Esther 4:5

5 Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king's eunuchs, who had been appointed to attend her, and ordered him to go to Mor'decai to learn what this was and why it was.

Esther 4:5 Meaning and Commentary

Esther 4:5

Then called Esther for Hatach, one of the king's chamberlains,
whom he had appointed to attend upon her
Which, according to the Targum, was Daniel ^F1; but it is not likely that Daniel should have lived to this time; however, this officer was not only intrusted with the care of the queen by the king, but she had also an high opinion of him, and therefore employed him in this affair:

and gave a commandment to Mordecai, to know what it was, and why it
was;
what was the reason of his appearing in sackcloth, and why he did not receive the clothes she sent him.

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FOOTNOTES:

F1 So Midrash Esther, fol. 94. 3. & Jarchi in Dan. iv. 5.

Esther 4:5 In-Context

3 And in every province, wherever the king's command and his decree came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and most of them lay in sackcloth and ashes.

4 When Esther's maids and her eunuchs came and told her, the queen was deeply distressed; she sent garments to clothe Mor'decai, so that he might take off his sackcloth, but he would not accept them.

5 Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king's eunuchs, who had been appointed to attend her, and ordered him to go to Mor'decai to learn what this was and why it was.

6 Hathach went out to Mor'decai in the open square of the city in front of the king's gate,

7 and Mor'decai told him all that had happened to him, and the exact sum of money that Haman had promised to pay into the king's treasuries for the destruction of the Jews.