¹² When the turn came for each girl to go to King Ahasuerus, after the end of twelve months of being under the regulations of the women—for the days of their beauty treatments had to be filled, six months with the oil of myrrh and six months with perfumes and women’s cosmetics— ¹³ in this way, the girl goes to the king and all that she asks is given to her to take^[a] with her from the harem^[b] to the king’s palace.^{[c] 14} In the evening she would go and in the morning she would return to the second harem^[d] under the care of^[e] Shaashgaz, the king’s eunuch in charge of the concubines. She would not go back to the king unless the king delighted in her and she was called by name.

¹⁵ When the turn came near for Esther daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her as a daughter, to go to the king, she did not ask anything except what Hegai the eunuch of the king who was in charge of the women, advised. And Esther carried favor in the eyes of everyone that saw her. ¹⁶ Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus, to his palace,^[f] in the tenth month that is Tebeth in the seventh year of his reign. ¹⁷ And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won his favor and loyalty more than all the virgins, so he put a royal crown^[g] on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti. ¹⁸ And the king gave a great banquet, Esther’s banquet, for all his officials and servants. And he granted a tax amnesty^[h] to the provinces and he gave gifts with royal liberality.