¹⁰On the seventh day Xerxes was in a good mood because he had drunk a lot of wine. So he gave a command to the seven officials who served him. They were Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar and Carcas. ¹¹He told them to bring Queen Vashti to him. He wanted her to come wearing her royal crown. He wanted to show off her beauty to the people and nobles. She was lovely to look at.

¹²The attendants told Queen Vashti what the king had ordered her to do. But she refused to come. So the king became very angry. In fact, he burned with anger.

¹³It was the king’s practice to ask advice from those who knew a lot about matters of law and fairness. So he spoke with the wise men who were supposed to understand what was going on at that time. ¹⁴They were the men who were closest to the king. They were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena and Memucan. They were the seven nobles of Persia and Media. They were the king’s special advisers. In fact, they were the most important men in the kingdom.

¹⁵“You know the law,” the king said. “What should I do to Queen Vashti? She hasn’t obeyed my command. The officials told her what I ordered her to do, didn’t they?”

¹⁶Then Memucan gave a reply to the king and the nobles. He said, “Queen Vashti has done what is wrong. But she didn’t do it only against you, King Xerxes. She did it also against all of the nobles. And she did it against the people in all of the territories you rule over.

¹⁷“All of the women will hear about what the queen has done. Then they will look down on their husbands. They’ll say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to be brought to him. But she wouldn’t come.’ ¹⁸Starting today, the leading women in Persia and Media who have heard about the queen’s actions will act in the same way. They’ll disobey all of your nobles, just as she disobeyed you. They won’t have any respect for their husbands. They won’t honor them.

¹⁹“So if it pleases you, send out a royal order. Let it be written down in the laws of Persia and Media. They can never be changed. Let the royal order say that Vashti can never see you again. Also let her position as queen be given to someone who is better than she is.

²⁰“And let your order be announced all through your entire kingdom. Then all of the other women will have respect for their husbands from the least important of them to the most important.”

²¹The king and his nobles were pleased with that advice. So he did what Memucan had suggested. ²²He sent messages out to every territory in the kingdom. He sent them to each territory in its own writing. He sent them to every nation in its own language. The messages announced in each nation’s language that every man should rule over his own family.

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