Ester ma rire ombara oserekaze
1 Kombunda omazenge wombara Kerkes tji ya wa pehi, eye wa kara pokuripura na imbi Vasṱi mbya tjita, na indi erakiza nda yandja ohunga naye. 2 Ovayandjandunge tjiva vombara mbaa ve kara puna yo aruhe, va tja nai: “Okutjavi tji u hi nokupaha ovasukona tjiva ovawa omitanda mbe hiya hakaena novarumendu? 3 Ove mo yenene okutoorora ovahongore morukondwa aruhe rouhona woye, nokuverakiza kutja ve ete ovasukona avehe imba ovawa omitanda mbe hiya hakaena novarumendu kondjuwo yoye yovakazendu muno mOsusa, motjihuro ohongora. Ve twa kehi yondjeverero ya Hegai, omukarere woye ombondo ngu tjevera ovakazendu voye, nu u tjite kutja ve ṱunwe ve rire ovawa ovamanise mombunikiro. 4 Tjazumba kambura omusukona ngu wa huru, nu u mu zike a rire ombara oserekaze moruveze rwa Vasṱi.”
Ombara ya muna kutja ondunge ndji ombwa notji ya tjita nao.
5 MOsusa mwa turire Omujuda wena Mordekai, omuzandu wa Jair; eye wa ri owomuhoko wa Benjamin, nu wa ri ondekurona ya Kis na Simi. 6 Nebukadnesar, ombara ya Babilon, tja twara Jojakin, ombara ya Juda, mouhuura okuza kOjerusalem puna ovahuurwa ovakwao, Mordekai tjandje u ri mokati kawo. 7 Mordekai wa ri nomuramwe wena Ester, ngwa ri Hadasa mOtjiheberi; Ester wa ri omusukona omuwa omumanise, nu wa tungirwe nawa, nu wari nomuseka omuwa. Ovanene va Ester tji va ṱa, Mordekai otje mu isa po omuatje we omuini ne mu kurisa.
8 Ombara tji ya za nokutjivisa omaraerero wayo, novasukona ovengi tji va etwa kotjihuro Susa, Ester tjandje nao u ri mokati kawo. Eye wina wa yakurwa mondjuwo youhona okukara kehi yondjeverero ya Hegai, ngwaa ṱakamisa ondjuwo yovakazendu. 9 Hegai wa tjaterwa i Ester, nu Ester a munu ondjingonekero mu ye. Eye wa hakahana okuṱunina Ester omariro omawa, noviṋa vye vyoukohoke vyokurivava, e mu pe oruveze oruwaruwa mondjuwo yovakazendu, na ziki ovasukona hambombari mba toororwa mondjuwo youhona kutja ve mu karere.
10 Nambano, otja kondunge ya Mordekai, Ester we rihorekere kutja eye Omujuda. 11 Eyuva arihe Mordekai aa ryangere pomurungu wondjuwo yovakazendu, a tjiwe kutja Ester u penduka vi, nokutja u ṱunwa vi.
12 Omaṱunino wokupwa kwovakazendu aa ku kara oure wombura imwe; omavavero womaze womira ya ri oure womieze hamboumwe, nu inga womaze womapya ya ri oure womieze omikwao hamboumwe. Kombunda yanao ovasukona otjaa ve hitisiwa mondjuwo yomara yombara Kerkes okukongorerasana koumweumwe. 13 Omusukona auhe tji ma zu kondjuwo yovakazendu okuyenda kondjuwo youhona aa zara ombanda ngamwa aihe ndji ma vanga. 14 Eye aa i ngo ongurova, nomuhuka wependukirwa aa twarewa kondjuwo yarwe yovakazendu na katuwa kehi yondjeverero ya Saasgas, omukarere ombondo, ngu tjevera ovakazendu ovambanda vombara. Eye kaa i kombara rukwao posi yaindu ombara tji ye mu vanga tjinene nai nga tji mai mu isana kena.
15 Oruveze rwa Ester rwokuyenda kombara arire tji rweya. Ester, omusuko wa Abihail, nu ngwa ri omuramwe wa Mordekai, ngwe mu isire po omuatje we ne mu kurisa, wa ingonekerwe i avehe mbe mu muna. Otjikando tje tjokuyenda kombara tji tje ya, Ester tjandje wa zara imbi Hegai, omukarere ombondo, omutjevere wondjuwo yovakazendu, mbye mu raere kutja a zare. 16 Mombura oitjahambombari youhona wombara Kerkes, momueze outjamurongo Tebet, Ester otja etwa kombara Kerkes mondjuwo youhona. 17 Ombara arire tji ya huru Ester tjinene povasukona avehe ovakwao, neye wa muna ondjingonekero nonyuṋe komurungu wombara povakwao avehe. Oyo ya twa ekori rouhona kotjiuru tja Ester, nai mu ziki kutja a rire ombara oserekaze moruveze rwa Vasṱi. 18 Tjazumba ombara otji ya tjitira Ester omukandi omunene okuyandja ondjozikiro ku ye, nai ṋanga ovahongore novanane vayo ozohongora. Oyo ya ravaera eyuva rondjoroka mouhona wayo auhe, nai haṋa oviyandjewa mbya pwa pokuyandjewa i ombara.
Mordekai ma yama omuinyo wombara
19 Tjandje moruveze ndwi Mordekai wa zikwa i ombara motjiungura tjounane. 20 Nu Ester nga nai ke na pa tjivisire kutja eye Omujuda. Mordekai wa raerere Ester kutja a ha serekarere otjiṋa hi kovandu. Neye wa kara nonḓuviro ku Mordekai okuza kouṱiṱi we.
21 Moruveze ndwi Mordekai ngunda e ri motjiungura tjondjuwo youhona, Bigtan na Teres, ovakarere ozombondo vondjuwo youhona mbaa ve tjevere omahitiro womatuwo wombara, otji va rira ovanavita nombara Kerkes, nave rikutu kumwe kutja ve mu zepe. 22 Mordekai wa tjiza otjiṋa hi ne tji serekarere kombara oserekaze Ester; nu Ester wa serekarera kombara imbi mbya raerwa i Mordekai. 23 Nu pa tjitwa omakonḓononeno, nu ape munika kutja omaserekarerero nga owo ouatjiri. Ovarumendu mba aveyevari arire tji va turikwa komuti. Ombara ya rakiza kutja omahungi wovitjitwa mbi ye tjangwe mOmatjangwa wOmbara.
Esther Becomes Queen
1 After a while, King Xerxes got over being angry. But he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and the law that he had written because of her. 2 Then the king's personal servants said:
Your Majesty, a search must be made to find you some beautiful young women. 3 You can select officers in every province to bring them to the place where you keep your wives in the capital city of Susa. Put your servant Hegai in charge of them since that is his job. He can see to it that they are given the proper beauty treatments. 4 Then let the young woman who pleases you most take Vashti's place as queen.
King Xerxes liked these suggestions, and he followed them.
5 At this time a Jew named Mordecai was living in Susa. His father was Jair, and his grandfather Shimei was the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. 6 Kish was one of the people that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem, when he took King Jeconiah of Judah to Babylonia.
7 Mordecai had a very beautiful cousin named Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah. He had raised her as his own daughter, after her father and mother died. 8 When the king ordered the search for beautiful women, many were taken to the king's palace in Susa, and Esther was one of them.
Hegai was put in charge of all the women, 9 and from the first day, Esther was his favorite. He began her beauty treatments at once. He also gave her plenty of food and seven special maids from the king's palace, and they had the best rooms.
10 Mordecai had warned Esther not to tell anyone that she was a Jew, and she obeyed him. 11 He was anxious to see how Esther was getting along and to learn what had happened to her. So each day he would walk back and forth in front of the court where the women lived.
12 The young women were given beauty treatments for one whole year. The first six months their skin was rubbed with olive oil and myrrh, and the last six months it was treated with perfumes and cosmetics. Then each of them spent the night alone with King Xerxes. 13 When a young woman went to the king, she could wear whatever clothes or jewelry she chose from the women's living quarters. 14 In the evening she would go to the king, and the following morning she would go to the place where his wives stayed after being with him. There a man named Shaashgaz was in charge of the king's wives. Only the ones the king wanted and asked for by name could go back to the king.
15-16 Xerxes had been king for seven years when Esther's turn came to go to him during Tebeth, the tenth month of the year. Everyone liked Esther. The king's personal servant Hegai was in charge of the women, and Esther trusted Hegai and asked him what she ought to take with her.
17 Xerxes liked Esther more than he did any of the other young women. None of them pleased him as much as she did, and he immediately fell in love with her and crowned her queen in place of Vashti. 18 In honor of Esther he gave a big dinner for his leaders and officials. Then he declared a holiday everywhere in his kingdom and gave expensive gifts.
Mordecai Saves the King's Life
19 When the young women were brought together again, Esther's cousin Mordecai had become a palace official. 20 He had told Esther never to tell anyone that she was a Jew, and she obeyed him, just as she had always done.
21 Bigthana and Teresh were the two men who guarded King Xerxes' rooms, but they got angry with the king and decided to kill him. 22 Mordecai found out about their plans and asked Queen Esther to tell the king what he had found out. 23 King Xerxes learned that Mordecai's report was true, and he had the two men hanged. Then the king had all of this written down in his record book as he watched.
