Esther 3

¹ Shortly afterwards, King Ahasuerus singled out Haman son of Hammedatha, from the land of Agag,[*a] for promotion. He raised him in rank and precedence above all his colleagues, the other officers of state,

² and gave orders that all the officials employed at the Chancellery were to bow down and prostrate themselves before Haman. Mordecai refused either to bow or prostrate himself.

³ ‘Why do you flout the royal command?’ the officials of the Chancellery asked Mordecai.

⁴ They asked him this day after day, but he took no notice of them. In the end they reported the matter to Haman, wishing to see whether Mordecai would persist in his attitude, since he had told them he was a Jew.

⁵ When Haman had seen for himself that Mordecai did not bow or prostrate himself before him, he was seized with fury.

⁶ Having been told what race Mordecai belonged to, he could not be content with murdering Mordecai but made up his mind to wipe out all the members of Mordecai’s race, the Jews, throughout the empire of Ahasuerus.

⁷ In the first month, that is the month of Nisan, of the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast the pur (that is, the lot) before Haman for the day and the month. The lot falling on the twelfth month, which is Adar,

⁸ Haman said to King Ahasuerus, ‘There is a certain unassimilated nation scattered among the other nations throughout the provinces of your realm; their laws are different from those of all the other nations and they ignore the royal edicts; hence it is not in the king’s interests to tolerate them.

⁹ If it please the king to decree their destruction, I am prepared to pay ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s receivers, to be credited to the royal treasury.’

¹⁰ The king then took his signet ring off his hand and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the persecutor of the Jews.

¹¹ ‘Keep the money,’ he said ‘and you can have the people too; do what you like with them.’

¹² Then on the thirteenth day of the first month the royal scribes were summoned, and copies were made of the orders addressed by Haman to the king’s satraps, to the governors ruling each province and to the principal officials of each people, to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language. The edict was signed in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with his ring,

¹³ and letters were sent by runners to every province of the realm ordering the destruction, slaughter and annihilation of all Jews, young and old, women and children, on the one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is Adar, and the seizing of their possessions.

¹⁴ The text of this decree, to be promulgated as law in each province, was published to the various peoples, so that each might be ready for the day aforementioned.

¹⁵ At the king’s command, the runners set out with all speed; the decree was first promulgated in the citadel of Susa. While the king and Haman gave themselves up to feasting and drinking, consternation reigned in the city of Susa.