Greek Esther 13:8–14:19

Mordecai’s Prayer

^13sThen Mordecai^t prayed to the Lord, calling to remembrance all the works of the Lord.

⁹He said, “O Lord, Lord, King of all powers, for the universe is in your power and there is no one who can oppose you when it is your will to save Israel, ¹⁰for you have made heaven and earth and every wonderful thing under heaven.^{* 11}You are Lord of all, and there is no one who can resist you, the Lord. ¹²You know all things; you know, O Lord, that it was not in insolence or pride or for any love of glory that I did this and refused to bow down to this proud Haman,^{* 13}for I would have been willing to kiss the soles of his feet to save Israel!^{* 14}But I did this so that I might not set human glory above the glory of God, and I will not bow down to anyone but you, who are my Lord, and I will not do these things in pride. ¹⁵And now, O Lord God and King, God of Abraham, spare your people, for the eyes of our foes are upon us^u to annihilate us, and they desire to destroy the inheritance that has been yours from the beginning.^{* 16}Do not neglect your portion, which you redeemed for yourself out of the land of Egypt.^{* 17}Hear my prayer and have mercy upon your inheritance; turn our mourning into feasting that we may live and sing praise to your name, O Lord; do not destroy the lips^v of those who praise you.”^*

¹⁸And all Israel cried out with all their might, for their death was before their eyes.

Esther’s Prayer

¹⁴Then Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish, fled to the Lord. ²She took off the garments of her honor and put on the garments of distress and mourning, and instead of costly perfumes she covered her head with ashes and dung, and she utterly humbled her body; every part that she loved to adorn she covered with her tangled hair.^{* 3}She prayed to the Lord God of Israel and said: “O my Lord, you alone are our king; help me, who am alone and have no helper but you, ⁴for my danger is in my hand.^{* 5}Ever since I was born I have heard in the tribe of my family that you, O Lord, took Israel out of all the nations and our ancestors from among all their forebears for an everlasting inheritance and that you did for them all that you said.^{* 6}And now we have sinned before you, and you have delivered us into the hands of our enemies^{* 7}because we glorified their gods. You are righteous, O Lord! ⁸And now they are not satisfied that we are in bitter slavery, but they have set their hands on the hands of their idols ⁹to abolish what your mouth has ordained and to destroy your inheritance, to stop the mouths of those who praise you and to quench your altar and the glory of your house,^{* 10}to open the mouths of the nations for the praise of vain idols and to magnify forever a mortal king.^*

¹¹“O Lord, do not surrender your scepter to what has no being, and do not let them laugh at our downfall, but turn their plan against them and make an example of him who began this against us.^{* 12}Remember, O Lord; make yourself known in this time of our affliction and give me courage, O King of the gods and Master of all dominion!^{* 13}Put eloquent speech in my mouth before the lion and turn his heart to hate the man who is fighting against us, so that there may be an end of him and those who agree with him.^{* 14}But save us by your hand and help me, who am alone and have no helper but you, O Lord. You have knowledge of all things, ¹⁵and you know that I hate the splendor of the lawless and abhor the bed of the uncircumcised and of any alien.^{* 16}You know my necessity, that I abhor the sign of my proud position that is upon my head on days when I appear in public. I abhor it like a menstrual cloth, and I do not wear it on the days when I am at rest.^{* 17}And your servant has not eaten at Haman’s table, and I have not honored the king’s feast or drunk the wine of libations.^{* 18}Your servant has had no joy since the day that I was brought here until now, except in you, O Lord God of Abraham. ¹⁹O God, whose might is over all, hear the voice of the despairing and save us from the hands of evildoers. And save me from my fear!”

End of Addition C

Addition D