Esther 9:2

2 In each of King Ahasuerus' provinces the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who intended to harm them.^[a] Not a single person could withstand them; terror of them fell on every nationality.

Esther 9:2 Meaning and Commentary

Esther 9:2

The Jews gathered themselves together in their cities,
throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus
Wherever they lived:

to lay hand on such as sought their hurt;
who not only threatened them what they would do on this day, but were risen up in arms in quest of them:

and no man could withstand them, for the fear of them fell upon all
people;
when they understood that Haman was hanged, and Mordecai the Jew advanced, and that the queen herself was a Jew, and that the Jews had the royal grant to act both defensively and offensively; and no doubt but the panic was of God.

Esther 9:2 In-Context

1 The king's command and law went into effect on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month Adar. On the day when the Jews' enemies had hoped to overpower them, just the opposite happened. The Jews overpowered those who hated them.

2 In each of King Ahasuerus' provinces the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who intended to harm them. Not a single person could withstand them; terror of them fell on every nationality.

3 All the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and the royal civil administrators aided the Jews because they were afraid of Mordecai.

4 For Mordecai [exercised] great power in the palace, and his fame spread throughout the provinces as he became more and more powerful.

5 The Jews put all their enemies to the sword, killing and destroying them. They did what they pleased to those who hated them.

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit cities to send out a hand against the seekers of their evil