Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, April 30th, 2025
the Second Week after Easter
Attention!
Tired of seeing ads while studying? Now you can enjoy an "Ads Free" version of the site for as little as 10¢ a day and support a great cause!
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Esther 2:17

The king fell in love with Esther far more than with any of his other women or any of the other virgins—he was totally smitten by her. He placed a royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. Then the king gave a great banquet for all his nobles and officials—"Esther's Banquet." He proclaimed a holiday for all the provinces and handed out gifts with royal generosity.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Chamberlain;   Crown;   Esther;   Queen;   Vashti;   Thompson Chain Reference - Conjugal Love;   Family;   Home;   Love;   Social Duties;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Wives;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Crown;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Mordecai;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Crown;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Diadem;   Esther;   Grace;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Beeltethmus;   Coele-Syria;   Crown;   Samellius;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Love;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Vashti ;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Crown;   Diadem;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Crown;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Crown;   Favor;   Gold;   Kindness;   Royal;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Esther, Apocryphal Book of;   Head-Dress;   Tobit, Book of;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for July 14;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The king loved Esther more than all the other women. She won more favor and approval from him than did any of the other virgins. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Hebrew Names Version
The king loved Ester above all the women, and she obtained favor and kindness in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown on her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
King James Version
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
English Standard Version
the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
New Century Version
And the king was pleased with Esther more than with any of the other virgins. He liked her more than any of the others, so he put a royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
New English Translation
And the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she met with his loving approval more than all the other young women. So he placed the royal high turban on her head and appointed her queen in place of Vashti.
Amplified Bible
Now the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she found favor and kindness with him more than all the [other] virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen in the place of Vashti.
New American Standard Bible
The king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found favor and kindness with him more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal turban on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
World English Bible
The king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained favor and kindness in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown on her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the King loued Ester aboue all the women, and shee founde grace and fauour in his sight more then all the virgins: so that he set the crowne of the kingdome vpon her head, & made her Queene instead of Vashti.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she advanced in favor and lovingkindness before him more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Berean Standard Bible
And the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she found grace and favor in his sight more than all of the other virgins. So he placed the royal crown upon her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Contemporary English Version
Xerxes liked Esther more than he did any of the other young women. None of them pleased him as much as she did, and right away he fell in love with her and crowned her queen in place of Vashti.
Complete Jewish Bible
The king liked Ester more than any of his wives; none of the other virgins obtained such favor and approval from him. So he put the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Darby Translation
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins, and he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Easy-to-Read Version
The king loved Esther more than any of the other young women, and she became his favorite. He approved of her more than any of the others. So King Xerxes put a crown on Esther's head and made her the new queen in place of Vashti.
George Lamsa Translation
And the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the other virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Good News Translation
The king liked her more than any of the other women, and more than any of the others she won his favor and affection. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Lexham English Bible
And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won his favor and loyalty more than all the virgins, so he put a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Literal Translation
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she rose in grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins. And he set the royal crown on her head, and made her to rule instead of Vashti.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the kynge loued Hester aboue all the wemen, and she founde grace and mercy in his sighte before all the virgins: and he set the quenes croune vpon hir heade, and made her quene in steade of Vasthi.
American Standard Version
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained favor and kindness in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Bible in Basic English
And Esther was more pleasing to the king than all the women, and to his eyes she was fairer and more full of grace than all the other virgins: so he put his crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the king loued Esther aboue all the women, and she found grace and fauour in his sight more then all the virgins, so that he set the crowne of the kingdome vpon her head, and made her queene in steede of Uasthi.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
King James Version (1611)
And the king loued Esther aboue all the women, and she obtained grace and fauour in his sight, more then all the virgins; so that hee set the royall crowne vpon her head, and made her queene, in stead of Uasthi.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the king loved Esther, and she found favour beyond all the other virgins: and he put on her the queen’s crown.
English Revised Version
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And the kyng feruentli louyde hir more than alle wymmen, and sche hadde grace and mercy bifor hym ouer alle wymmen; and he settide the diademe of rewme `on hir heed, and he made hir to regne in the stide of Vasthi.
Update Bible Version
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained favor and kindness in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown on her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
New King James Version
The king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
New Living Translation
And the king loved Esther more than any of the other young women. He was so delighted with her that he set the royal crown on her head and declared her queen instead of Vashti.
New Life Bible
And the king loved Esther more than all the women. She found favor and kindness with him more than all the young women, so that he set the queen's crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
New Revised Standard
the king loved Esther more than all the other women; of all the virgins she won his favor and devotion, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained favour and lovingkindness before him, above all the virgins, - so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen, instead of Vashti.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king loved her more than all the women, and she had favour and kindness before him above all the women, and he set the royal crown on her head, and made her queen instead of Vasthi.
Revised Standard Version
the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Young's Literal Translation
and the king loveth Esther above all the women, and she receiveth grace and kindness before him above all the virgins, and he setteth a royal crown on her head, and causeth her to reign instead of Vashti,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found favor and kindness with him more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.

Contextual Overview

1Later, when King Xerxes' anger had cooled and he was having second thoughts about what Vashti had done and what he had ordered against her, the king's young attendants stepped in and got the ball rolling: "Let's begin a search for beautiful young virgins for the king. Let the king appoint officials in every province of his kingdom to bring every beautiful young virgin to the palace complex of Susa and to the harem run by Hegai, the king's eunuch who oversees the women; he will put them through their beauty treatments. Then let the girl who best pleases the king be made queen in place of Vashti." The king liked this advice and took it. 5Now there was a Jew who lived in the palace complex in Susa. His name was Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish—a Benjaminite. His ancestors had been taken from Jerusalem with the exiles and carried off with King Jehoiachin of Judah by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon into exile. Mordecai had reared his cousin Hadassah, otherwise known as Esther, since she had no father or mother. The girl had a good figure and a beautiful face. After her parents died, Mordecai had adopted her. 8 When the king's order had been publicly posted, many young girls were brought to the palace complex of Susa and given over to Hegai who was overseer of the women. Esther was among them. 9Hegai liked Esther and took a special interest in her. Right off he started her beauty treatments, ordered special food, assigned her seven personal maids from the palace, and put her and her maids in the best rooms in the harem. Esther didn't say anything about her family and racial background because Mordecai had told her not to. 11 Every day Mordecai strolled beside the court of the harem to find out how Esther was and get news of what she was doing. 12Each girl's turn came to go in to King Xerxes after she had completed the twelve months of prescribed beauty treatments—six months' treatment with oil of myrrh followed by six months with perfumes and various cosmetics. When it was time for the girl to go to the king, she was given whatever she wanted to take with her when she left the harem for the king's quarters. She would go there in the evening; in the morning she would return to a second harem overseen by Shaashgaz, the king's eunuch in charge of the concubines. She never again went back to the king unless the king took a special liking to her and asked for her by name. 15 When it was Esther's turn to go to the king (Esther the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had adopted her as his daughter), she asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king's eunuch in charge of the harem, had recommended. Esther, just as she was, won the admiration of everyone who saw her. 16 She was taken to King Xerxes in the royal palace in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of the king's reign. 17The king fell in love with Esther far more than with any of his other women or any of the other virgins—he was totally smitten by her. He placed a royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. Then the king gave a great banquet for all his nobles and officials—"Esther's Banquet." He proclaimed a holiday for all the provinces and handed out gifts with royal generosity. 19On one of the occasions when the virgins were being gathered together, Mordecai was sitting at the King's Gate. All this time, Esther had kept her family background and race a secret as Mordecai had ordered; Esther still did what Mordecai told her, just as when she was being raised by him.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

favour: or, kindness

in his sight: Heb. before him

so that he set: Esther 4:14, 1 Samuel 2:8, Psalms 75:6, Psalms 75:7, Psalms 113:7, Psalms 113:8, Ezekiel 17:24, Luke 1:48-52, bishop Patrick observes, that those who suggest that Esther committed a great sin to come at the dignity of queen of Persia, do not consider the custom of those times and countries. Every one that the king took to his bed was married to him, and was his wife of a lower rank, as Hagar was to Abraham.

Reciprocal: Genesis 33:8 - to find 2 Kings 11:12 - put the crown Esther 8:5 - I be pleasing Ezekiel 16:11 - and a

Cross-References

Genesis 2:1
Heaven and Earth were finished, down to the last detail.
Genesis 2:10
A river flows out of Eden to water the garden and from there divides into four rivers. The first is named Pishon; it flows through Havilah where there is gold. The gold of this land is good. The land is also known for a sweet-scented resin and the onyx stone. The second river is named Gihon; it flows through the land of Cush. The third river is named Hiddekel and flows east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
Genesis 2:18
God said, "It's not good for the Man to be alone; I'll make him a helper, a companion." So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of the air, named the wild animals; but he didn't find a suitable companion.
Genesis 2:21
God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man.
Genesis 3:11
God said, "Who told you you were naked? Did you eat from that tree I told you not to eat from?"
Genesis 3:17
He told the Man: "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree That I commanded you not to eat from, ‘Don't eat from this tree,' The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you'll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you'll get your food the hard way, Planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you'll end up dirt."
Deuteronomy 30:15
Look at what I've done for you today: I've placed in front of you Life and Good Death and Evil.
Deuteronomy 30:19
I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God , your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, he is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God , your God, promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
1 Samuel 14:44
Saul said, "Yes. Jonathan most certainly will die. It's out of my hands—I can't go against God, can I?"
1 Samuel 22:16
The king said, "Death, Ahimelech! You're going to die—you and everyone in your family!"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the king loved Esther above all the women,.... The virgins he made his concubines, as next explained; though Jarchi interprets it of married women, for such he supposes were gathered and brought to him, as well as virgins:

and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; who had been purified, and in their turns brought to him:

so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti; declared her queen, and gave her all the ensigns of royalty: so it was usual with the eastern kings to put a crown or diadem on the heads of their wives at the time of marriage, and declare them queens s.

s Vid. Paschalium de Coronis, l. 10. c. 8. p. 689.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 17. Set the royal crown upon her head — Made her what is now called in the East the SULTANA, the queen. She was the mistress of all the rest of the wives, all of whom were obliged to pay her the most profound respect.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile