Esther 2:3

We think you should pick leaders from every part of Persia to bring those young women here to Susa. When they get here, they can go and live where all the king's women live. Give those young women to Hegai, he is the one who looks after all the king's women. And he can make sure those young women have all sorts of baths and are rubbed with nice smelling oils to make them look beautiful for the king.

Barkly (portions)

In The King James Version

And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women unto the custody of Hege the king’s chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them:

In Context

2Zerk-sees' helpers said to the king, “We think that you should send men everywhere to find beautiful young women that have never been to bed with a man. Your workers can bring them back here to be second wives for you and live in your palace. Then you can pick one of them to be your new queen.

4And then you can pick the woman you like the best and make her the queen instead of Vashti.” The king liked the idea and so that is what he did.

Read all of Esther 2

Cross References

Esther 2:5Many years before this time, King Neb-you-cad-nezzar (Nebuchadnezzar), the king of Babylon, grabbed Jehoi-achin the king of Judah and a lot of other Jewish people who were living in Jerusalem. Then he took them all back to Babylon as prisoners. Later on, the Persian army beat the Babylonian army and took all the Babylonian country and people for themselves. That is why there were Jewish people living in Persia. There was a Jewish man from the Benjamin tribe named More-dek-eye (Mordecai) who lived in the part of Susa that had really strong walls. More-dek-eye's father's name was Jair, his grandfather's name was Shim-eye and his great grandfather's name was Kish. And Kish was one of the people who was taken from Jerusalem as a prisoner by Neb-you-cad-nezzer, the king of Babylon.

Esther 2:12Every one of the young women had to have a lot of nice things done to her for 12 months so that she was ready to meet the king. So, for 6 months she rubbed her body with a special smelling oil. And then for the next 6 months they gave her other nice smelling oils and perfumes to put on her body.

Matthew Henry on Esther 2:2-21

Esther's Advancement; Esther Chosen Queen. ( b. c. 514.) 1 After these things, when the wrath of king Ahasuerus was appeased, he remembered Vashti, and what she had done, and what was decreed against her. 2 Then said the king's servants that ministered unto him, Let there be fair young virgins sought for the king: 3 And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women, unto the custody of… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Esther 2:3