Esther 9
Legacy Standard Bible
The Jews Strike Down Their Enemies
9 Now (A)in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on (B)the thirteenth [a]day (C)when the king’s word and law had reached the point for them to be done, on the day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain power over them, it was turned around so that the Jews themselves gained power over those who hated them. 2 (D)The Jews assembled in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to send forth their hand against those who sought their calamity; and no one could stand before them, (E)for the dread of them had fallen on all the peoples. 3 Even all the princes of the provinces, (F)the satraps, the governors, and those who were doing the king’s work [b]advanced the Jews, because the dread of Mordecai had fallen on them. 4 Indeed, Mordecai was great in the king’s house, and the report about him went throughout all the provinces; for the man Mordecai (G)became greater and greater. 5 Thus (H)the Jews struck all their enemies with [c]the sword, killing and causing them to perish; and they did what they pleased to those who hated them. 6 And at the citadel in Susa the Jews killed and caused to perish 500 men, 7 and Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha, 10 (I)the 10 sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Jews’ adversary; but (J)they did not send forth their hand for the plunder.
11 On that day the number of those who were killed at the citadel in Susa came to the king. 12 So the king said to Queen Esther, “The Jews have killed and caused to perish 500 men and the 10 sons of Haman at the citadel in Susa. Now in the rest of the king’s provinces, what have they done? (K)So what is [d]your petition? It shall even be given to you. And what is [e]your further request? It shall also be done.” 13 Then Esther said, “If it is good to the king, (L)let tomorrow also be given to the Jews who are in Susa to do according to the law for today; and let Haman’s 10 sons be hanged on the gallows.” 14 So the king said that it should be done so; and a law was given in Susa, and Haman’s 10 sons were hanged. 15 And the Jews who were in Susa assembled also on the fourteenth day of the month Adar and killed (M)300 men in Susa, but (N)they did not send forth their hand for the plunder.
16 Now (O)the rest of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces (P)assembled, to make a stand for their lives and obtain rest for themselves from their enemies, and to kill 75,000 of those who hated them; but they did not send forth their hand for the plunder. 17 This was done on (Q)the thirteenth day of the month Adar, and (R)on the fourteenth [f]day they rested and made it a day of feasting and gladness.
18 But the Jews who were in Susa (S)assembled on the thirteenth and (T)the fourteenth [g]of the same month, and they rested on the fifteenth [h]day and made it a day of feasting and gladness. 19 Therefore the Jews of the rural areas, who live in (U)the rural towns, make the fourteenth day of the month Adar a [i](V)holiday for gladness and feasting and (W)sending portions of food to one another.
The Feast of Purim Is Established
20 Then Mordecai wrote down these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, 21 to establish among them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day [j]of the same month, annually, 22 because on those days the Jews obtained rest for themselves from their enemies, and it was a month which was (X)turned around for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a [k]holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness and (Y)sending portions of food to one another and gifts to the poor.
23 Thus the Jews fully accepted what they had started to do and what Mordecai had written to them. 24 For Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the adversary of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to cause them to perish and (Z)had cast Pur, that is the lot, to throw them into confusion and cause them to perish. 25 But (AA)when it came before the king, he said by letter (AB)that his evil scheme, which he had [l]devised against the Jews, (AC)should return on his own head and that he and his sons should be hanged on the [m]gallows. 26 Therefore they called these days Purim after the name of Pur. Therefore, (AD)because of the words in this letter, both what they had seen in this regard and what had reached them, 27 the Jews established and accepted a custom for themselves and for their seed and for (AE)all those who joined themselves to them, so that [n](AF)celebrating these two days according to what was written down and according to their fixed time from year to year would not pass away. 28 So these days were to be remembered and celebrated throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city; thus these days of Purim were not to pass away from among the Jews, nor their memory come to an end from their seed.
29 Then Queen Esther, (AG)daughter of Abihail, with Mordecai the Jew, wrote with full authority to establish (AH)this second letter about Purim. 30 And he sent letters to all the Jews, (AI)to the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, namely, words of peace and truth, 31 to establish these days of Purim at their appointed times, just as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had established for them, and just as they had established for themselves and for their seed with words concerning (AJ)their times of fasting and their crying out. 32 And the declaration of Esther established these words concerning (AK)Purim, and it was written in the book.
Footnotes
- Esther 9:1 Lit day in it
- Esther 9:3 Lit lifted up
- Esther 9:5 Lit stroke of sword
- Esther 9:12 Or that which you are asking for
- Esther 9:12 Or that which you further seek, cf. 9:2
- Esther 9:17 Lit in it
- Esther 9:18 Lit in it
- Esther 9:18 Lit in it
- Esther 9:19 Lit rejoicing and feasting and a good day and sending
- Esther 9:21 Lit in it
- Esther 9:22 Lit good day
- Esther 9:25 Lit schemed
- Esther 9:25 Lit tree, cf. Deut 21:22-23
- Esther 9:27 Lit to be celebrators
Esther 9
Wycliffe Bible
9 Therefore in the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which we said now before to be called Adar, (that is, March,) when slaying was made ready to all the Jews by Haman, and their enemies setted treason to their blood, on the contrary, the Jews now began to be the higher part, and to venge them(selves) of their adversaries. (And so on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which earlier we said was called Adar, or March, when their enemies had intended slaughter for all the Jews, and had set treason for their blood, now, on the contrary, the Jews took the upper hand, to avenge themselves on their adversaries.)
2 And the Jews were gathered together by all cities, castles, and places, to stretch forth (their) hand against their enemies and pursuers; and no man was hardy to against-stand them, for the dread of their greatness had pierced all peoples. (And the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities, in all the provinces, to put forth their hands against their enemies and pursuers; and no one was fool-hardy enough to stand against them/and no one was hardy enough to withstand them, for the fear of their greatness had pierced through all peoples.)
3 For why both the judges, dukes, and procurators of provinces, and each dignity, that were sovereigns of all places and works, enhanced the Jews, for the dread of Mordecai (was upon them), (And the judges, governors, and procurators of the provinces, who were the rulers of all the places and works, helped the Jews, because they all feared Mordecai,)
4 whom they knew to be (a) prince of the king’s palace (whom they knew to be a prince, or one of the leaders, in the king’s palace), and to be able to do full much; and the fame of his name increased each day, and (it) flew by the mouths of all men.
5 Therefore the Jews smote their enemies with great vengeance, and killed them, and yielded to their enemies that, that they had made ready to do to them, (And so the Jews struck down their enemies with a great vengeance, and killed them, and yielded to their enemies, what they had prepared to do to them,)
6 in so much, that also in the city of Susa the Jews killed five hundred men, without the ten sons of Haman of the kindred of Agag, the enemy of Jews, of the which sons these be the names; (and so in the capital city of Susa, the Jews killed five hundred men, besides the ten sons of Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews, of which sons these be the names;)
7 Parshandatha, Dalphon, and Aspatha,
8 and Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha,
9 and Parmashta, and Arisai, and Aridai, and Vajezatha.
10 And when the Jews had slain the sons of Haman, they would not touch the preys of the chattels, or substance, of them. (And after the Jews had killed Haman’s sons, they did not take away any of the spoils of their chattel, or their possessions.)
11 And anon the number of them, that were slain in the city of Susa, was told to the king. (And that same day, the number of people killed in the capital city of Susa, was told to the king.)
12 And he said to the queen, The Jews have slain five hundred men in the city of Susa, and the ten sons of Haman; how great slaying guessest thou, that they haunt in all (the) provinces? what askest thou more? and what wilt thou, that I command to be done? (And he said to the queen, The Jews have killed five hundred men here in the capital city of Susa, and the ten sons of Haman as well; how great a slaughter thinkest thou that they have done in all the provinces? what more askest thou for? and what wilt thou, that I command to be done?)
13 To whom Esther answered, If it pleaseth the king, (let) power be given to the Jews, that as they have done today in Susa, so do they also tomorrow, and (also) that the (bodies of the) ten sons of Haman be hanged up in gibbets. (To whom Esther answered, If it please the king, let power be given to the Jews, so that as they have done today in Susa, let them do here also tomorrow, and let the bodies of the ten sons of Haman be hung up on the gallows.)
14 And the king commanded, that it should be done so; and anon the behest of the king hanged in Susa, and the (bodies of the) ten sons of Haman were hanged (up). (And the king commanded, that it be done so; and at once the king’s order was hung up in Susa, and the bodies of Haman’s ten sons were hung up as well.)
15 Therefore when the Jews were gathered together, in the fourteenth day of the month [of] Adar, that is, March, three hundred men were slain in Susa, and the Jews took not away the chattel of those men. (And so when the Jews were gathered together, on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, or of March, three hundred more men were killed in Susa, and again the Jews did not take away any of their chattel, or their possessions.)
16 But also by all the provinces, that were subject to the lordship of the king, Jews stood for their lives, when their enemies and pursuers were slain, in so much, that five and seventy thousand of slain men were filled, and no man touched any thing of the chattels of them. (And in all the provinces, which were subject to the king’s rule, when the Jews stood up for their lives, their enemies and pursuers were killed, indeed, over seventy-five thousand people were killed that day, but no Jew ever touched anything of their possessions.)
17 Certainly the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, or March, was the day of slaying with all them, and in the fourteenth day they ceased to slay; and that day they ordained to be solemn, so that therein in each time afterward, they should give attention to meats, to joy, and to feasts. (And so the thirteenth day of the month of Adar was the day that the Jews, outside the city of Susa, slaughtered their enemies, and then on the fourteenth day they ceased their slaughter; and that day they ordained as a time for feasting, so that at that time each year thereafter, they would give attention to food, and to joy, and to feasts.)
18 And those Jews, that used, or haunted, the slaying in the city of Susa, lived in (the) slaying in the thirteenth and fourteenth day(s) of the same month. But in the fifteenth day they ceased to slay; and therefore they ordained the same day to be solemn of feasts and of gladness. (But the Jews, who did the slaughter in the capital city of Susa, continued their slaughter from the thirteenth to the fourteenth day of the month. And then on the fifteenth day they ceased the slaughter of their enemies; and so they ordained that day to be a time for feasts and for gladness.)
19 And these Jews, that dwelled in burg towns not walled, and in villages, deemed the fourteen day of the month [of] Adar to be solemn of feasts, and of joy, so that they be joyful therein, and send, each to (the) other, parts of their feasts, and of their meats. (And this is why those Jews who live in remote towns without walls, and in villages, deem the fourteen day of the month of Adar, or of March, to be a time for feasts, and for joy, and indeed they be joyful on that day, and send portions of the food from their feasts to one another.)
20 And Mordecai wrote all these things, and he sent all these things written by letters to the Jews, that dwelled in all the provinces of the king, as well to Jews dwelling nigh as far, (And Mordecai wrote down all these things, and he sent letters concerning all these things, to the Jews who lived in all the king’s provinces, yea, to the Jews living nearby, as well as to those living afar off,)
21 that they should receive and hold for their feast days the fourteenth and the fifteenth day(s) of the month [of] Adar, and ever[more] when the year turneth again, to hallow these days with solemn honour; (so that they would keep the fourteenth and the fifteenth days of the month of Adar, for their feast days, and forevermore when the year turneth again, celebrate these days with feasts of honouring;)
22 for in those days the Jews venged themselves of their enemies, and then their mourning and their sorrow were turned into gladness and joy; and therefore these days should be days of feasts, and of gladness, and that they should send, each to (the) other, parts of (their) meats, and give little gifts to poor men. (for in those days the Jews avenged themselves upon their enemies, and mourning and sorrow were turned into gladness and joy; and so these days should be feast days, filled with gladness, and they should send portions of their food to one another, and give little gifts to the poor.)
23 And the Jews received into a solemn custom all those things, which they began to do in that time, and which things Mordecai had commanded by letters to be done. (And so the Jews undertook as a festive custom all these things, which they began to do at that time, and which Mordecai had commanded in his letters to be done.)
24 For Haman, the son of Hammedatha, of the kindred of Agag, the enemy and adversary of Jews, thought evil against them, to slay them, and to do them away, and he cast pur, that is to say in our language, (a) lot, to do it. (For Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews, had plotted evil against them, to kill them, and to do them away, and so he cast pur, that is to say, a lot, to determine when to do it.)
25 And after this Esther entered in to the king, and besought, that the enforcings of Haman should be made void by the letters of the king, and that the evil, which he had thought against the Jews, should turn again into his head. Forsooth they hanged on the cross both him and his sons. (But then Esther went in to the king, and beseeched him, that Haman’s endeavours should be stopped with new written orders from the king, and that the evil, which Haman had plotted against the Jews, should return onto his own head. And so they hanged him and his sons on the gallows.)
26 And from that time these days were called Purim, that is, (the days) of lots, for pur, that is, (a) lot, was sent, or cast, into a vessel; and the Jews received upon themselves, and upon their seed, and upon all men that would be coupled to their religion, all things that were done, and (that) be contained in the volume of the epistle, that is, of this book, (And from that time, these days were called Purim, that is, the Days of Lots, for pur, that is, a lot, was cast to determine the day that they would die; and the Jews took upon themselves, and upon their descendants, and upon all people who would be coupled to their religion, all the things that were done, and that be contained in this book,)
27 and which things they suffered, and which things were changed afterward, so that it be not leaveful to any man to pass these two days without solemnity, which days the scripture witnesseth, and certain times ask, while the years come continually one after another. (and what things they suffered, and what things happened afterwards, so that it be not lawful for anyone to pass these two days without feasting, yea, the days to which this writing witnesseth, and for which a certain time is ordained, while the years continue to come, one after the other.)
28 These be the days, which never any forgetting shall do away, but by all generations all the provinces, that be in all the world, shall hallow them; neither there is any city, in which the days of Purim, that is, (the days) of lots, shall not be kept of [the] Jews, and of the generation of them, which is bound to these ceremonies. (These be the days, which no forgetting shall do away, that is, they should always be remembered, and all the generations, or the descendants, of the people, who be in all the provinces, in all the world, shall keep and honour them; and there shall be no city, in which the Days of Purim, that is, the Days of Lots, shall not be kept by the Jews, and by their generations, or their descendants, who be bound and obliged to keep these ceremonies.)
29 And Esther, the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai, the Jew, wrote also the second epistle, that this solemn day should be hallowed afterward with all busyness. (And Queen Esther, Abihail’s daughter, and Mordecai, the Jew, confirmed in writing with a second letter, that these feast days should be kept thereafter with all diligence.)
30 And they sent (their letter) to those Jews, that dwelled in an hundred and seven and twenty provinces of king Ahasuerus, that they should have peace, and receive the truth, (And they sent their letter to all the Jews, who lived in the hundred and twenty-seven provinces of King Ahasuerus, so that they would have peace, and receive the truth,)
31 and that they should keep the days of lots, and hallow them with joy in their time, as Mordecai and Esther had ordained; and they received the (rules for the) fastings, and the cries, and the days of lots, to be kept of themselves and of their seed, (and so that they would keep the Days of Purim, that is, the Days of Lots, and celebrate them with joy at their proper time, as Mordecai and Esther had ordained; just as they had received the rules for fasting, and mourning, or lamenting, to be kept by themselves, and by their descendants.)
32 and they received all things that be contained in the story of this book, that is called Esther. (And so Esther’s command confirmed these rules for Purim, or Lots, that be contained in this book.)
Esther 9
New King James Version
The Jews Destroy Their Tormentors
9 Now (A)in the twelfth month, that is, the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day, (B)the time came for the king’s command and his decree to be executed. On the day that the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, the opposite occurred, in that the Jews themselves (C)overpowered those who hated them. 2 The Jews (D)gathered together in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who (E)sought their harm. And no one could withstand them, (F)because fear of them fell upon all people. 3 And all the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and all those doing the king’s work, helped the Jews, because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them. 4 For Mordecai was great in the king’s palace, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces; for this man Mordecai (G)became increasingly prominent. 5 Thus the Jews defeated all their enemies with the stroke of the sword, with slaughter and destruction, and did what they pleased with those who hated them.
6 And in (H)Shushan[a] the [b]citadel the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men. 7 Also Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vajezatha— 10 (I)the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews—they killed; (J)but they did not lay a hand on the [c]plunder.
11 On that day the number of those who were killed in [d]Shushan the [e]citadel [f]was brought to the king. 12 And the king said to Queen Esther, “The Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men in Shushan the citadel, and the ten sons of Haman. What have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? Now (K)what is your petition? It shall be granted to you. Or what is your further request? It shall be done.”
13 Then Esther said, “If it pleases the king, let it be granted to the Jews who are in Shushan to do again tomorrow (L)according to today’s decree, and let Haman’s ten sons (M)be hanged on the gallows.”
14 So the king commanded this to be done; the decree was issued in Shushan, and they hanged Haman’s ten sons.
15 And the Jews who were in [g]Shushan (N)gathered together again on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and killed three hundred men at Shushan; (O)but they did not lay a hand on the plunder.
16 The remainder of the Jews in the king’s provinces (P)gathered together and protected their lives, had rest from their enemies, and killed seventy-five thousand of their enemies; (Q)but they did not lay a hand on the plunder. 17 This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. And on the fourteenth of [h]the month they rested and made it a day of feasting and gladness.
The Feast of Purim
18 But the Jews who were at [i]Shushan assembled together (R)on the thirteenth day, as well as on the fourteenth; and on the fifteenth of [j]the month they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. 19 Therefore the Jews of the villages who dwelt in the unwalled towns celebrated the fourteenth day of the month of Adar (S)with gladness and feasting, (T)as a holiday, and for (U)sending presents to one another.
20 And Mordecai wrote these things and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, 21 to establish among them that they should celebrate yearly the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar, 22 as the days on which the Jews had rest from their enemies, as the month which was turned from sorrow to joy for them, and from mourning to a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and joy, of (V)sending presents to one another and gifts to the (W)poor. 23 So the Jews accepted the custom which they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them, 24 because Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, (X)had plotted against the Jews to annihilate them, and had cast Pur (that is, the lot), to consume them and destroy them; 25 but (Y)when [k]Esther came before the king, he commanded by letter that [l]this wicked plot which Haman had devised against the Jews should (Z)return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.
26 So they called these days Purim, after the name [m]Pur. Therefore, because of all the words of (AA)this letter, what they had seen concerning this matter, and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews established and imposed it upon themselves and their descendants and all who would (AB)join them, that without fail they should celebrate these two days every year, according to the written instructions and according to the prescribed time, 28 that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city, that these days of Purim should not fail to be observed among the Jews, and that the memory of them should not perish among their descendants.
29 Then Queen Esther, (AC)the daughter of Abihail, with Mordecai the Jew, wrote with full authority to confirm this (AD)second letter about Purim. 30 And Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews, to (AE)the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with words of peace and truth, 31 to confirm these days of Purim at their appointed time, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had prescribed for them, and as they had decreed for themselves and their descendants concerning matters of their (AF)fasting and lamenting. 32 So the decree of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim, and it was written in the book.
Footnotes
- Esther 9:6 Or Susa
- Esther 9:6 palace
- Esther 9:10 spoil
- Esther 9:11 Or Susa
- Esther 9:11 palace
- Esther 9:11 Lit. came
- Esther 9:15 Or Susa
- Esther 9:17 Lit. it
- Esther 9:18 Or Susa
- Esther 9:18 Lit. it
- Esther 9:25 Lit. she or it
- Esther 9:25 Lit. his
- Esther 9:26 Lit. Lot
Esther 9
Modern English Version
The Jews Destroy Their Enemies
9 Now in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on the thirteenth day, when the king’s edict and his decree were to be carried out on the day that the enemies of the Jews had hoped to have power over them, things were turned around. The Jews gained power over those who hated them. 2 The Jews had assembled in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus in order to forcibly assault those seeking their injury. No man could stand before them because the dread of them had fallen on all people. 3 All the rulers of the provinces, and the satraps, and the governors, and all those doing the work of the king were helping the Jews, because the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. 4 For Mordecai had become great in the king’s house, and his fame went out throughout all the provinces because Mordecai grew more powerful.
5 So the Jews struck all their enemies by sword, slaughtering and destroying them, and doing to those who hated them as they pleased. 6 In the citadel of Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men, 7 along with Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. 10 These were the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, whom they killed, but on their plunder none of the Jews attempted to take it.
11 On that day the number of those who were killed in the citadel of Susa was reported before the king. 12 The king said to Queen Esther, “The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men in the citadel of Susa and the ten sons of Haman. What have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? Now what is your petition? It shall be granted you! What is your request further? It shall be done!”
13 Then Esther said, “If it pleases the king, let it be granted to the Jews in Susa to do again tomorrow according to this day’s decree. Let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.”
14 So the king commanded that it be so done, and the decree was given at Susa, and they hanged the ten sons of Haman.
15 The Jews in Susa assembled again on the fourteenth day of the month Adar and killed three hundred more there, but on the plunder no one attempted to take it.
16 But the rest of the Jews in the king’s provinces assembled to defend their lives. Some had rest from their enemies, while others killed seventy-five thousand of those who hated them, but no one took from the plunder. 17 Because this occurred on the thirteenth day of the month Adar, they rested on the fourteenth day and made it a day of feasting and rejoicing.
The Feast of Purim Established
18 Because the Jews in Susa had assembled on the thirteenth day and the fourteenth day of Adar, then on the fifteenth day they rested and made it a day of feasting and rejoicing.
19 Therefore, the Jews of the rural areas, who were living in the villages, made the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of rejoicing and feasting and a special day for sending portions of food to one another.
20 Mordecai recorded these events and sent letters to all the Jews throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, 21 in order to institute for them the celebration for the fourteenth day and the fifteenth day of the month of Adar, each and every year, 22 like the days when the Jews had rest from their enemies, and like the month when things turned around for them—changing from sorrow to joy and from mourning into a favorable day—so that they could celebrate a season of feasting and rejoicing and sending food portions to one another and gifts to the poor.
23 So the Jews accepted what had begun as tradition as Mordecai had written to them. 24 Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur (that is, cast lots), to crush and destroy them. 25 But when Esther came before the king, he ordered by letter that the wicked plot which Haman had devised against the Jews should come upon his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. 26 Therefore, they call these days Purim on the basis of the name Pur. Furthermore, based on all the information of this letter, along with what they had seen in this regard and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews instituted and accepted as tradition for themselves, for their descendants, and for all joining with them not to fail in observing the celebration of these two days as prescribed and as specified in each and every year. 28 These days should be remembered and celebrated throughout every generation, every family, province, and city, so that these days of Purim will not lose their significance among the Jews, and the commemoration of these days will not cease among their descendants.
29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew wrote with all authority, to confirm this second letter about Purim. 30 He sent the letters to all the Jews, to the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with instructions for peace and truth 31 in order to confirm these days of Purim at their appointed times, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had instituted for themselves and for their offspring, with the instructions for their times of fasting and their lamenting. 32 The command of Esther confirmed these traditions of Purim, and it was written in the book.
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2001 by Terence P. Noble
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
