Esther 3:13

And letters, asealed with the ring of the king, were sent by the couriers of the king to all his provinces, (with orders) that they should slay, and do away, or destroy, all Jews, from a child to an eld man, little children and women, in one day, that is, in the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, that is called Adar, or March; and that they should (also) take away the goods of the Jews. (And letters, sealed with the king’s ring, (that is, with his signet), were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces, with orders that the people should kill, and destroy, all the Jews, from a child unto an old man, women and children alike, in one day, that is, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, that is called Adar, (or March); and that they should also take away all the possessions of the Jews.)

Wycliffe Modern Spelling

In The King James Version

And the letters were sent by posts into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey.

In Context

12And then the scribes, or the writers, of the king were called in the first month of Nisan, that is, April, in the thirteenth day of the same month; and it was written, as Haman had commanded, to all the princes of the king, and to doomsmen of diverse provinces and of folks, that for diversity of language, each folk might read these letters and hear them, in the name of king Ahasuerus. (And then the writers of the king were called on the thirteenth day of the first month, that is called Nisan, or April; and it was written, as Haman had commanded, to all the king’s princes, or leaders, and to the judges, or rulers, of diverse provinces and nations, so that in their own language, each nation might read these letters and hear them, in the name of King Ahasuerus.)

14And the sentence of the letters was this, written in a few words, that all (the peoples of the) provinces should know (about), and make them (selves) ready, to the foresaid day. (And so in a few words, the sentence of the letters was this, that all the people of the provinces should know about, and prepare themselves for, the coming day of death and destruction.)

Read all of Esther 3

Cross References

1 Samuel 22:19Forsooth he smote Nob (or And then he struck Nob), the city of the priests, by the sharpness of (the) sword, men and women, little children and (those) sucking, and ox, and ass, and sheep, (all) by the sharpness of (the) sword.

Esther 7:4For I and my people be given, that we be defouled, and strangled, and that we perish; O! why not had we rather been sold into servants and servantesses, for that evil might have been suffered, and I, (now) wailing, should have been still; but now our enemy is present, whose cruelty turneth against the king. (For I and my people have been sold (into slaughter), so that we be strangled, and destroyed, and that we utterly perish; O why had we (rather) not been sold into slavery! yea, both men and women alike, for that evil might have been endured, and I, instead of wailing, would now be silent; and even now our enemy is (present here), and his cruelty turneth against even the king.)

Esther 8:10And those letters, that were sent in the name of the king, were asealed with his ring, and were sent forth by his messengers, the which ran about by all provinces, and they came with [the] new messages before that the eld letters were executed.

Esther 9:1Therefore in the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which we said now before to be called Adar, ( that is, March), when slaying was made ready to all the Jews by Haman, and their enemies setted treason to their blood, on the contrary, the Jews now began to be the higher part, and to venge them (selves) of their adversaries. (And so on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which earlier we said was called Adar, or March, when their enemies had intended slaughter for all the Jews, and had set treason for their blood, now, on the contrary, the Jews took the upper hand, to avenge themselves on their adversaries.)

Job 9:25My days were swifter than a courier; they fled away, and saw not good.

Jeremiah 51:31A runner shall come to meet a runner, and a messenger (shall come) to meet a messenger, to tell to the king of Babylon, that his city is taken from the one end till to the tother end;

Matthew Henry on Esther 3:8-15

Haman Obtains Leave to Slay the Jews. ( b. c. 510.) 7 In the first month, that is, the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of king Ahasuerus, they cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day, and from month to month, to the twelfth month, that is, the month Adar. 8 And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus, There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom; and their laws are diverse from all people; neither keep they the king's laws: therefore it is… Read the whole commentary →

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Study Esther 3:13