EST 8:5 Parallel Verse View

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Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal Speaker(s)=Narrator (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

BrLXX (ESG 8:5) καὶ εἶπεν Ἐσθὴρ, εἰ δοκεῖ σοι, καὶ εὗρον χάριν, πεμφθήτω ἀποστραφῆναι τὰ γράμματα τὰ ἀπεσταλμένα ὑπὸ Ἀμὰν, τὰ γραφέντα ἀπολέσθαι τοὺς Ἰουδαίους, οἵ εἰσιν ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ σου.
(kai eipen Esthaʸr, ei dokei soi, kai heuron ⱪarin, pemfthaʸtō apostrafaʸnai ta grammata ta apestalmena hupo Aman, ta grafenta apolesthai tous Youdaious, hoi eisin en taʸ basileia sou.)

BrTr (ESG 8:5) And Esther said, If it seem good to thee, and I have found favour in thy sight, let an order be sent that the letters sent by Aman may be reversed, that were written for the destruction of the Jews, who are in thy kingdom.

ULT And she said, “If it is good to the king, and if I have found favor before his face, and the word is proper before the face of the king, and I am good in his eyes, let it be written to bring back the letters, the plot of Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king.

UST Then Esther said, “Your majesty, if you think that it is the right thing to do, and if you are pleased with me, please write a new letter revoking the letters that Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, sent out. His letters said to destroy all the Jews everywhere in your empire.

BSB “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.

OEB ‘If it seems best to the king,’ she said, ‘and if I have won his favour and he thinks it right, and if I please him, let written orders be given to revoke the dispatches devised by Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote ordering the destruction of the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces.

WEBBE She said, “If it pleases the king, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing seems 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.

NET She said, “If the king is so inclined and if I have met with his approval and if the matter is agreeable to the king and if I am attractive to him, let an edict be written rescinding those recorded intentions of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, which he wrote in order to destroy the Jews who are throughout all the king’s provinces.

LSV and says, “If to the king [it be] good, and if I have found grace before him, and the thing has been right before the king, and I [am] good in his eyes, let it be written to bring back the letters—a scheme of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite—that he wrote to destroy the Jews who [are] in all provinces of the king,

FBV Esther said, “If it please Your Majesty, and if he looks on me favorably, and if the king believes it is the right thing to do, and if he is pleased with me, let an order be issued that revokes the letters sent out by Haman, son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, with his devious scheme to destroy the Jews in all the provinces of the king.

T4T She said, “Your majesty, if you are pleased with me, and if you think that it is the right thing to do, make a new law to cancel what Haman decreed, that all the Jews in all the provinces in your empire should be killed.

LEB and she said, “If it is good to the king, and if I have found favor before him,[fn] and if the king is pleased with this matter, and _⌊I have his approval_⌋,[fn] let an edict be written to revoke the letters of the plans of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews that are in all the provinces of the king.

8:5 Or “if I have won his favor”

8:5 Literally “I am good in his eyes”

BBE And she said, If it is the king's pleasure and if I have his approval and this thing seems right to the king and I am pleasing to him, then let letters be sent giving orders against those which Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, sent out for the destruction of the Jews in all divisions of the kingdom:

Moff saying, “If it please the king, and if I have won his favour, and if the king judge it right, and if I am pleasing to him, let there be a decree to reverse the despatches drawn up by Haman the Agagite for the destruction of the Jews in all the king’s provinces.

JPS And she 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 that are in all the king's provinces;

ASV 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:

DRA Verse alignment unavailable (unsupported).

YLT 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,

Drby and said, If it please the king and if I have found grace before him, and the thing seem right to the king, and I be pleasing in his sight, 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.

RV And she 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:

SLT And she will say, If good to the king, and if I found favor before him, and the word be right before the king, and I good in his eyes, it shall be written to turn back the writings, the purposes of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, that he wrote to destroy the Jews that were in all the king’s provinces:

Wbstr And said, If it shall please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and the thing shall seem right before 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:

KJB-1769 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:[fn][fn]

8.5 devised: Heb. the device

8.5 which he…: or, who wrote

KJB-1611 And said, If it please the king, and if I haue found fauour in his sight, and the thing seeme right before the king, and I bee pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reuerse [fn]the letters deuised by Haman the sonne of Hammedatha the Agagite, [fn]which hee wrote to destroy the Iewes, which are in all the kings prouinces.
(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 kings provinces.)

8:5 Heb. the deuice.

8:5 Or, who wrote.

Bshps And saide: if it please the king, and if I haue founde grace in his sight, and if it be acceptable before the king, and I please him, then let it be writte, that the letters of the deuise of Haman the sonne of Hamadatha the Agagite may be called againe, which letters he wrote to destroy the Iewes which are in all the kinges prouinces.
(And said: if it please the king, and if I have found grace in his sight, and if it be acceptable before the king, and I please him, then let it be written, that the letters of the devise of Haman the son of Hamadatha the Agagite may be called again, which letters he wrote to destroy the Jews which are in all the kings provinces.)

Gnva 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.
(And said, If it please the King, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing be acceptable before the King, and I please him, let it be written, that the letters of the device of Haman the son of Ammedatha the Agagite may be called again, which he wrote to destroy the Jews, that are in all the Kings provinces.)

Cvdl and sayde: Yf it please the kynge, and yf I haue foude grace in his sight, & yf it be couenyent for the kinge, and yf it be accepted in his sighte, then let it be wrytte, yt the letters of the deuyce of Ama the sonne of Amadathai the Agagite, maie be called agayne: which letters he wrote, to destroie ye Iewes in all ye kynges lodes.
(and said: If it please the king, and if I have found grace in his sight, and if it be convenient for the king, and if it be accepted in his sight, then let it be written, it the letters of the device of Ama the son of Amadathai the Agagite, may be called again: which letters he wrote, to destroy ye/you_all Jews in all ye/you_all kings lodes.)

Wycl Verse alignment unavailable (unsupported).

Luth und sprach: Gefällt es dem Könige, und habe ich Gnade funden vor ihm, und ist‘s gelegen dem Könige, und ich ihm gefalle, so schreibe man, daß die Briefe der Anschläge Hamans, des Sohns Medathas, des Agagiters, widerrufen werden, die er geschrieben hat, die Juden umzubringen in allen Landen des Königs.
(and spoke: Pleases it to_him king(s), and have I grace funds before/in_front_of him, and it_is located/situated to_him king(s), and I him gradient, so write man, that the letters the/of_the attacks(n) Haman’s, the son Hammedatha’s, the Agagite’s, revoked become, the he written has, the Jews to_kill in all/everyone land(n) the kings.)

ClVg Verse alignment unavailable (unsupported).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 8:1–17: Xerxes allowed the Jews to protect themselves

After Haman’s death, the king gave Esther everything that had belonged to Haman and made Mordecai the chief official in the land. Esther asked the king to cancel Haman’s order to kill the Jews. The king instead permitted her and Mordecai to send letters in his name allowing the Jews to defend themselves and kill their enemies. The news of this order brought great joy to the Jews.

8:5a

“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,

She said, “Your Majesty, if you are willing, and if you are pleased with me, and if you think that it is right to do,

This part of the verse contains four main clauses:

If it pleases the king
and if I have found favor in his sight
and the matter seems proper to the king
and I am pleasing in his sight

Clause 1, If it pleases the king, is similar in meaning to clause 3, and the matter seems proper to the king, and clause 2, and if I have found favor in his sight, is similar in meaning to clause 4, and I am pleasing in his sight.

You need to decide in your translation whether you should translate each clause separately or whether you should combine clauses. Any of these ways is acceptable, so you can choose the one that can be most easily translated into your language. GNT has translated clauses 1 and 3 separately but combined 2 and 4. You could also combine 1 and 3, then combine 2 and 4, as in the CEV:

I know you will do the right thing, and that you really love me

8:5b

may an order be written to revoke the letters that the scheming Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, wrote

tell your secretaries to write a document to cancel the orders in the documents which Haman, son of Hammedatha, the descendant of Agag, planned and wrote.

letters: See note on 1:22a.

Agagite: See note on 3:1a.

8:5c

to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces.

In those documents Haman ordered the people to kill all the Jews everywhere in your kingdom.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism

אִם־עַל־הַ⁠מֶּ֨לֶךְ ט֜וֹב & וְ⁠כָשֵׁ֤ר הַ⁠דָּבָר֙ לִ⁠פְנֵ֣י הַ⁠מֶּ֔לֶךְ

if on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said if on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the=king good and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty before,,him and,it_is_proper the,matter to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before the=king and_[am],good I in,eyes_of,his written to,revoke DOM the,letters devised_of Haman son_of Hammedatha the,Agagite which/who wrote to,destroy DOM the,Jews which/who in=all provinces_of of,the_king )

These two phrases mean basically the same thing. Esther is saying very deferentially that she hopes that the king will think that her suggestion is a good idea and will, therefore, grant her request. Esther uses the repetition to emphasize the importance of what she is expressing. If it would be helpful in your language, you could combine the phrases. Alternate translation: [if what I am going to suggest seems like a good idea to you]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism

וְ⁠אִם־מָצָ֧אתִי חֵ֣ן לְ⁠פָנָ֗י⁠ו & וְ⁠טוֹבָ֥ה אֲנִ֖י בְּ⁠עֵינָ֑י⁠ו

and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty before,,him & and_[am],good I (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said if on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the=king good and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty before,,him and,it_is_proper the,matter to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before the=king and_[am],good I in,eyes_of,his written to,revoke DOM the,letters devised_of Haman son_of Hammedatha the,Agagite which/who wrote to,destroy DOM the,Jews which/who in=all provinces_of of,the_king )

These two phrases mean basically the same thing. Esther is saying very deferentially that she hopes that the king is positively disposed towards her, that he thinks well of her, and will, therefore, grant her request. Esther uses the repetition to emphasize the importance of what she is expressing. If it would be helpful in your language, you could combine the phrases. Alternate translation: [if you are pleased with me]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person

אִם־עַל־הַ⁠מֶּ֨לֶךְ ט֜וֹב וְ⁠אִם־מָצָ֧אתִי חֵ֣ן לְ⁠פָנָ֗י⁠ו

Here Esther addresses the king throughout in the third person as a way of showing respect. You could express the same meaning in the second person, as in the UST.

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

אִם־עַל־הַ⁠מֶּ֨לֶךְ ט֜וֹב

This is an idiom that also appears in 1:19, 3:9, 5:4, and 5:8. A suggested translation in those cases was, “If it seems like a good idea to you, O king.” That was suitable for the deferential tone the speakers were using. But in another place, 7:3, when Esther was pleading urgently for the survival of her whole people, the suggested alternate translation was, “I hope you will be willing to do what I ask” Here, Esther is also pleading, so you could use that phrase here in your translation as well. Alternate translation: [if what I ask for seems right in the king’s evaluation]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

וְ⁠אִם־מָצָ֧אתִי חֵ֣ן

and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty

This expression also appears many times in the story. It means to gain the approval or acceptance of another person. Alternate translation: [if you are pleased with me]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

לְ⁠פָנָ֗י⁠ו & לִ⁠פְנֵ֣י הַ⁠מֶּ֔לֶךְ

before,,him & to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said if on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the=king good and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty before,,him and,it_is_proper the,matter to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before the=king and_[am],good I in,eyes_of,his written to,revoke DOM the,letters devised_of Haman son_of Hammedatha the,Agagite which/who wrote to,destroy DOM the,Jews which/who in=all provinces_of of,the_king )

Here, face means the presence of a person. These phrases could mean “as I stand here before you.” But “face” could also be referring to the king himself by naming one part of him. What he thought and felt about Esther’s request would become evident in his face first, so it would be an appropriate part of him to use to represent all of him. Alternate translation: [you]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

בְּ⁠עֵינָ֑י⁠ו

(Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said if on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the=king good and=if found graciousness/kindness/favour/beauty before,,him and,it_is_proper the,matter to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before the=king and_[am],good I in,eyes_of,his written to,revoke DOM the,letters devised_of Haman son_of Hammedatha the,Agagite which/who wrote to,destroy DOM the,Jews which/who in=all provinces_of of,the_king )

Here, eyes represent the action of seeing, and seeing is a metaphor for knowledge, notice, attention, or judgment. Alternate translation: [if you evaluate me and I please you] or [if you are pleased with me]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

יִכָּתֵ֞ב לְ⁠הָשִׁ֣יב אֶת־הַ⁠סְּפָרִ֗ים

The first letters that told of the plan to destroy the Jews would not be brought back to Susa physically. Rather, bring back is an idiom that means “cancel” or “revoke.” Alternate translation: [make a new law to cancel what Haman decreed]

Note 9 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

יִכָּתֵ֞ב לְ⁠הָשִׁ֣יב אֶת־הַ⁠סְּפָרִ֗ים

You can say this with an active form. Alternate translation: [write a new letter] or [make a new law]

Parallel EST 8:5

Section 8:1–17: Xerxes allowed the Jews to protect themselves

8:5a

8:5b

8:5c