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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"><title>Esther 1</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/bsb/spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/esther/1.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmc//esther/1-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="/esther/">Esther</a> > Esther 1</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../nehemiah/13.htm" title="Nehemiah 13">◄</a> Esther 1 <a href="../esther/2.htm" title="Esther 2">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div align="center" id="jump2"><a href="/niv/esther/1.htm">NIV</a> • <a href="/nlt/esther/1.htm">NLT</a> • <a href="/esv/esther/1.htm">ESV</a> • <a href="/kjv/esther/1.htm">KJV</a> • <a href="/nkjv/esther/1.htm">NKJ</a> • <a href="/nasb/esther/1.htm">NAS</a></div><br /><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="1%" valign="top">BSB</td><td width="99%" valign="top" align="right"><a href="/parallel/esther/1.htm" style="font-weight:normal" title="Parallel Chapters">Parallel Chapters ▾ </a></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><A name="2"></a><p class="hdg">Xerxes’ Royal Feast<p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>This is what happened in the days of Xerxes,<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">a</a></span> who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Cush.<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">b</a></span> <A name="3"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>In those days King Xerxes sat on his royal throne in the citadel of Susa. <A name="4"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>In the third year of his reign, Xerxes held a feast for all his officials and servants. The military leaders of Persia and Media were there, along with the nobles and princes of the provinces. <A name="5"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>And for a full 180 days he displayed the glorious riches of his kingdom and the magnificent splendor of his greatness. <A name="6"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>At the end of this time, in the garden court of the royal palace, the king held a seven-day feast for all the people in the citadel of Susa, from the least to the greatest. <A name="7"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>Hangings of white and blue linen were fastened with cords of fine white and purple material to silver rings on the marble pillars. Gold and silver couches were arranged on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones. <A name="8"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>Beverages were served in an array of goblets of gold, each with a different design, and the royal wine flowed freely, according to the king’s bounty. <A name="9"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>By order of the king, no limit was placed on the drinking, and every official of his household was to serve each man whatever he desired. <A name="10"></a><p class="hdg">Queen Vashti’s Refusal<p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes. <A name="11"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>On the seventh day, when the king’s heart was merry with wine, he ordered the seven eunuchs who served him—Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas— <A name="12"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>to bring Queen Vashti before him, wearing her royal crown, to display her beauty to the people and officials. For she was beautiful to behold. <A name="13"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>Queen Vashti, however, refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs. And the king became furious, and his anger burned within him. <A name="14"></a><p class="hdg">Queen Vashti Deposed<p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>Then the king consulted the wise men who knew the times, for it was customary for him to confer with the experts in law and justice. <A name="15"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>His closest advisors were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media who had personal access to the king and ranked highest in the kingdom. <A name="16"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>“According to law,” he asked, “what should be done with Queen Vashti, since she refused to obey the command of King Xerxes delivered by the eunuchs?” <A name="17"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>And in the presence of the king and his princes, Memucan replied, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king, but all the princes and the peoples in all the provinces of King Xerxes. <A name="18"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>For the conduct of the queen will become known to all women, causing them to despise their husbands<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">c</a></span> and say, ‘King Xerxes ordered Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she did not come.’ <A name="19"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>This very day the noble women of Persia and Media who have heard about the queen’s conduct will say the same thing to all the king’s officials, resulting in much contempt and wrath. <A name="20"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>So if it pleases the king, let him issue a royal decree, and let it be recorded in the laws of Persia and Media so that it cannot be repealed, that Vashti shall never again enter the presence of King Xerxes, and that her royal position shall be given to a woman better than she. <A name="21"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>The edict the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom—and so all women, from the least to the greatest, will honor their husbands.” <A name="22"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>The king and his princes were pleased with this counsel; so the king did as Memucan had advised. <span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/1-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>He sent letters to all the provinces of the kingdom, to each province in its own script and to each people in their own language, proclaiming<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">d</a></span> that every man should be master of his own household.</p><A name="fn"></a><div id="fnlink"><br /><br /><b>Footnotes:</b><br><br><span class="fnverse">1</span> <span class="footnotesbot">a</span> Hebrew <i>Ahasuerus</i><span class="thin"> </span>; here and throughout Esther <br><span class="fnverse">1</span> <span class="footnotesbot">b</span> That is, the upper Nile region<br><span class="fnverse">17</span> <span class="footnotesbot">c</span> Or <i>to disdain their husbands in their eyes</i><span class="thin"> </span><br><span class="fnverse">22</span> <span class="footnotesbot">d</span> Literally <i>proclaiming in the language of his own people</i><span class="thin"> </span><br><br /></div><br /></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">The Berean Bible (<a href=http://berean.bible>www.Berean.Bible</a>) <a href=http://bereanbible.com>Berean Study Bible (BSB)</a> © 2016, 2020 by <a href=http://biblehub.com>Bible Hub</a> and <a href=http://berean.bible>Berean.Bible</a>. 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