Esther Pleads for Her People
1So the king and Haman went to dine with Esther the queen, 2and as they drank their wine on that second day, the king asked once more, “Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given to you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be fulfilled.”
my life...and the lives of my people: The...
my life...and the lives of my people: The statement that someone wanted to kill the queen and her family likely surprised and shocked the king.
my people and I have been sold: Esther carefully mentioned the large sum Haman paid the king to approve the decree (Esther 3:8–11). She also used the exact words from Haman’s decree, stating its purpose was to destroy, kill, and annihilate (see Esther 3:13).
If we had merely been sold as menservants and maidservants, I would have remained silent: Esther humbly explained her request was due to the severe threat against her and her people.
my life...and the lives of my people: The statement that someone wanted to kill the queen and her family likely surprised and shocked the king.
my people and I have been sold: Esther carefully mentioned the large sum Haman paid the king to approve the decree (Esther 3:8–11). She also used the exact words from Haman’s decree, stating its purpose was to destroy, kill, and annihilate (see Esther 3:13).
If we had merely been sold as menservants and maidservants, I would have remained silent: Esther humbly explained her request was due to the severe threat against her and her people.
3Queen Esther replied, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it pleases the king, grant me my life as my petition, and the lives of my people as my request. 4For my people and I have been sold out to destruction, death, and annihilation. If we had merely been sold as menservants and maidservants, I would have remained silent, because no such distress would justify burdening the king.”
5Then King Xerxes spoke up and asked Queen Esther, “Who is this, and where is the one who would devise† such a scheme?”
Esther identified wicked Haman as the enemy. Haman...
Esther identified wicked Haman as the enemy.
Haman stood in terror: The queen's accusation and the king's anger made Haman's fate clear.
Esther identified wicked Haman as the enemy.
Haman stood in terror: The queen's accusation and the king's anger made Haman's fate clear.
6Esther replied, “The adversary and enemy is this wicked man—Haman!” And Haman stood in terror before the king and queen.
The Hanging of Haman
7In his fury, the king arose from drinking his wine and went to the palace garden, while Haman stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life, for he realized that the king was planning a terrible fate for him.
8Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed, “Would he actually assault the queen while I am in the palace?” As soon as the words had left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.
9Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said: “There is a gallows fifty cubits high† at Haman’s house. He had it built for Mordecai, who gave the report that saved the king.” “Hang him on it!” declared the king.
10So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the fury of the king subsided.