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The beautiful queen Vashti declines the invitation for her husband King Ahasuerus' long

drinking-bout. [..] therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.Ahasuerus then repudiates his wife. His eye goes out to Esther.

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Haman (kneeling) convinces King Ahasuerus (Artaxerxes) that all disobedient people in

his kingdom should be killed. Haman does not tell the king that he wants this just to be

rid of his rival Mordecai.

Ahasuerus's forecourt cannot be entered without permission on penalty of death. Esther

risks her life willingly to visit the king when she learns from her uncle Mordecai that the

king had decided to kill all the Jews. The king allows Esther to enter, upon which she

invites the king and his vizier (advisor) Haman for a meal at her home.

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During the meal, Ahasuerus asks Esther what he can do for her charmed as he is, he

offers her half his kingdom. All Esther asks is for the king and Haman to return to her

table the next day. During this meal, the king grants her a request. She asks him to spareher people and points out Haman as one who incites hatred. Esther also tells the king that

she is Jewish.

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Also known as Mordecai's Triumph, it describes the story in which an insomniac King

Ahasuerus is reading the chronicles only to discover that Mordecai once saved his life

and went unrewarded for his good deed. The king then asks Haman, Mordecai's rival,how he would honor a man. Haman, thinking the king has himself in mind, sums up

numerous wonderful ways, upon which the king orders him to honor Mordecai by leading

him through the city, seated on the king's horse and dressed in the king's gown preciselythe honor that the sly Haman had wished upon himself.

Esther begs Ahasuerus to revoke the decree against the Jews. It works; Esther gets theking to grant the Jews permission to kill all their enemies, completely turning the tables

on them.

In the background Haman, the source of all evil, hanged, on the pole intended for

Mordecai.

The eunuchs (chamberlains) who planned the assassination of the king are hanged. Theking had been warned by Mordecai (Mardocheus).

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Haman talks to the Persian king Ahasuerus. He tries to get permission to extinguish a

people withing the empire that he calls treacherous. The concentrated king listens, with

his scepter in his hand. Eventually Haman convinces the king, so that he could set out tokill all Jews in Persia.

Most depictions of the scene show how Ahasuerus gives his ring to Haman as a sign of

approval.

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Wise old Mordecai shows his cousin Esther the decree that the king's minister Hamanintends to use to kill all the Jews in Persia. Esther is married to the king, so Mordecai

tries to persuade her to use her influence to make the king change his mind.

Esther knows of the rule that forbids anyone to approach the king without invitation - the

penalty for breaking the rule is death. She hasn't been invited to the king for 30 days, soshe hesitates to do what Mordecai asks her.

After the evil Haman's plans for the extermination of all Jews in Persia is frustrated by

Esther and Mordecai, King Ahasuerus grants the Jews permission to wreak vengeance. In

grand old Testament style, the Jews slaughter tens of thousands of perceived enemies andthen whoop it up.

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After Haman is hanged, Mordecai replaces him as the king's most important servant.

Esther is the king's wife - both Esther and Mordecai are Jews. Together they write a letter

to the Jews in all 127 provinces of Persia, reminding them to annually commemorate thisvictory on the 14th and 15th day of the month of Adar. That letter became known as the

first letter of Purim. The second was sent not much later, confirming the first.