Esther 3

New King James Version

Haman’s Conspiracy Against the Jews

3 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha the ^(A)Agagite, and ^(B)advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him. ² And all the king’s servants who were ^(C)within the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai ^(D)would not bow or pay homage. ³ Then the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the ^(E)king’s command?” ⁴ Now it happened, when they spoke to him daily and he would not listen to them, that they told it to Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for Mordecai had told them that he was a Jew. ⁵ When Haman saw that Mordecai ^(F)did not bow or pay him homage, Haman was ^(G)filled with wrath. ⁶ But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him of the people of Mordecai. Instead, Haman ^(H)sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus—the people of Mordecai.

⁷ In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, ^(I)they cast Pur (that is, the lot), before Haman ^[a]to determine the day and the ^[b]month, ^[c]until it fell on the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.

⁸ Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; ^(J)their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not fitting for the king to let them remain. ⁹ If it pleases the king, let a decree be written that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who do the work, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.”

¹⁰ So the king ^(K)took ^(L)his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the ^(M)enemy of the Jews. ¹¹ And the king said to Haman, “The money and the people are given to you, to do with them as seems good to you.”

^12 (N)Then the king’s scribes were called on the thirteenth day of the first month, and a decree was written according to all that Haman commanded—to the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province, to the officials of all people, to every province ^(O)according to its script, and to every people in their language. ^(P)In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written, and sealed with the king’s signet ring. ¹³ And the letters were ^(Q)sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, ^(R)in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and ^(S)to plunder their ^[d]possessions. ^14 (T)A copy of the document was to be issued as law in every province, being published for all people, that they should be ready for that day. ¹⁵ The couriers went out, hastened by the king’s command; and the decree was proclaimed in ^[e]Shushan the ^[f]citadel. So the king and Haman sat down to drink, but ^(U)the city of Shushan was ^[g]perplexed.