Esther 2:13-23

13 when the young woman went in to the king in this way, she was given whatever she desired to take with her from the harem to the king's palace.

14 In the evening she would go in, and in the morning she would return to the second harem in custody of Shaashgaz, the king's eunuch, who was in charge of the concubines. She would not go in to the king again, unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by name.

15 When the turn came for Esther ¹the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her as his own daughter, to go in to the king, she asked for nothing except what ²Hegai the king's eunuch, who had charge of the women, advised. Now Esther was winning favor in the eyes of all who saw her.

16 And when Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus, into his royal palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign,

17 the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set ³the royal crown^[a] on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.

18 Then the king ⁴gave a great feast for all his officials and servants; it was Esther's feast. He also granted a remission of taxes to the provinces and gave gifts with royal generosity.

Mordecai Discovers a Plot

19 Now when the virgins were gathered together ⁵the second time, Mordecai was sitting ⁶at the king's gate.

20 ⁷Esther had not made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had commanded her, for Esther obeyed Mordecai just ⁸as when she was brought up by him.

21 In those days, as Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate, ⁹Bigthan and ¹⁰Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus.

22 And this came to the knowledge of Mordecai, ¹¹and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in the name of Mordecai.

23 When the affair was investigated and found to be so, the men were both hanged on the gallows.^[b] And it was recorded in ¹²the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king.

Read Chapter Compare

Esther 2:13-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ESTHER 2

By the advice of the ministers of King Ahasuerus, fair virgins were sought for throughout his dominions, and brought to his chamberlain, the keeper of the women, among whom was Esther, a Jewish virgin, Es 2:1-8, who found favour with the chamberlain, and afterwards with the king, who made her queen instead of Vashti, and a feast on that account, Es 2:9-18. Mordecai, to whom Esther was related, and according to whose advice she acted, sitting in the king's gate, discovered a conspiracy against the king, which he now made known to Esther, Es 2:19-23.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 12

1. ver. 7; Esther 9:29
2. ver. 3, 8
3. Esther 1:11; Esther 6:8
4. See Esther 1:3
5. ver. 3, 4
6. ver. 21; Esther 3:2, 3; Esther 5:9, 13; Esther 6:10, 12
7. ver. 10
8. ver. 7
9. [Esther 1:10; Esther 6:2]
10. Esther 6:2
11. Esther 6:2; [Esther 7:9]
12. Esther 6:1; Esther 10:2

Footnotes 2

[a]. Or headdress
[b]. Or suspended on a stake

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.