Esther 1:1-9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
King Ahasuerus Deposes Queen Vashti
1 This happened in the days of Ahasuerus, the same Ahasuerus who ruled over one hundred twenty-seven provinces from India to Cush.(A) 2 In those days when King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne in the citadel of Susa,(B) 3 in the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his officials and ministers. The army of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the governors of the provinces were present,(C) 4 while he displayed the great wealth of his kingdom and the splendor and pomp of his majesty for many days, one hundred eighty days in all.
5 When these days were completed, the king gave for all the people present in the citadel of Susa, both great and small, a banquet lasting for seven days, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace.(D) 6 There were white cotton curtains and blue hangings tied with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings[a] and marble pillars. There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and colored stones.(E) 7 Drinks were served in golden goblets, goblets of different kinds, and the royal wine was lavished according to the bounty of the king.(F) 8 Drinking was by ordinance without restraint, for the king had given orders to all the officials of his palace to do as each one desired. 9 Furthermore, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women in the palace of King Ahasuerus.
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- 1.6 Or rods
Esther 1:1-9
International Standard Version
The Wealth of King Ahasuerus
1 This is a record of[a] what happened during the reign[b] of Ahasuerus,[c] the Ahasuerus who ruled over 127 provinces from India to Cush.[d] 2 At that time King Ahasuerus was ruling from[e] Susa the capital.[f] 3 In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his officials and ministers,[g] and the military leaders[h] of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the provincial officials were present.[i] 4 He displayed the enormous wealth of his kingdom, along with its splendid beauty and greatness for many days—for 180 days in all.[j]
The Banquet of King Ahasuerus
5 When those days were over, the king held a seven-day banquet in the courtyard of the garden of his[k] palace for all the people who were present in Susa the capital, from the greatest to the least important. 6 There were curtains of white and blue linen tied with cords of fine linen and purple material[l] to silver rings on[m] marble columns. There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and other precious stones. 7 Drinks were served in gold vessels of various kinds, and there was plenty of royal wine because the king was generous.[n] 8 According to the king’s[o] decree the drinking was not compulsory because the king instructed[p] every steward in his house to serve each individual what he desired. 9 Queen Vashti also held a banquet in the royal palace of King Ahasuerus for the women.
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- Esther 1:1 The Heb. lacks a record of
- Esther 1:1 Lit. days
- Esther 1:1 Or possibly Xerxes, and so throughout the book
- Esther 1:1 I.e. the upper Nile region
- Esther 1:2 Lit. was sitting on his royal throne in
- Esther 1:2 Or Susa the fortress, and so throughout the book
- Esther 1:3 Or his servants
- Esther 1:3 Lit. army
- Esther 1:3 Lit. before him
- Esther 1:4 The Heb. lacks in all
- Esther 1:5 Lit. the king’s
- Esther 1:6 The Heb. lacks material
- Esther 1:6 Lit. and
- Esther 1:7 Lit. wine according to the hand of the king
- Esther 1:8 The Heb. lacks king’s
- Esther 1:8 Lit. established
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