Esther 5

CHAPTER 5

Esther Prepares a Feast

¹Now it happened ^aon the third day, that Esther put on her royal robes and stood ^bin the inner court of the king’s house in front of the king’s ¹rooms, and the king was sitting on his royal throne in the ²throne room, opposite the entrance to his house.

²Now it happened that when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, ^ashe advanced in favor in his eyes; and ^bthe king extended to Esther the golden scepter which was in his hand. So Esther came near and ¹reached out and touched the top of the scepter.

³Then the king said to her, “What is troubling you, Queen Esther? And what is ¹your request? ^aEven to half of the kingdom it shall be given to you.”

⁴And Esther said, “If it seems good to the king, may the king and Haman come this day to the feast that I have prepared for him.”

⁵Then the king said, “^aBring Haman quickly that we may do the word of Esther.” So the king and Haman came to the feast which Esther had prepared.

⁶Then, ¹as they drank their wine at the feast, ^athe king said to Esther, “^bWhat is ²your petition? For it shall be given to you. And what is ³your request? Even to half of the kingdom it shall be done.”

⁷So Esther answered and said, “¹My petition and ²my request is:

^8aif I have found favor in the eyes of the king, and if it seems good to the king to give heed to ¹my petition and to do ²my request, may the king and Haman come to ^bthe feast which I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do according to the word of the king.”

Haman Recounts His Glory

⁹Then Haman went out that day glad and merry of heart; but when Haman saw Mordecai ^ain the king’s gate and ^bthat he did not stand up or ¹tremble before him, Haman was filled with wrath against Mordecai.

¹⁰But Haman controlled himself, went to his house, and sent for and brought his friends and his wife ^aZeresh.

¹¹Then Haman recounted to them the glory of his riches and the ^1anumber of his sons and every instance where the king had magnified him and how he had ^2badvanced him above the princes and servants of the king.

¹²Haman also said, “Even Esther the queen let no one but me come with the king to the feast which she had prepared; and ^atomorrow also I am called to come to her with the king.

¹³“Yet all of this is worth nothing to me every time I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at ^athe king’s gate.”

¹⁴Then Zeresh his wife and all his friends said to him, “^aHave a ¹gallows ²fifty cubits high made and in the morning say to the king that Mordecai should be hanged on it; then go gladly with the king to the feast.” And the word was good to Haman, so he had the gallows made.