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In rage the king arose from the banquet of wine and withdrew to the palace garden. Meanwhile, Haman stood to beg Queen Esther for his life,[a] for he realized that the king had now determined a catastrophic end for him.[b]

When the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet of wine, Haman was throwing himself down[c] on the couch where Esther was lying.[d] The king exclaimed, “Will he also attempt to rape the queen while I am still in the building?”

As these words left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. Harbona,[e] one of the king’s eunuchs, said, “Indeed, there is the gallows that Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke out on the king’s behalf. It stands near Haman’s home and is 75 feet[f] high.”

The king said, “Hang him on it!” 10 So they hanged Haman on the very gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. The king’s rage then abated.

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Footnotes

  1. Esther 7:7 sn There is great irony here in that the man who set out to destroy all the Jews now finds himself begging for his own life from a Jew.
  2. Esther 7:7 tn Heb “for he saw that calamity was determined for him from the king”; NAB “the king had decided on his doom”; NRSV “the king had determined to destroy him.”
  3. Esther 7:8 tn Heb “falling”; NAB, NRSV “had (+ just TEV) thrown himself (+ down TEV).”
  4. Esther 7:8 tn Heb “where Esther was” (so KJV, NASB). The term “lying” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “was reclining.”
  5. Esther 7:9 sn Cf. 1:10, where Harbona is one of the seven eunuchs sent by the king to summon Queen Vashti to his banquet.
  6. Esther 7:9 tn Heb “50 cubits.” See the note on this expression in Esth 5:14.

The king got up in a rage,(A) left his wine and went out into the palace garden.(B) But Haman, realizing that the king had already decided his fate,(C) stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life.

Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch(D) where Esther was reclining.(E)

The king exclaimed, “Will he even molest the queen while she is with me in the house?”(F)

As soon as the word left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.(G) Then Harbona,(H) one of the eunuchs attending the king, said, “A pole reaching to a height of fifty cubits[a](I) stands by Haman’s house. He had it set up for Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.”

The king said, “Impale him on it!”(J) 10 So they impaled(K) Haman(L) on the pole(M) he had set up for Mordecai.(N) Then the king’s fury subsided.(O)

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Footnotes

  1. Esther 7:9 That is, about 75 feet or about 23 meters