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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 4</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/4.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/4-1.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 4</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="../esther/3.htm" title="Esther 3">◄</a> Esther 4 <a href="../esther/5.htm" title="Esther 5">►</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/4.htm">NIV</a> • <a href="/nlt/esther/4.htm">NLT</a> • <a href="/esv/esther/4.htm">ESV</a> • <a href="/kjv/esther/4.htm">KJV</a> • <a href="/nkjv/esther/4.htm">NKJ</a> • <a href="/nasb/esther/4.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/4.htm" style="font-weight:normal" title="Parallel Chapters">Parallel Chapters ▾ </a></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><A name="2"></a><p class="hdg">Mordecai Appeals to Esther<p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>When Mordecai learned of all that had happened, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the middle of the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. <A name="3"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because the law prohibited anyone wearing sackcloth from entering that gate. <A name="4"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>In every province to which the king’s command and edict came, there was great mourning among the Jews. They fasted, wept, and lamented, and many lay in sackcloth and ashes. <A name="5"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>When Esther’s maidens and eunuchs came and told her about Mordecai, the queen was overcome with distress. She sent clothes for Mordecai to wear instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. <A name="6"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>Then Esther summoned Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs appointed to her, and she dispatched him to Mordecai to learn what was troubling him and why. <A name="7"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>So Hathach went out to Mordecai in the city square in front of the king’s gate, <A name="8"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>and Mordecai told him all that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money that Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury in order to destroy the Jews. <A name="9"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>Mordecai also gave Hathach a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for the destruction of the Jews, to show and explain to Esther, urging her to approach the king, implore his favor, and plead before him for her people. <A name="10"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>So Hathach went back and relayed Mordecai’s response to Esther. <A name="11"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>Then Esther spoke to Hathach and instructed him to tell Mordecai, <A name="12"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>“All the royal officials and the people of the king’s provinces know that one law applies to every man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned—that he be put to death. Only if the king extends the gold scepter may that person live. But I have not been summoned to appear before the king for the past thirty days.” <A name="13"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>When Esther’s words were relayed to Mordecai, <A name="14"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>he sent back to her this reply: “Do not imagine that because you are in the king’s palace you alone will escape the fate of all the Jews. <A name="15"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows if perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” <A name="16"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: <A name="17"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>“Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day, and I and my maidens will fast as you do. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish!<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">a</a></span>” <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/esther/4-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>So Mordecai went and did all that Esther had instructed him.</p><A name="fn"></a><div id="fnlink"><br /><br /><b>Footnotes:</b><br><br><span class="fnverse">16</span> <span class="footnotesbot">a</span> Or <i>if I am destroyed, then I will be destroyed!</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>. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Free <a href=http://berean.bible/downloads.htm>downloads</a> and <a href=http://berean.bible/licensing.htm>licensing</a> available. 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