Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Don't suppose that because you are in the palace, you will escape any more than the other Jewish people.

On the third day, Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace in front of the king's quarters. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the throne room, opposite the entrance to the building.

It was found recorded there that Mordecai had reported about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs who guarded the entrance to the restricted areas of the palace, and that they had conspired to assassinate King Ahasuerus.

The king said, "Who is in the courtyard?" Now Haman had just entered the outer courtyard of the palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the pole he had set up.

The king got up from the banquet in anger and went out to the palace garden, while Haman stood there begging Queen Esther to spare his life, because he realized that the king intended to harm him.

When the king returned to the banquet hall from the palace garden, Haman was prostrate on the couch where Esther was. The king asked, "Will this man even assault the queen with me in the house?" The king had no sooner spoken than they covered Haman's face.

Indeed, Mordecai was a powerful official in the palace and his fame spread throughout the provinces. Indeed, the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful.

When those days were over, the king held a seven-day banquet in the courtyard of the garden of his palace for all the people who were present in Susa the capital, from the greatest to the least important.

Queen Vashti also held a banquet in the royal palace of King Ahasuerus for the women.

The king's order and edict was proclaimed, and many young women were brought to Susa the capital under the care of Hegai. Esther was taken to the palace into the care of Hegai, who was in charge of the women.

The young woman pleased him and gained his favor. He quickly provided her beauty treatments and gave her portions of food to her. He also assigned her seven suitable young women from the palace and transferred her and her young women to the best place in the harem.

After that the young woman would go in to the king, and whatever she asked for would be given to her to take with her from the harem to the palace.

In the evening she would go into the palace and in the morning she would return to the second harem, into the care of Shaashgaz, the king's eunuch who was in charge of the mistresses. She would not go again to the king unless the king wanted her and she was called for by name.

Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus to his royal palace in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.