Esther 7
Common English Bible
7 When the king and Haman came in for the banquet with Queen Esther, 2 the king said to her, “This is the second day we’ve met for wine. What is your wish, Queen Esther? I’ll give it to you. And what do you want? I’ll do anything—even give you half the kingdom.”
3 Queen Esther answered, “If I please the king, and if the king wishes, give me my life—that’s my wish—and the lives of my people too. That’s my desire. 4 We have been sold—I and my people—to be wiped out, killed, and destroyed. If we simply had been sold as male and female slaves, I would have said nothing. But no enemy can compensate the king for this kind of damage.”
5 King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is this person, and where is he? Who would dare do such a thing?”
6 Esther replied, “A man who hates, an enemy—this wicked Haman!” Haman was overcome with terror in the presence of the king and queen. 7 Furious, the king got up and left the banquet for the palace garden. But Haman stood up to beg Queen Esther for his life. He saw clearly that the king’s mood meant a bad end for him.
8 The king returned from the palace garden to the banquet room just as Haman was kneeling on the couch where Esther was reclining. “Will you even molest the queen while I am in the house?” the king said. The words had barely left the king’s mouth before covering Haman’s face with dread.[a]
9 Harbona, one of the eunuchs serving the king, said, “Sir, look! There’s the stake that Haman made for Mordecai, the man who spoke up and did something good for the king. It’s standing at Haman’s house—seventy-five feet high.”
“Impale him on it!” the king ordered. 10 So they impaled Haman on the very pole that he had set up for Mordecai, and the king’s anger went away.
Footnotes
- Esther 7:8 Or the face of Haman was covered.
Esther 7
Easy-to-Read Version
Haman Is Hanged
7 So the king and Haman went to eat with Queen Esther. 2 Then as they were drinking wine on the second day of the party, the king again asked Esther a question, “Queen Esther, what is it you want to ask for? Ask anything and it will be given to you. What do you want? I will give you anything, even half my kingdom.”
3 Then Queen Esther answered, “King, if you like me and it pleases you, please let me live. And I ask you to let my people live too. This is what I ask for. 4 I ask this because my people and I have been sold to be destroyed—to be killed and wiped out completely. If we had just been sold as slaves, I would have kept quiet, because that would not be enough of a problem to bother the king.”
5 Then King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who did this to you? Where is the man who dared to do such a thing to your people?”
6 Esther said, “The man against us, our enemy, is this wicked Haman.”
Then Haman was filled with terror before the king and queen. 7 The king was very angry. He got up, left his wine, and went out into the garden. But Haman stayed inside to beg Queen Esther to save his life. He begged for his life because he knew that the king had already decided to kill him. 8 Just as the king was coming back in from the garden to the party room, he saw Haman falling on the couch where Esther was lying. The king said with anger in his voice, “Will you attack the queen even while I am in the house?”
As soon as the king had said this, servants came in and killed Haman.[a] 9 One of the eunuchs who served the king was named Harbona. He said, “A hanging post 75 feet[b] tall has been built near Haman’s house. Haman had it made so that he could hang Mordecai on it. Mordecai is the man who helped you when he told about the evil plans to kill you.”
The king said, “Hang Haman on that post!”
10 So they hanged Haman on the hanging post he had built for Mordecai. Then the king stopped being angry.
Footnotes
- Esther 7:8 killed Haman Literally, “covered Haman’s face.”
- Esther 7:9 75 feet Literally, “50 cubits” (22 m).
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International