Esther Becomes Queen
1 Later, even after the king's anger had cooled down, he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and about his proclamation against her. 2 So some of the king's advisers who were close to him suggested, “Why don't you make a search to find some beautiful young virgins? 3 You can appoint officials in every province of the empire and have them bring all these beautiful young women to your harem here in Susa, the capital city. Put them in the care of Hegai, the eunuch who is in charge of your women, and let them be given a beauty treatment. 4 Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place.”
The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.
5 There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei. 6 When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jehoiachin of Judah into exile from Jerusalem, along with a group of captives, Mordecai was among them. 7 He had a cousin, Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah; she was a beautiful young woman, and had a good figure. At the death of her parents, Mordecai had adopted her and brought her up as his own daughter.
8 When the king had issued his new proclamation and many young women were being brought to Susa, Esther was among them. She too was put in the royal palace in the care of Hegai, who had charge of the harem. 9 Hegai liked Esther, and she won his favor. He lost no time in beginning her beauty treatment of massage and special diet. He gave her the best place in the harem and assigned seven young women specially chosen from the royal palace to serve her.
10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish. 11 Every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem, in order to find out how she was getting along and what was going to happen to her.
12 The regular beauty treatment for the women lasted a year—massages with oil of myrrh for six months and with oil of balsam for six more. After that, each woman would be taken in turn to King Xerxes. 13 When she went from the harem to the palace, she could wear whatever she wanted. 14 She would go there in the evening, and the next morning she would be taken to another harem and put in the care of Shaashgaz, the eunuch in charge of the king's concubines. She would not go to the king again unless he liked her enough to ask for her by name.
15 The time came for Esther to go to the king. Esther—the daughter of Abihail and the cousin of Mordecai, who had adopted her as his daughter; Esther—admired by everyone who saw her. When her turn came, she wore just what Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the harem, advised her to wear. 16 So in Xerxes' seventh year as king, in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, Esther was brought to King Xerxes in the royal palace. 17 The king liked her more than any of the other women, and more than any of the others she won his favor and affection. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 Then the king gave a great banquet in Esther's honor and invited all his officials and administrators. He proclaimed a holiday for the whole empire and distributed gifts worthy of a king.
Mordecai Saves the King's Life
19 Meanwhile Mordecai had been appointed by the king to an administrative position. 20 As for Esther, she had still not let it be known that she was Jewish. Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone, and she obeyed him in this, just as she had obeyed him when she was a little girl under his care.
21 During the time that Mordecai held office in the palace, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the palace eunuchs who guarded the entrance to the king's rooms, became hostile to King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him. 22 Mordecai learned about it and told Queen Esther, who then told the king what Mordecai had found out. 23 There was an investigation, and it was discovered that the report was true, so both men were hanged on the gallows. The king ordered an account of this to be written down in the official records of the empire.
Esters ge ra gao-ao kai
1 Egab ge gao-aob Ahasverosi ǁaiba sī a ǁgôaxa, ob ge ǁîba Vastis ge dī ǃkhais xa tsî ǁîs ǂamab ge mā mîmās xa gere ǂâiǂâisen. 2 O gu ge gao-aob ǀapemā-aogu, ǁîb ǃoabas ǃnâ mâga ge mî: “Tare-i ǃaromats îxa oaxaede ôa kaibasen tama hâ? 3 Mâ ǀkharib gaosib hoab dib ǃnâts ge ǂamkhoega nî ǁgaumâi, î gu îxa oaxaede sa hâǃkhaib, tarekhoedi nî hâǃnâse ib ǃoa nēpa Susas ǃnâ hā-ū. ǁÎde Hegaib, ǂamkhoeb, sa tarekhoede ra mûǂammi di kōǃgâs ǃnaka hâ kai, î ǁîde anu-anuhe di nîse ǃgâihamǁnui-i ǀkha ǂkhauǀkhā. 4 ǁNās khaoǃgâ sats ǁîs xa nî ǃgâibahe ǂkham khoesa Vastis di soas ǃnâ gao-aodī.”
Gao-aob ge nē ǀapemās xa ǃgâibahe tsî ǁnāti ge dī.
5 Susas ǃnâb ge Jodeǁîb, Mordekai ti ǀon hâb, Jairi di ôab, Benjaminni di ǃhaos tsî Kisi tsî Simeib hâkha suriba xu hâba ge hâ i. 6 ǁÎb ge Babiloniab gao-aob Nebukadnesari xa ge Judab gao-aob Jojaginni ǀkha Jerusalemsa xu ǃkhōsabese ǃgû-ūhe khoen di ǀgui ge iba. 7 Mordekaib ge ǁîb omeb Aminadab ôas Esters, Hebregowab ǃnâ Hadassa ti ra ǀonǂgaihesa ge kaikai. ǁÎs ge îxa ǂkham khoes îxa sorosa ge ūhâ isa; ǁîs îra ǁōb khaoǃgâb ge Mordekaiba ǁîsa ǀgôase ūbasen tsî ge kaikai.
8 Gao-aob di ǀasa mîmās ge ǂanǂanhe, o di ge ǂgui ǂkham khoedi, Esters tsîn ǁîdi ǃnâ hâde Susas ǃoa ge hā-ūhe. ǁÎs tsîn ge gao-ommi ǃnâ Hegaib, gao-aob tarade gere ǃûib mûǂams ǃnaka ge ǁnāxūhe. 9 Hegaib ge Esters xa îxabahe tsî ge ǃgâibahe tsîb ge ǁnātimîsi îxa-îxas, ǃguris tsî ǀō-aisa ǂûmās tsîn ǀkha ge tsoatsoa. ǁÎb ge hû tarekhoedi gao-ommi dide ǁîsa di nî sîsenbase ge ǁgaumâi tsîb ge ǁîs tsî ǁîs sîsenaodi tsîna tarekhoedi hâǃkhaib ǃnâ ǂoaǂamsa ǃkhaib ai ge hâ kai.
10 Mordekaib ǀapemās ais ge Estersa Jodeǁîs a ǃkhais tsî tari-i suriba xus hâs tsîna ǂanǂan tama ge i. 11 Mâ tsēs hoasab ge Mordekaiba, Esters ǃgâise hâs tsî taren ǁîs ǀkha ra ī ǃkhaisab nî ǂanga hâǃkhaib di omǂnamib aiǃâ gere ǃgûma.
12 Mîǁguisa îxa-îxaǀgaub di sîsenni ǂkham khoedi dib ge disiǀgamǀa ǁkhâga gere dīhe. ǁÎdi ge ǃnani ǁkhâgu ǁaeba mire-oli-i ǀkha tsî sao ra ǃnani ǁkhâga ǃgâihamxūn ǀkha gere sopoǂgāhe. ǁNās khaoǃgâs ge mâ ǂkham khoes hoasa ǁîs di ǃnās gere hā, o gao-aob Ahasverosi ǁga gere ǃgû. 13 ǁÎs ge taradi hâǃkhaiba xus ge gao-omma ǃoa gere ǃgû, o ǁîs ra ǂgao xūn hoana gere māhe, îs ūsao. 14 ǁÎs ge ǃuia gao-ommi ǃnâ sī tsî nau ǁgoaga ǀnî hâǃkhaib taradi dib ǃoa gere ǃgû tsî ǁnāpa ǂamkhoeb Sasgab di mûǂams ǃnaka gere hâ. ǁÎs ge gao-aob ga ǁîsa ǁâ tama i tsîb ǁkhawa ǂgai si tama hâ, hîa ǁîb ǃoa ge ǃgû tama hâ i.
15 Esters, Abigaili, Mordekaib omeb ôas, Mordekaib xa ge ǁîb ôase ūhe tsî kaikaihes di ǁaeb, gao-aob tawas nî sīb ge ge ǀoa. ǁÎs ge hoa xūna Hegaib ge ǁîsa ǀapemā khami ǀgui ge dī tsî ǁîsa ge mû-i hoa-i ge ǁîs xa gere buru. 16 Hûǁî kurib gao-aob Ahasverosi dib ǃnâ, disiǁî ǁkhâb, Tebeti ǃnâs ge Estersa gao-ommi ǁga gao-aob ǃoa ge hā-ūhe. 17 ǁÎb ge Estersa nau taradi hoadi âb xa ǃnāsase ge ǀnam, ǁîb ge ǁîs xa nau ǂkham khoedi hoadi ǃgâ-ai ǃgâibahe tsî ǁîsa gao-aosi kronsa ǀgapa tsî Vastis ǃās ǃnâ ge gao-aodī. 18 Gao-aob ge kai ǂûǁaesa ǁîb ǂamkhoegu tsî ǁîb ǂhunuma ǃoabas ǃnâ mâ khoegu tsîna Esters ǃgôasib ǃaroma ge dība. ǁÎb ge ǁkhāti ǁgui-aimarina hoaraga gaosib ǃnâ ge ǀoroǀoro tsî ǀkhaexūna gao-aosi ǁkhāsib ǃoa ge ǀgoraǂui.
Mordekaib ge gao-aob ûiba ra sâu
19 Mordekaib ge ǁnā ǁaeb ǃnâ ǀgapi ǃharos ǃnâ gao-aob xa ge ǁgaumâihe hâ i. 20 Esters ge ganupe mâ suriba xus hâs tsî Jodeǁîs as tsîna ge ǂanǂan tama hâ i. Mordekaib ge ǁîsa ge mîba, îs tā ǀgui khoe-i tsîna ǁnāsa mîba. Tsîs ge ǁîba ǂkhams ge i tsî ǁîb mûǂams ǃnaka hâ i, os ge ǁîba ǁnâuǀnam i khami ge ǁnâuǀnam.
21 Gao-aob Ahasverosi ge Mordekaiba ǀgapi ǃharos ǃnâ ǁgaumâi, o kha ge gao-aob ǂhunuma ǂamkhoekha gao-ommi dao-aomde ra ǃûikha, Bigtanni tsî Teresi tsîkha kaise ǂkhîoǃnâ tsî gao-aoba kha nî ǃnariǃgam ǃkhaisa ge ǀapeǀhao. 22 Mordekaib ge nē ǃkhaisa ǁnâu tsî gao-aos Estersa ge ǂanǂan tsîs ge ǁîsa nē ǃkhaisa gao-aoba sī ge mîba. 23 Gao-aob ge nē ǃkhaisa ôaǃnâ tsî amas a ǃkhaisa ge ǂanǂui, tsî kha ge nē khoekha hoakha ǂgāhaib ai ge ǂgāmâihe. Gao-aob ge nē ǃkhaisa, ǀuruhes tidega ǂhanusi xoaǁguigu ǃnâ ge xoamâi kai.
