And it happened, on the third day, and Esther put on royal clothes, and she stood in the inner courtyard of the {king's palace}, opposite the {king's palace}; the king [was] sitting on his royal throne in the {throne room} opposite the doorway of the palace.

And when those days were completed, the king gave for all the people that were present at the citadel of Susa, both great and small, a banquet in the courtyard of the king's palace garden that lasted seven days.

There were no restrictions on the drinking, for the king had instructed every official of his palace to do as each one pleased.

Furthermore, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women [in] {the palace} that belonged to King Ahasuerus.

And it happened, at the proclaiming of the edict of the king and his law, when many young women were being gathered to the citadel of Susa {under Hegai's care}, Esther was taken to the {king's palace} {under the care of} Hegai who was in charge of the women.

{The young woman pleased him} and she won favor in his presence, and he quickly provided for her beauty treatment and her portion of food, with seven chosen maids to give to her from the {king's palace}, and he advanced her and her maids to the best part of the {harem}.

in this way, the girl goes to the king and all that she asks is given to her {to take} with her from the {harem} to the {king's palace}.

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

Then Mordecai told [them] to reply to Esther: "Do not think that your life will be saved [in] the palace of the king more than all the Jews.

And the king asked, "Who [is] in the courtyard?" Haman had just come to the courtyard of the king's outer palace to tell the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him.

The king rose in his anger {from the banquet} [and went] to the palace garden, and Haman stood to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for {he realized that the king was determined to make an end to his life}.

And the king returned from the palace garden to the {banquet hall}, [where] Haman [was] lying prostrate on the couch that Esther [was] on, and the king said, "Will he also molest the queen with me in the house?" As the words went from the king's mouth they covered Haman's face.

For Mordecai [was] high-ranking in the {king's palace} and his fame spread throughout all the provinces as {Mordecai grew more and more powerful}.