Esther 7

¹ The king and Haman went to Queen Esther's banquet,

² and this second day, during the banquet, the king again said to Esther, 'Tel me your request, QueenEsther. I grant it to you. Whatever you want; even if it is half my kingdom, it is yours for the asking.'

³ 'If I have found favour in your eyes, O king,' Queen Esther replied, 'and if it please your majesty, grantme my life -- that is my request; and the lives of my people -- that is what I want.

⁴ For we have been handed over, my people and I, to destruction, slaughter and annihilation; had wemerely been sold as slaves and servant-girls, I should not have said anything; but in the present case, it wil bebeyond the persecutor's means to make good the loss that the king is about to sustain.'

⁵ King Ahasuerus interrupted Queen Esther, 'Who is this man?' he exclaimed. 'Where is the man who hasthought of doing such a thing?'

⁶ Esther replied, 'The persecutor, the enemy? Why, this wretch Haman!' Haman quaked with terror in thepresence of the king and queen.

⁷ In a rage the king got up from the banquet and went into the palace garden; while Haman, realising thatthe king was determined on his ruin, stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life.

⁸ When the king came back from the palace garden into the banqueting hal , he found Haman sprawledacross the couch where Esther was reclining. 'What!' the king exclaimed. 'Is he going to rape the queen in myown palace?' The words were scarcely out of his mouth than a veil was thrown over Haman's face.

⁹ In the royal presence, Harbona, one of the officers, said, 'There is that fifty-cubit gal ows, too, whichHaman ran up for Mordecai, who spoke up to the king's great advantage. It is al ready at his house.' 'Hang himon it,' said the king.

¹⁰ So Haman was hanged on the gal ows which he had erected for Mordecai, and the king's wrathsubsided.