the Jews who were in every city ^(CZ)to gather and defend their lives, ^(DA)to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, children and women included, ^(DB)and to plunder their goods, ^12 (DC)on one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. ^13 (DD)A copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every province, being publicly displayed to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready on that day to take vengeance on their enemies. ¹⁴ So the couriers, mounted on their ^(DE)swift horses that were used in the king's service, rode out hurriedly, urged by the king's command. And the decree was issued in Susa the citadel.

¹⁵ Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king ^(DF)in royal robes of blue and white, with a great golden crown^[s] and ^(DG)a robe of fine linen and purple, ^(DH)and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. ¹⁶ The Jews had ^(DI)light and gladness and joy and honor. ¹⁷ And in every province and in every city, wherever the king's command and his edict reached, there was gladness and joy among the Jews, a feast and ^(DJ)a holiday. ^(DK)And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews, ^(DL)for fear of the Jews had fallen on them.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought ^(A)always to pray and not ^(B)lose heart. ² He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who ^(C)neither feared God nor respected man. ³ And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ ⁴ For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ^(D)‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” ⁶ And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. ⁷ And ^(E)will not God give justice to ^(F)his elect, ^(G)who cry to him day and night? ^(H)(I)Will he delay long over them? ⁸ I tell you, he will give justice to them ^(J)speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, ^(K)will he find faith on earth?”

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ He also told this parable to some ^(L)who trusted ^(M)in themselves that they were righteous, ^(N)and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men ^(O)went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee, ^(P)standing by himself, prayed^{[a] (Q)}thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ^12 (R)I fast twice a week; ^(S)I give tithes of all that I get.’ ¹³ But the tax collector, ^(T)standing far off, ^(U)would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but ^(V)beat his breast, saying, ‘God, ^(W)be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For ^(X)everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Let the Children Come to Me

^15 (Y)Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they ^(Z)rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called them to him, saying, ^(AA)“Let the children come to me, and ^(AB)do not hinder them, ^(AC)for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ^17 (AD)Truly, I say to you, whoever does not ^(AE)receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

The Rich Ruler

^18 (AF)And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to ^(AG)inherit eternal life?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ^(AH)‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” ²¹ And he said, ^(AI)“All these I have kept from my youth.” ²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. ^(AJ)Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have ^(AK)treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ^23 (AL)But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. ²⁴ Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, ^(AM)“How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter ^(AN)the kingdom of God! ²⁵ For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter ^(AO)the kingdom of God.” ²⁶ Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ But he said, ^(AP)“What is impossible with man is possible with God.” ²⁸ And Peter said, “See, ^(AQ)we have left our homes and followed you.” ²⁹ And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, ^(AR)there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers^[b] or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, ³⁰ who will not receive ^(AS)many times more ^(AT)in this time, and in ^(AU)the age to come eternal life.”

Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time

^31 (AV)And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, ^(AW)we are going up to Jerusalem, and ^(AX)everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. ³² For he will be ^(AY)delivered over to the Gentiles and will be ^(AZ)mocked and shamefully treated and ^(BA)spit upon. ³³ And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on ^(BB)the third day he will rise.” ^34 (BC)But they understood none of these things. ^(BD)This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.

Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar

^35 (BE)As he drew near to Jericho, ^(BF)a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. ³⁶ And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. ³⁷ They told him, ^(BG)“Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” ³⁸ And he cried out, “Jesus, ^(BH)Son of David, have mercy on me!” ³⁹ And those who were in front ^(BI)rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁰ And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, ^41 (BJ)“What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” ⁴² And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; ^(BK)your faith has ^(BL)made you well.” ⁴³ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, ^(BM)glorifying God. And ^(BN)all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.