TRV
Translation
King James Version
And said, If it please the king, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing seem right before the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews which are in all the king's provinces:
KJV (with Strong's)
And said H559, If it please H2896 the king H4428, and if I have found H4672 favour H2580 in his sight H6440, and the thing H1697 seem right H3787 before H6440 the king H4428, and I be pleasing H2896 in his eyes H5869, let it be written H3789 to reverse H7725 the letters H5612 devised H4284 by Haman H2001 the son H1121 of Hammedatha H4099 the Agagite H91, which he wrote H3789 to destroy H6 the Jews H3064 which are in all the king's H4428 provinces H4082:
Complete Jewish Bible
She said, "If it pleases the king, if I have won his favor, if the matter seem right to the king and if I have his approval, then let an order be written rescinding the letters devised by Haman the son of Hamdata the Agagi, which he wrote to destroy the Jews in all the royal provinces.
Berean Standard Bible
“If it pleases the king,” she said, “and if I have found favor in his sight, and the matter seems proper to the king, and I am pleasing in his sight, may an order be written to revoke the letters that the scheming Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces.
American Standard Version
And she said, If it please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and the thing seem right before the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews that are in all the king’s provinces:
World English Bible Messianic
She said, “If it pleases the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and the thing seem right to the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces.
Geneva Bible (1599)
And sayd, If it please the King, and if I haue found fauour in his sight, and the thing be acceptable before the King, and I please him, let it be written, that the letters of the deuice of Haman the sonne of Ammedatha the Agagite may be called againe, which he wrote to destroy the Iewes, that are in all the Kings prouinces.
Young's Literal Translation
and saith, `If to the king it be good, and if I have found grace before him, and the thing hath been right before the king, and I be good in his eyes, let it be written to bring back the letters--a device of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite--that he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all provinces of the king,
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In the KJVVerse 12,823 of 31,102
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Commentary on Esther 8 verses 3–14
3 ¶ And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews.
4 Then the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king,
5 And said, If it please the king, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing seem right before the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews which are in all the king's provinces:
6 For how can I endure to see the evil that shall come unto my people? or how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred?
7 Then the king Ahasuerus said unto Esther the queen and to Mordecai the Jew, Behold, I have given Esther the house of Haman, and him they have hanged upon the gallows, because he laid his hand upon the Jews.
8 Write ye also for the Jews, as it liketh you, in the king's name, and seal it with the king's ring: for the writing which is written in the king's name, and sealed with the king's ring, may no man reverse.
9 Then were the king's scribes called at that time in the third month, that is, the month Sivan, on the three and twentieth day thereof; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded unto the Jews, and to the lieutenants, and the deputies and rulers of the provinces which are from India unto Ethiopia, an hundred twenty and seven provinces, unto every province according to the writing thereof, and unto every people after their language, and to the Jews according to their writing, and according to their language.
10 And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus' name, and sealed it with the king's ring, and sent letters by posts on horseback, and riders on mules, camels, and young dromedaries:
11 Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey,
12 Upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus, namely, upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar.
13 The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published unto all people, and that the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies.
14 So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out, being hastened and pressed on by the king's commandment. And the decree was given at Shushan the palace.
Haman, the chief enemy of the Jews, was hanged, Mordecai and Esther, their chief friends, were sufficiently protected; but many others there were in the king's dominions that hated the Jews and desired their ruin, and to their rage and malice all the rest of that people lay exposed; for the edict against them was still in force, and, in pursuance of it, their enemies would on the day appointed fall upon them, and they would be deemed as rebels against the king and his government if they should offer to resist and take up arms in their own defence. For the preventing of this,
I. The queen here makes intercession with much affection and importunity. She came, a second time, uncalled into the king's presence (Est 8:3), and was as before encouraged to present her petition, by the king's holding out the golden sceptre to her, Est 8:4. Her petition is that the king, having put away Haman, would put away the mischief of Haman and his device against the Jews, that that might not take place now that he was taken off. Many a man's mischief survives him, and the wickedness he devised operates when he is gone. What men project and write may, after their death, be either very profitable or very pernicious. It was therefore requisite in this case that, for the defeating of Haman's plot, they should apply to the king for a further act of grace, that by another edict he would reverse the letters devised by Haman, and which he wrote (she does not say which the king consented to and confirmed with his own seal; she leaves it to his own conscience to say that), by which he took an effectual course to destroy the Jews in all the king's provinces, Est 8:5. If the king were indeed, as he seemed to be, troubled that such a decree was made, he could not do less than revoke it; for what is repentance, but undoing, to the utmost of our power, what we have done amiss? 1. This petition Esther presents with much affection: She fell down at the king's feet and besought him with tears (Est 8:3), every tear as precious as any of the pearls with which she was adorned. It was time to be earnest when the church of God lay at stake. Let none be so great as to be unwilling to stoop, none so merry as to be unwilling to weep, when thereby they may do any service to God's church and people. Esther, though safe herself, fell down, and begged with tears for the deliverance of her people. 2. She expresses it with great submission, and a profound deference to the king and his wisdom and will (Est 8:5): If it please the king and if I have found favour in his sightand again, "If the thing itself seem right and reasonable before the king, and if I that ask it be pleasing in his eyes, let the decree be reversed." Even when we have the utmost reason and justice on our side, and have the clearest cause to plead, yet it becomes us to speak to our superiors with humility and modesty, and all possible expressions of respect, and not to talk like demandants when we are supplicants. There is nothing lost be decency and good breeding. As soft answers turn away wrath, so soft askings obtain favour. 3. She enforces her petition with a pathetic plea: "For how can I endure to see the evil that shall come upon my people? Little comfort can I have of my own life if I cannot prevail for theirs: as good share in the evil myself as see it come upon them; for how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred, that are dear to me?" Esther, a queen, owns her poor kindred, and speaks of them with a very tender concern. Now it was that she mingled her tears with her words, that she wept and made supplication; we read of no tears when she begged for her own life, but, now that she was sure of that, she wept for her people. Tears of pity and tenderness are the most Christ-like. Those that are truly concerned for the public would rather die in the last ditch than live to see the desolations of the church of God and the ruin of their country. Tender spirits cannot bear to think of the destruction of their people and kindred, and therefore dare not omit any opportunity of giving them relief.
II. The king here takes a course for the preventing of the mischief that Haman had designed. 1. The king knew, and informed the queen, that, according to the constitution of the Persian government, the former edict could not be revoked (Est 8:8): What is written in the king's name, and sealed with the king's ring, may not, under any pretence whatsoever, be reversed. This was a fundamental article of their magna charta, that no law or decree, when once it had passed the royal assent, could be repealed or recalled, no judgment vacated, no attainder reversed, Dan 6:15. This is so far from bespeaking the wisdom and honour of the Medes and Persians that really it bespeaks their pride and folly, and consequently their shame. It is ridiculous in itself for any man, or company of men, to pretend to such an infallibility of wisdom as to foresee all the consequences of what they decree; and therefore it is unjust, and injurious to mankind, to claim such a supremacy of power as to make their decrees irrevocable, whether the consequences prove good or bad. This savours of that old presumption which ruined us all: We will be as gods. Much more prudent is that proviso of our constitution, that no law can, by any words or sanctions whatsoever, be made unrepealable, any more than any estate unalienable. Cujus est instruere, ejus est destruere - the right to enact implies the right to repeal. It is God's prerogative not to repent, and to say what can never be altered or unsaid. 2. Yet he found an expedient to undo the devices of Haman, and defeat his design, by signing and publishing another decree to authorize the Jews to stand upon their defence, vim vi repellere, et invasorem occidere - to oppose force to force, and destroy the assailant. This would be their effectual security. The king shows them that he had done enough already to convince them that he had a concern for the Jewish nation, for he had ordered his favourite to be hanged because he laid his hand upon the Jews (Est 8:7), and he therefore would d the utmost he could to protect them; and he leaves it as fully with Esther and Mordecai to use his name and power for their deliverance as before he had left it with Haman to use his name and power for their destruction: "Write for the Jews as it liketh you (Est 8:8), saving only the honour of our constitution. Let the mischief be put away as effectually as may be without reversing the letters." The secretaries of state were ordered to attend to draw up this edict on the twenty-third day of the third month (Est 8:9), about two months after the promulgation of the former, but nine months before the time set for its execution: it was to be drawn up and published in the respective languages of all the provinces. Shall the subjects of an earthly prince have his decrees in a language they understand? and shall God's oracles and laws be locked up from his servants in an unknown tongue? It was to be directed to the proper officers of every province, both to the justices of peace and to the deputy-lieutenants. It was to be carefully dispersed throughout all the king's dominions, and true copies sent by expresses to all the provinces. The purport of this decree was to commission the Jews, upon the day which was appointed for their destruction, to draw together in a body for their own defence. And, (1.) To stand for their life, that, whoever assaulted them, it might be at their peril. (2.) They might not only act defensively, but might destroy, and slay, and cause to perish, all the power of the people that would assault them, men, women, and children (Est 8:11), and thus to avenge themselves on their enemies (Est 8:13), and, if they pleased, to enrich themselves by their enemies, for they were empowered to take the spoil of them for a prey. Now, [1.] This showed his kindness to the Jews, and sufficiently provided for their safety; for he latter decree would be looked upon as a tacit revocation of the former, though not in expression. But, [2.] It shows the absurdity of that branch of their constitution that none of the king's edicts might be repealed; for it laid the king here under a necessity of enacting a civil war in his own dominions, between the Jews and their enemies, so that both sides took up arms by his authority, and yet against his authority. No better could come of men's pretending to be wise above what is given them. Great expedition was used in dispersing this decree, the king himself being in pain lest it should come too late and any mischief should be done to the Jews by virtue of the former decree before the notice of this arrived. It was therefore by the king's commandment, as well as Mordecai's, that the messengers were hastened and pressed on (Est 8:14), and had swift beasts provided them, Est 8:10. It was not a time to trifle when so many lives were in danger.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 3–14. Public domain.
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Rabanus MaurusAD 856
EXPLANATION ON THE BOOK OF ESTHER 11
The fact that Esther falls at the feet of the king and entreats him for the salvation of the people plainly symbolizes the holy church that humbly implores the almighty Lord every day for the rescue of her children through the faith and the mystery of the incarnation of the only begotten Son, so that the arrogance of her enemies may be restrained by the (Lord’s) grace, and the innocence of the faithful may be freed from the clutches of the (wicked). The heavenly king holds out his golden scepter to the pleading queen because he abundantly bestows the clemency of his mercy upon her. She asks that the old decree of the most wicked Haman may be changed into a new decree. Indeed this is the interest of the true queen, namely that any sect that is in error, any hostile plot which the ancient enemy prepares through his ministers for the extinction of the people of God, may be repelled and destroyed through the saving documents of the gospel.
Rabanus MaurusAD 856
Commentary on Esther
So when Esther falls at the feet of the king and beseeches him for the sake of her people, this must refer to the fact that every day the holy Church humbly petitions the Lord Almighty—through the faith and mysteries of the incarnate, only-born Son of God—to free her children so that through his grace, the arrogance of the enemy might be crushed and the innocence of the faithful be freed from their hands. The supreme king holds out his golden scepter toward the queen as she pleads with him, because he is lavishing on her the mercy of his righteousness. She asks that the earlier letters of the wicked Haman be replaced with new instructions, because it is the fervent wish of the new queen that the followers of every error in doctrine, and all the hostile machinations with which the ancient enemy tried through its agents to exterminate the people of God, should be rejected and destroyed by the thoroughly salutary writings of the Gospels. The letters themselves are written in the name of the king and then sealed with his ring, because the teaching of the Gospels—which are preached throughout the world in the name of Christ—are declared everywhere to be confirmed by the seal of the Holy Spirit, since the preachers themselves, who are filled with its gift, seem to everyone to be undefeatable in their unflagging strength and to remain ever glorious and triumphant over their enemies.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Esther 8:5 captures Queen Esther's profoundly diplomatic and urgent petition to King Ahasuerus, seeking to reverse the devastating decree orchestrated by Haman, which threatened the annihilation of all Jews across the Persian Empire. Despite Haman's execution, the legal framework for the genocide remained active, necessitating Esther's courageous and strategic appeal. Her repeated expressions of humility and reliance on the king's favor underscore the absolute nature of his authority and the critical need for his direct intervention to avert catastrophe, marking a pivotal moment in the narrative's shift from impending doom to the hope of deliverance.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The passage is rich in Diplomatic Language and Repetition, particularly of phrases emphasizing Esther's deference to the king's will ("If it please the king," "if I have found favour," "if I be pleasing in his eyes"). This repetition is not merely stylistic; it underscores the absolute power of the Persian monarch and Esther's astute understanding of court protocol. It highlights her vulnerability and the strategic necessity of humility in approaching such authority, demonstrating her wisdom in navigating a perilous situation. There is also a strong element of Irony in the request to "reverse" Haman's letters, given the supposed irrevocability of Persian law. This sets up the narrative tension that will be resolved by the king's creative solution in the subsequent verses, demonstrating that while the letter of the law might be unchangeable, its practical effect can be circumvented by a new, countermanding decree. The mention of "Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite" serves as a powerful Allusion to the ancient enmity between Israel and Amalek, imbuing the conflict with historical and theological weight, connecting Haman's personal vendetta to a long-standing spiritual battle.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Esther 8:5 is a profound testament to the theme of divine providence working through human agency. While God's name is conspicuously absent from the book of Esther, His sovereign hand is undeniably at play, orchestrating the reversal of an evil decree through the courageous and wise actions of Esther. This verse demonstrates that even when a situation seems legally immutable or hopelessly dire, God can raise up individuals and inspire creative solutions to deliver His people. It highlights the principle that evil plots, though meticulously "devised" by human hands, are ultimately subject to the greater purposes of God, who can turn the enemy's schemes back upon themselves. The plea for "favour" and "rightness" also subtly appeals to a higher moral order, suggesting that even earthly kings are, at times, moved by a sense of justice that aligns with divine principles, hinting at a transcendent righteousness.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Esther's approach to King Ahasuerus in Esther 8:5 offers a powerful paradigm for believers facing seemingly insurmountable obstacles. It teaches us the profound importance of strategic, humble, and persistent petitioning, whether to earthly authorities or to God Himself. Esther did not rely on her past achievements or newfound status but approached the king with deep respect for his authority and an earnest appeal to his favor and sense of justice. This reminds us that even after a significant victory (Haman's downfall), the battle for complete deliverance may continue, requiring sustained courage and diplomatic wisdom. It underscores the truth that God often works through the diligent and prayerful efforts of His people, empowering them to act decisively and wisely in the face of injustice, turning what seems irreversible into a pathway for salvation. Our perseverance in prayer and action, coupled with humility and wisdom, can be the very means through which God brings about His mighty purposes, demonstrating His power and faithfulness through our yielded lives.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why did Esther use such deferential language, repeating phrases about pleasing the king and finding favor?
Answer: Esther's repeated use of deferential language ("If it please the king," "if I have found favour in his sight," "if I be pleasing in his eyes") was not mere politeness but a crucial strategic maneuver rooted in the absolute nature of Persian monarchy. The king's word was law, and his personal disposition determined life or death. By appealing to his pleasure and favor, Esther acknowledged his supreme authority and sought a personal, benevolent response rather than relying on any legal right. This approach was essential to secure his willingness to act creatively to circumvent the immutable law of the Medes and Persians, which prevented the direct revocation of a sealed decree, as seen in Esther 8:8. Her humility and respect were key to winning his cooperation in a seemingly impossible legal situation.
Why couldn't Haman's original decree simply be cancelled or revoked, given his execution?
Answer: According to Persian law, a decree issued and sealed with the king's signet ring was considered irrevocable (Esther 1:19 and Esther 8:8). This legal principle meant that even the king himself could not directly annul a decree once it was formalized. While Haman, the author of the decree, was executed, the legal document itself remained valid and binding throughout the empire. Therefore, Esther's petition was not for cancellation but for a counter-decree that would effectively nullify the original's destructive power by granting the Jews the right to defend themselves, thus providing a legal means for their survival without directly overturning the previous edict.
What is the significance of Haman being called "the Agagite"?
Answer: The designation "the Agagite" for Haman is deeply significant, connecting him to Agag, the king of the Amalekites, whom King Saul was commanded to utterly destroy in 1 Samuel 15. The Amalekites were ancient, persistent enemies of Israel, first attacking them after the Exodus (Exodus 17:8-16). God had sworn to blot out the remembrance of Amalek (Deuteronomy 25:17-19). By identifying Haman as an Agagite, the narrative elevates the conflict from a personal vendetta to a continuation of this ancient, divinely ordained struggle against a sworn enemy of God's people. It underscores the theological dimension of the plot and the ultimate triumph of God's covenant faithfulness.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Esther's desperate plea to reverse Haman's decree, which was legally binding and seemingly irreversible, powerfully foreshadows the ultimate reversal orchestrated by God through Jesus Christ. Just as Haman's decree brought a sentence of death upon all Jews, so too did the law of sin and death condemn all humanity (Romans 5:12). Humanity was under an inescapable decree of spiritual death, a "law" that could not be simply canceled. However, God, in His infinite wisdom and grace, did not merely revoke the old covenant or the consequences of sin, but through Christ, He issued a "new decree"—a new covenant—that effectively nullifies the power of sin and death for those who believe (Hebrews 8:6-13). Jesus, our ultimate intercessor and "Lamb of God" (John 1:29), perfectly fulfills Esther's role, approaching the Father on our behalf, not appealing to a human king's favor, but to His own perfect sacrifice and righteousness. Through His death and resurrection, Christ reversed the ultimate decree of death, offering life and freedom to all who were bound (Romans 8:2). He is the true "reverse" of all that seeks to destroy God's people, establishing an eternal deliverance far grander than any earthly salvation.