1 A nd it cometh to pass, in the days of Ahasuerus -- he Ahasuerus who is reigning from Hodu even unto Cush, seven and twenty and a hundred provinces --

Now it took place in the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces,

2 i n those days, at the sitting of the king Ahasuerus on the throne of his kingdom, that in Shushan the palace,

in those days as King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne which was at the citadel in Susa,

3 i n the third year of his reign, he hath made a banquet to all his heads and his servants; of the force of Persia and Media, the chiefs and heads of the provinces before him,

in the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his princes and attendants, the army officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the princes of his provinces being in his presence.

4 i n his shewing the wealth of the honour of his kingdom, and the glory of the beauty of his greatness, many days -- eighty and a hundred days.

And he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days.

5 A nd at the fulness of these days hath the king made to all the people who are found in Shushan the palace, from great even unto small, a banquet, seven days, in the court of the garden of the house of the king --

When these days were completed, the king gave a banquet lasting seven days for all the people who were present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace.

6 w hite linen, white cotton, and blue, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on rings of silver, and pillars of marble, couches of gold, and of silver, on a pavement of smaragdus, and white marble, and mother-of-pearl, and black marble --

There were hangings of fine white and violet linen held by cords of fine purple linen on silver rings and marble columns, and couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and precious stones.

7 a nd the giving of drink in vessels of gold, and the vessels divers vessels, and the royal wine abundant, as a memorial of the king.

Drinks were served in golden vessels of various kinds, and the royal wine was plentiful according to the king’s bounty.

8 A nd the drinking according to law, none is pressing, for so hath the king appointed for every chief one of his house, to do according to the pleasure of man and man.

The drinking was done according to the law, there was no compulsion, for so the king had given orders to each official of his household that he should do according to the desires of each person.

9 A lso Vashti the queen hath made a banquet for women, in the royal house that the king Ahasuerus hath.

Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the palace which belonged to King Ahasuerus. Queen Vashti’s Refusal

10 O n the seventh day, as the heart of the king is glad with wine, he hath said to Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven eunuchs who are ministering in the presence of the king Ahasuerus,

On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar and Carkas, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus,

11 t o bring in Vashti the queen before the king, with a royal crown, to shew the peoples and the heads her beauty, for she of good appearance,

to bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal crown in order to display her beauty to the people and the princes, for she was beautiful.

12 a nd the queen Vashti refuseth to come in at the word of the king that by the hand of the eunuchs, and the king is very wroth, and his fury hath burned in him.

But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command delivered by the eunuchs. Then the king became very angry and his wrath burned within him.

13 A nd the king saith to wise men, knowing the times -- for so the word of the king before all knowing law and judgment,

Then the king said to the wise men who understood the times—for it was the custom of the king so to speak before all who knew law and justice

14 a nd he who is near unto him Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, Memucan, seven heads of Persia and Media seeing the face of the king, who are sitting first in the kingdom --

and were close to him: Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media who had access to the king’s presence and sat in the first place in the kingdom—

15 ` According to law, what -- to do with queen Vashti, because that she hath not done the saying of the king Ahasuerus by the hand of the eunuchs?'

“According to law, what is to be done with Queen Vashti, because she did not obey the command of King Ahasuerus delivered by the eunuchs?”

16 A nd Memucan saith before the king and the heads, `Not against the king by himself hath Vashti the queen done perversely, but against all the heads, and against all the peoples that in all provinces of the king Ahasuerus;

In the presence of the king and the princes, Memucan said, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king but also all the princes and all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus.

17 f or go forth doth the word of the queen unto all the women, to render their husbands contemptible in their eyes, in their saying, The king Ahasuerus said to bring in Vashti the queen before him, and she did not come;

For the queen’s conduct will become known to all the women causing them to look with contempt on their husbands by saying, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought in to his presence, but she did not come.’

18 y ea, this day do princesses of Persia and Media, who have heard the word of the queen, say to all heads of the king, even according to the sufficiency of contempt and wrath.

This day the ladies of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s conduct will speak in the same way to all the king’s princes, and there will be plenty of contempt and anger.

19 ` If to the king good, there goeth forth a royal word from before him, and it is written with the laws of Persia and Media, and doth not pass away, that Vashti doth not come in before the king Ahasuerus, and her royalty doth the king give to her companion who better than she;

If it pleases the king, let a royal edict be issued by him and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media so that it cannot be repealed, that Vashti may no longer come into the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king give her royal position to another who is more worthy than she.

20 a nd the sentence of the king that he maketh hath been heard in all his kingdom -- for it great -- and all the wives give honour to their husbands, from great even unto small.'

When the king’s edict which he will make is heard throughout all his kingdom, great as it is, then all women will give honor to their husbands, great and small.”

21 A nd the thing is good in the eyes of the king, and of the princes, and the king doth according to the word of Memucan,

This word pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed.

22 a nd sendeth letters unto all provinces of the king, unto province and province according to its writing, and unto people and people according to its tongue, for every man being head in his own house -- and speaking according to the language of his people.

So he sent letters to all the king’s provinces, to each province according to its script and to every people according to their language, that every man should be the master in his own house and the one who speaks in the language of his own people.