Esther 2:19-23

19 When the virgins were assembled a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. ^[a]

20 Esther still had not revealed her lineage or her people, just as Mordecai had instructed. She obeyed Mordecai’s command, as she had done under his care.

Mordecai Uncovers a Conspiracy

21 In those days, while Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan ^[b] and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who guarded the entrance, grew angry and conspired to assassinate King Xerxes.

22 When Mordecai learned of the plot, he reported it to Queen Esther, and she informed the king on Mordecai’s behalf.

23 After the report had been investigated and verified, both officials were hanged on the gallows. And all this was recorded in the Book of the Chronicles ^[c] in the presence of the king.

Esther 2:19-23 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.

Footnotes

• [a] Or Mordecai had become a palace official
• [b] Bigthan is a variant of Bigthana; see Esther 6:2.
• [c] Or the Book of the Annals or the Book of the Historical Events