Esther 2:19

THE MESSAGE

On 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.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
When the virgins were gathered a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the King’s Gate.

Hebrew Names Version
When the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordekhai was sitting in the king's gate.

King James Version
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king's gate.

English Standard Version
Now when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

New Century Version
Now Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate when the girls were gathered the second time.

New English Translation
Now when the young women were being gathered again, Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

Amplified Bible
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

New American Standard Bible
Now when the virgins were gathered together for the second time, then Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

World English Bible
When the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And whe the virgins were gathered ye second time, then Mordecai sate in the Kings gate.

Legacy Standard Bible
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

Berean Standard Bible
When the virgins were assembled a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the King's Gate.

Contemporary English Version
When the young women were brought together again, Esther's cousin Mordecai had become a palace official.

Complete Jewish Bible
When the girls would gather on other occasions, Mordekhai would sit at the King's Gate.

Darby Translation
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai sat in the king's gate.

Easy-to-Read Version
Mordecai was sitting next to the king's gate at the time the young women were gathered together the second time.

George Lamsa Translation
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting in the kings gate.

Good News Translation
Meanwhile Mordecai had been appointed by the king to an administrative position.

Lexham English Bible
When the virgins were gathered a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the gate of the king.

Literal Translation
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king's gate.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And whan the virgins were gathered together the seconde tyme, Mardocheus sat in the kynges gate.

American Standard Version
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate.

Bible in Basic English
And when the virgins came together in the second house of the women, Mordecai took his seat in the doorway of the king's house.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And when the virgins were gathered together the seconde time, Mardocheus sate in the kinges gate.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, and Mordecai sat in the king's gate--

King James Version (1611)
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sate in the kings gate.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But Mardochaeus served in the palace.

English Revised Version
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king's gate.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And whanne virgyns weren souyt also the secounde tyme, and weren gaderid togidere, Mardochee dwellide at the yate of the kyng.

Update Bible Version
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate.

Webster's Bible Translation
And when the virgins were assembled the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king's gate.

New King James Version
When virgins were gathered together a second time, Mordecai sat within the king's gate.

New Living Translation
Even after all the young women had been transferred to the second harem and Mordecai had become a palace official,

New Life Bible
When the young women were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

New Revised Standard
When the virgins were being gathered together, Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Now, when virgins were gathered together second time, then, Mordecai, was sitting in the gate of the king.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when the virgins were sought the second time, and gathered together, Mardochai stayed at the king’s gate,

Revised Standard Version
When the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mor'decai was sitting at the king's gate.

Young's Literal Translation
And in the virgins being gathered a second time, then Mordecai is sitting in the gate of the king;

New American Standard Bible (1995)
When the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate.

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

the virgins: Esther 2:3, Esther 2:4

sat in the king's gate: Esther 2:21, Esther 3:2, Esther 3:3, Esther 5:13

Reciprocal: Esther 6:12 - came again Daniel 2:49 - sat

Cross-References

Genesis 2:8
Then God planted a garden in Eden, in the east. He put the Man he had just made in it. God made all kinds of trees grow from the ground, trees beautiful to look at and good to eat. The Tree-of-Life was in the middle of the garden, also the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil.

Genesis 2:23
The Man said, "Finally! Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh! Name her Woman for she was made from Man." Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife. They become one flesh. The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no shame.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And when the virgins were gathered together the second time,.... Some think this second collection is that which was made when Esther was taken and brought to the keeper of the women, called the second, in reference to a former collection of them, made when Vashti was taken and made queen; but as there is no proof of any such collection then made, rather the case was this, such was the lust of the king, though he had a queen he loved, and a multitude of concubine's, yet a second collection of virgins was made for his gratification:

then Mordecai sat in the king's gate; or court, being an officer in it, promoted by the interest of Esther, though not as yet known to be a relation of her's: so θυρα in Xenophon z is used of the court of the king of Persia, as the Ottoman or Turkish court is now called the "Porte".

z Cyropaedia, l. 8. c. 2, 5, 11, 40.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

When the virgins ... - Rather, “when virgins” etc. The words begin a new paragraph. There was a second collection of virgins (after that of Esther 2:8), and it was at the time of this second collection that Mordecai had the good fortune to save the king’s life.