Esther 2:4

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then the young woman who pleases the king will become queen instead of Vashti.” This suggestion pleased the king, and he did accordingly.

Hebrew Names Version
and let the maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti. The thing pleased the king; and he did so.

King James Version
And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

English Standard Version
And let the young woman who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti." This pleased the king, and he did so.

New Century Version
Then let the girl who most pleases the king become queen in place of Vashti." The king liked this idea, so he did as they said.

New English Translation
Let the young woman whom the king finds most attractive become queen in place of Vashti." This seemed like a good idea to the king, so he acted accordingly.

Amplified Bible
"Then let the young woman who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti." This pleased the king, and he did accordingly.

New American Standard Bible
"Then let the young woman who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti." And the suggestion pleased the king, and he did accordingly.

World English Bible
and let the maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti. The thing pleased the king; and he did so.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And the mayde that shall please the King, let her reigne in the steade of Vashti. And this pleased the King, and he did so.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then let the young lady who is good in the eyes of the king be queen in place of Vashti." And the word was good in the eyes of the king, and he did so.

Berean Standard Bible
Then let the young woman who pleases the king become queen in place of Vashti." This suggestion pleased the king, and he acted accordingly.

Contemporary English Version
Then let the young woman who pleases you most take Vashti's place as queen. King Xerxes liked these suggestions, and he followed them.

Complete Jewish Bible
Then, the girl who seems best to the king should become queen instead of Vashti." This proposal pleased the king, so he acted accordingly.

Darby Translation
And let the maiden that pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

Easy-to-Read Version
Then let the one who is pleasing to the king become the new queen in Vashti's place." The king liked this suggestion, so he accepted it.

George Lamsa Translation
And let the maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

Good News Translation
Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place." The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.

Lexham English Bible
And let the young woman who is pleasing in the king's eyes become queen in place of Vashti. The thing was good in the king's eyes, and he acted accordingly.

Literal Translation
And let the young woman who pleases the king rule instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king, and he did so.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And loke which damsell pleaseth the kynge, let her be quene in Vasthis steade. This pleased the kynge, and he dyd so.

American Standard Version
and let the maiden that pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

Bible in Basic English
And let the girl who is pleasing to the king be queen in place of Vashti. And the king was pleased with this suggestion; and he did so.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And that the mayden which pleased the king, should be queene in Uasthis steede. And this pleased the king, and he did so.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
and let the maiden that pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti.' And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

King James Version (1611)
And let the maiden which pleaseth the king, bee Queene in stead of Uasthi. And the thing pleased the king, and he did so.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And let the woman who shall please the king be queen instead of Astin. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

English Revised Version
and let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king, and he did so.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And which euer damesele among alle plesith the iyen of the kyng, regne sche for Vasti. The word pleside the kyng; and he comaundide to be don so, as thei counceliden.

Update Bible Version
and let the maiden that pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

Webster's Bible Translation
And let the maiden who pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so.

New King James Version
Then let the young woman who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti." This thing pleased the king, and he did so.

New Living Translation
After that, the young woman who most pleases the king will be made queen instead of Vashti." This advice was very appealing to the king, so he put the plan into effect.

New Life Bible
Then let the young lady who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti." This pleased the king, and he did so.

New Revised Standard
And let the girl who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti." This pleased the king, and he did so.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and, the maiden that is pleasing in the eyes of the king, let her be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing seemed good in the eyes of the king, and he did so.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And whosoever among them all shall please the king’s eyes, let her be queen instead of Vasthi. The word pleased the king: and he commanded it should be done as they had suggested.

Revised Standard Version
And let the maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti." This pleased the king, and he did so.

Young's Literal Translation
and the young woman who is good in the eyes of the king doth reign instead of Vashti;' and the thing is good in the eyes of the king, and he doth so.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Then let the young lady who pleases the king be queen in place of Vashti." And the matter pleased the king, and he did accordingly.

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

let the maiden: Matthew 20:16, Matthew 22:14

the thing: Esther 1:21, Esther 3:9, Esther 3:10, 2 Samuel 13:4-6, 2 Samuel 16:21-23, 2 Samuel 17:4, Matthew 14:6

Reciprocal: Genesis 45:16 - it pleased Pharaoh well 1 Kings 1:3 - So Esther 2:19 - the virgins Esther 8:5 - I be pleasing

Cross-References

Genesis 1:1
First this: God created the Heavens and Earth—all you see, all you don't see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God's Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.

Genesis 1:31
God looked over everything he had made; it was so good, so very good! It was evening, it was morning— Day Six.

Genesis 2:1
Heaven and Earth were finished, down to the last detail.

Genesis 2:2
By the seventh day God had finished his work. On the seventh day he rested from all his work. God blessed the seventh day. He made it a Holy Day Because on that day he rested from his work, all the creating God had done. This is the story of how it all started, of Heaven and Earth when they were created.

Genesis 5:1
This is the family tree of the human race: When God created the human race, he made it godlike, with a nature akin to God. He created both male and female and blessed them, the whole human race.

Genesis 10:1
This is the family tree of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. After the flood, they themselves had sons.

Genesis 11:10
This is the story of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he had Arphaxad. It was two years after the flood. After he had Arphaxad, he lived 500 more years and had other sons and daughters.

Genesis 25:12
This is the family tree of Ishmael son of Abraham, the son that Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's maid, bore to Abraham.

Genesis 25:19
This is the family tree of Isaac son of Abraham: Abraham had Isaac. Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan Aram. She was the sister of Laban the Aramean.

Genesis 36:1
This is the family tree of Esau, who is also called Edom.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti,.... Have the royal estate, that was taken from Vashti, given to her, the crown royal set on her head, c.

and the thing pleased the king, and he did so appointed officers in all his provinces to seek out the most beautiful virgins, and bring them to his palace; so with the Chinese now, the king never marries with any of his kindred, though ever so remote; but there is sought throughout his kingdom a damsel of twelve or fourteen years, of perfect beauty, good natural parts, and well inclined to virtue; whence, for the most part, the queen is the daughter of some artisan; and in their history e, mention is made of one that was the daughter of a mason.

e Semedo's History of China, part 1. ch. 23.