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Esther Decides to Risk Everything in order to Help Her People
4 Now when Mordecai became aware of all that had been done, he[a] tore his garments and put on sackcloth and ashes. He went out into the city, crying out in a loud[b] and bitter voice. 2 But he went no farther than the king’s gate, for no one was permitted to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth. 3 Throughout each and every province where the king’s edict and law were announced[c] there was considerable[d] mourning among the Jews, along with fasting, weeping, and sorrow.[e] Sackcloth and ashes were characteristic[f] of many. 4 When Esther’s female attendants and her eunuchs came and informed her about Mordecai’s behavior,[g] the queen was overcome with anguish. Although she sent garments for Mordecai to put on so that he could remove his sackcloth, he would not accept them. 5 So Esther called for Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs who had been placed at her service,[h] and instructed him to find out the cause and reason for Mordecai’s behavior.[i] 6 So Hathach went to Mordecai at the plaza of the city in front of the king’s gate. 7 Then Mordecai related to him everything that had happened to him, even the specific amount of money that Haman had offered to pay to the king’s treasuries for the Jews to be destroyed. 8 He also gave him a written copy of the law that had been disseminated[j] in Susa for their destruction so that he could show it to Esther and talk to her about it. He also gave instructions that she should go to the king to implore him and petition him on behalf of her people. 9 So Hathach returned and related Mordecai’s instructions[k] to Esther.
10 Then Esther replied to Hathach with instructions for Mordecai: 11 “All the servants of the king and the people of the king’s provinces know that there is only one law applicable[l] to any man or woman who comes uninvited to the king in the inner court—that person will be put to death, unless the king extends to him the gold scepter, permitting him to be spared.[m] Now I have not been invited to come to the king for some thirty days.”
12 When Esther’s reply[n] was conveyed to Mordecai, 13 he[o] said to take back this answer to Esther: “Don’t imagine that because you are part of the king’s household you will be the one Jew[p] who will escape. 14 If you keep quiet at this time, liberation and protection for the Jews will appear[q] from another source,[r] while you and your father’s household perish. It may very well be[s] that you have achieved royal status[t] for such a time as this!”
15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go, assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa, and fast on my behalf. Don’t eat and don’t drink for three days, night or day. My female attendants and I[u] will also fast in the same way. Afterward I will go to the king, even though it violates the law.[v] If I perish, I perish.”
17 So Mordecai set out to do everything that Esther had instructed him.
Esther Appeals to the King for Help
5 It so happened that on the third day Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner court of the palace,[w] opposite the king’s quarters.[x] The king was sitting on his royal throne in the palace, opposite the entrance.[y] 2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she met with his approval.[z] The king extended to Esther the gold scepter that was in his hand, and Esther approached and touched the end of the scepter.
3 The king said to her, “What is on your mind,[aa] Queen Esther? What is your request? Even as much as half the kingdom will be given to you.”
4 Esther replied, “If the king is so inclined,[ab] let the king and Haman come today to the banquet that I have prepared for the king.” 5 The king replied, “Find Haman quickly so that we can do as Esther requests.”
So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared. 6 While at the banquet of wine, the king said to Esther, “What is your request? It shall be given to you. What is your petition? Ask for as much as half the kingdom,[ac] and it shall be done.”
7 Esther responded,[ad] “My request and my petition is this: 8 If I have found favor in the king’s sight and if the king is inclined[ae] to grant my request and approve my petition, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet that I will prepare for them. At that time[af] I will do as the king wishes.”[ag]
Haman Expresses His Hatred of Mordecai
9 Now Haman went forth that day pleased and very much encouraged.[ah] But when Haman saw Mordecai at the king’s gate, and he did not rise or tremble in his presence,[ai] Haman was filled with rage toward Mordecai. 10 But Haman restrained himself and went on to his home.
He then sent for his friends to join him,[aj] along with his wife Zeresh. 11 Haman then recounted to them his fabulous wealth,[ak] his many sons,[al] and how the king had magnified him and exalted him over the king’s other officials and servants. 12 Haman said, “Furthermore, Queen Esther invited[am] only me to accompany the king to the banquet that she prepared. And also tomorrow I am invited[an] along with the king. 13 Yet all this fails to satisfy me so long as I have to see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.”
14 Haman’s[ao] wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows 75 feet[ap] high built, and in the morning tell the king that Mordecai should be hanged on it. Then go with the king to the banquet contented.”[aq]
It seemed like a good idea to Haman, so he had the gallows built.
The Turning Point: The King Honors Mordecai
6 Throughout that night the king was unable to sleep,[ar] so he asked for the book containing the historical records[as] to be brought. As the records[at] were being read in the king’s presence, 2 it was found written that Mordecai had disclosed that Bigthana[au] and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who guarded the entrance, had plotted to assassinate[av] King Ahasuerus.
3 The king asked, “What great honor[aw] was bestowed on Mordecai because of this?” The king’s attendants who served him responded, “Not a thing was done for him.”
4 Then the king said, “Who is that in the courtyard?” Now Haman had come to the outer courtyard of the palace to suggest that the king hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had constructed for him. 5 The king’s attendants said to him, “It is Haman who is standing in the courtyard.” The king said, “Let him enter.”
6 So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done for the man whom the king wishes to honor?” Haman thought to himself,[ax] “Who is it that the king would want to honor more than me?” 7 So Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king wishes to honor, 8 let them bring royal attire which the king himself has worn and a horse on which the king himself has ridden—one bearing the royal insignia.[ay] 9 Then let this clothing and this horse be given to one of the king’s noble officials. Let him[az] then clothe the man whom the king wishes to honor, and let him lead him about through the plaza of the city on the horse, calling[ba] before him, ‘So shall it be done to the man whom the king wishes to honor!’”
10 The king then said to Haman, “Go quickly! Take the clothing and the horse, just as you have described, and do as you just indicated to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Don’t neglect[bb] a single thing of all that you have said.”
11 So Haman took the clothing and the horse, and he clothed Mordecai. He led him about on the horse throughout the plaza of the city, calling before him, “So shall it be done to the man whom the king wishes to honor!”
12 Then Mordecai again sat at the king’s gate, while Haman hurried away to his home, mournful and with a veil over his head. 13 Haman then related to his wife Zeresh and to all his friends everything that had happened to him. These wise men,[bc] along with his wife Zeresh, said to him, “If indeed this Mordecai before whom you have begun to fall is Jewish,[bd] you will not prevail against him. No, you will surely fall before him!”
14 While they were still speaking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived. They quickly brought Haman to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
The King Has Haman Executed
7 So the king and Haman came to dine[be] with Queen Esther. 2 On the second day of the banquet of wine the king asked Esther, “What is your request, Queen Esther? It shall be granted to you. And what is your petition? Ask for up to half the kingdom, and it shall be done.”
3 Queen Esther replied, “If I have met with your approval,[bf] O king, and if the king is so inclined, grant me my life as my request, and my people as my petition. 4 For we have been sold[bg]—both I and my people—to destruction and to slaughter and to annihilation. If we had simply been sold as male and female slaves, I would have remained silent, for such distress would not have been sufficient for troubling the king.”
5 Then King Ahasuerus responded[bh] to Queen Esther, “Who is this individual? Where is this person to be found who is presumptuous enough[bi] to act in this way?”
6 Esther replied, “The oppressor and enemy is this evil Haman!”
Then Haman became terrified in the presence of the king and queen. 7 In rage the king arose from the banquet of wine and withdrew to the palace garden. Meanwhile, Haman stood to beg Queen Esther for his life,[bj] for he realized that the king had now determined a catastrophic end for him.[bk]
8 When the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet of wine, Haman was throwing himself down[bl] on the couch where Esther was lying.[bm] The king exclaimed, “Will he also attempt to rape the queen while I am still in the building?”
As these words left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 9 Harbona,[bn] one of the king’s eunuchs, said, “Indeed, there is the gallows that Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke out on the king’s behalf. It stands near Haman’s home and is 75 feet[bo] high.”
The king said, “Hang him on it!” 10 So they hanged Haman on the very gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. The king’s rage then abated.
Spiritual Gifts
12 With regard to spiritual gifts,[a] brothers and sisters,[b] I do not want you to be uninformed.[c] 2 You know that when you were pagans you were often led astray by speechless idols, however you were led. 3 So I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are different results, but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. 7 To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the benefit of all. 8 For one person is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another performance of miracles, to another prophecy, and to another discernment of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 It is one and the same Spirit, distributing as he decides to each person, who produces all these things.
Different Members in One Body
12 For just as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body—though many—are one body, so too is Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Whether Jews or Greeks or slaves[d] or free, we were all made to drink of the one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not a single member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Since I am not a hand, I am not part of the body,” it does not lose its membership in the body because of that. 16 And if the ear says, “Since I am not an eye, I am not part of the body,” it does not lose its membership in the body because of that. 17 If the whole body were an eye, what part would do the hearing? If the whole were an ear, what part would exercise the sense of smell? 18 But as a matter of fact, God has placed each of the members in the body just as he decided. 19 If they were all the same member, where would the body be? 20 So now there are many members, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you,” nor in turn can the head say to the foot, “I do not need you.” 22 On the contrary, those members that seem to be weaker are essential, 23 and those members we consider less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our unpresentable members are clothed with dignity,[e] 24 but our presentable members do not need this. Instead, God has blended together the body, giving greater honor to the lesser member, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but the members may have mutual concern for one another. 26 If one member suffers, everyone suffers with it. If a[f] member is honored, all rejoice with it.
Psalm 36[a]
For the music director, an oracle, written by the Lord’s servant David.[b]
36 An evil man is rebellious to the core.[c]
He does not fear God,[d]
2 for he is too proud
to recognize and give up his sin.[e]
3 The words he speaks are sinful and deceitful;
he does not care about doing what is wise and right.[f]
4 While he lies in bed he plans ways to sin.
He is committed to a sinful lifestyle;[g]
he does not reject what is evil.[h]
5 O Lord, your loyal love reaches to the sky,[i]
your faithfulness to the clouds.[j]
6 Your justice is like the highest mountains,[k]
your fairness like the deepest sea;
you, Lord, preserve[l] mankind and the animal kingdom.[m]
7 How precious[n] is your loyal love, O God!
The human race finds shelter under your wings.[o]
8 They are filled with food from your house,
and you allow them to drink from the river of your delicacies.
9 For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light.[p]
10 Extend[q] your loyal love to your faithful followers,[r]
and vindicate[s] the morally upright.[t]
11 Do not let arrogant men overtake me,
or let evil men make me homeless.[u]
12 I can see the evildoers! They have fallen.[v]
They have been knocked down and are unable to get up.[w]
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