There were curtains of white and blue linen tied with cords of fine linen and purple material to silver rings on marble columns. There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and other precious stones.

Drinks were served in gold vessels of various kinds, and there was plenty of royal wine because the king was generous.

This very day the wives of the officials of Persia and Media who hear the report about the queen will speak in the same way to all the officials of the king, and there will be more than enough contempt and anger.

In Susa the capital there was a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin, Jair's son Mordecai, who was a descendant of Kish's son Shimei the descendant of Benjamin.

Then Haman told King Ahasuerus, "There is a certain people scattered and divided among the people throughout the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different than all the other people, they don't obey the king's laws, and it's not in the king's best interest to leave them alone.

In every province where the order of the king and his edict reached, among the Jewish people there was great mourning, fasting, weeping, and lamenting, and many lay down on sackcloth and ashes.

"Every servant of the king and every person in the king's provinces knows that for any man or woman who goes to the king in the inner court without being summoned there is only one law that he be put to death unless the king holds out the golden scepter to him. Only then he will live. For these last 30 days I've not been summoned to come to the king."

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 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.

Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs attending the king, observed, "Look there! A pole is standing 50 cubits high at Haman's house that he prepared for Mordecai, whose report benefitted the king!"

For the Jewish people, there was light and joy, gladness and honor.

In each and every province, and in each and every city, in the places where the king's order and edict reached, there was gladness and joy among the Jewish people, along with a festival and a holiday. Many of the people of the land became Jews, because they had come to fear the Jewish people.

There once was a man in the land of Uz named Job. The man was blameless as well as upright. He feared God and kept away from evil.

Then the LORD asked Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on earth. The man is blameless as well as upright. He fears God and keeps away from evil."

The LORD asked Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on earth. The man is blameless as well as upright. He fears God and keeps away from evil. He remains firm in his integrity, even though you have been urging me to overwhelm him without cause."

Let the stars of its evening twilight be dark; let it hope for light but let there be none; let it not see the breaking rays of the dawn.

Why was there a lap to hold me, and why were there breasts to nurse me?

In that place, the wicked stop causing trouble, and there, those whose strength is exhausted are at rest.

The unimportant and the important are both there, and the servant is free from his master.

It remained standing, but I couldn't recognize its appearance. A form appeared before my eyes; At first there was silence, and then this voice:

"Cry out, won't you! Is there anyone who will answer you? To whom will you turn among the holy ones?

Therefore there is hope for those who are poor, and iniquity shuts its mouth.

Tasteless food isn't eaten without salt, is it? Is there any taste in an egg white?

There is no help within me, is there? My resources have been driven away from me, haven't they?

Repent! Let there be no injustice; Change your ways! My vindication is at stake.

"Can papyrus grow where there's no marsh? Can reeds flourish without water?

There is not yet a mediator between us, who would set his hand on the two of us,

Although you know that I'm not guilty, there's no one to deliver me from you!

It's a gloomy land, like deepest darkness; where there's no order, and where even the brightness is like darkness.'"

and disclose his wise secrets? After all, there's so much more to understanding. So be aware that God will exact from you less than your sin deserves."

You'll be secure, because there is hope; you'll see that you're at rest and safe.

When you sleep, there'll be nothing to fear; and many will court your favor.

"There is hope for the tree, if it is cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots won't stop growing.

Offer, then, some collateral on my behalf. Is there anyone who will be my guarantor?

"There's nothing in his tent that belongs to him; sulfur is scattered all over his dwelling place.

"Although I cried out "Violence!' I received no answer; I cried for help, but there was no justice.

whom I will see for myself. My own eyes will look at him there won't be anyone else for me! He is the culmination of my innermost desire."

Make sure that you remain wary of God's sword, for God's wrath brings with it the sword of punishment, by which you'll know there's a judgment."

Your wickedness is great, isn't it? There's no limit to your iniquity, is there?

"Look! If I go east, he isn't there! If I go to the west, I don't perceive him.

"Then there are those who rebel against the light; they are not acquainted with its ways; and they don't stay on its course.

If this weren't so, who can prove that I'm a liar by showing that there's nothing to what I'm saying?"

Is there any limit to his armies? On whom does his light not shine?

"The ghosts of the dead writhe under the waters along with those who live there with them.

"Surely there are mines for silver and places where gold is refined.

The proud beasts haven't walked there; lions have never passed over it.

God understands how to get there; he knows where they live.

"I used to say: "I will die in my home. I'm going to live as many days as there are grains of sand on the shore.

but when he saw that there had been no response from those three, he got even more angry.

Shall I continue to wait, since they're no longer talking? After all, they're only standing there; they're no longer responding.

"If there's a messenger appointed to mediate for Job one out of a thousand to represent the man's integrity on his behalf,

Because he says, "There's no profit for a man to find joy with God.'"

There's no such thing as darkness to him not even deep darkness that can conceal those who practice evil.

"They cry out there, but he doesn't answer because of the arrogance of those who practice evil.

"Be patient with me a moment longer, and I'll show you that there's more to say on God's behalf.

He dwells on the crags where he makes his home, there on the rocky crag is his stronghold.

From there he searches for prey, and his eyes recognize it from a distance.

His young ones feast on blood; he'll be found wherever there's a carcass."

There is no flaw in his body's armor; it is firmly fixed on him and unbreachable.

"There's nothing like him on earth; he was created without the ability to fear.

But as for the wicked, they do not speak truth at all. Inside them there is only wickedness. Their throat is an open grave, on their tongue is deceitful flattery.

In death, there is no memory of you. Who will give you thanks where the dead are?

LORD, my God, if I have done this thing, if there is injustice on my hands,

With haughty arrogance, the wicked thinks, "God will not seek justice." He always presumes "There is no God."

Fools say to themselves, "There is no God." They are corrupt and commit evil deeds; not one of them practices what is good.

There they are seized with terror, because God is with those who are righteous.

You cause me to know the path of life; in your presence is joyful abundance, at your right hand there are pleasures forever. A Davidic Prayer.

They cried out for deliverance, but there was no one to deliver; they cried out to the LORD, but he did not answer them.

There is no speech nor are there words their voice is not heard

Moreover your servant is warned by them; and there is great reward in keeping them.

Do not be so distant from me, for trouble is at hand; indeed, there is no deliverer.

"What profit is there in my death if I go down to the Pit? Can dust worship you? Can it proclaim your faithfulness?"

How blessed is the person against whom the LORD does not charge iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

An oracle that came to me about the transgressions of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes.

There, those who do evil have fallen; They have been thrown down, and they cannot get up. Davidic

Yet a little while longer, and the wicked will be no more. You will search for his place, but he will not be there.

But then he passed away; in fact, he simply was not there. When I looked for him, he could not be found.

Indeed, I have become like a man who hears nothing, and in whose mouth there is no rebuke.

LORD, my God, You have done great things: marvelous works and your thoughts toward us. There is no one who compares to you! I will try to recite your actions, even though there are too many to number.

Look! There is a river whose streams make the city of God rejoice, even the Holy Place of the Most High.

Trembling seized them there, pains like those of a woman in labor,

Consider this, you who have forgotten God Otherwise, I will tear you in pieces and there will be no deliverer:

Fools say to themselves "There is no God." They are corrupt and commit iniquity; not one of them practices what is good.

There the Israelis were seized with terror, when there was nothing to fear. For God scattered the bones of those who laid siege against you you put them to shame, for God rejected them.

He calmly ransomed my soul from the war waged against me, for there was a vast crowd who stood against me.

Those who watch me all day have harassed me, for there are many who fight against me out of conceit.

A person will say, "Certainly, the righteous are rewarded; certainly there is a God who judges the earth." To the Director: A special Davidic psalm to the tune of "Do Not Destroy," when Saul sent men to watch the house in order to kill him.

Your people live there; you sustain the needy with your goodness, God.

When the Almighty scattered the kings there, there was snow on Mt. Zalmon.

You mountains of many peaks, why do you watch with envy the mountain in which God has chosen to dwell? Indeed, the LORD will live there forever.

God's chariots were many thousands. The Lord was there with them at Sinai in holiness.

You ascended to the heights, you took captives. You received gifts among mankind, even the rebellious, so the LORD God may live there.

Little Benjamin is there, leading them, and the princes of Judah all together with the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.

I am sinking in deep mire, and there is no solid ground. I have come into deep water, and the flood overwhelms me.

Insults broke my heart. I despaired and looked for sympathy; but there was none, for comforters, but I found none.

For God will deliver Zion and will rebuild the cities of Judah so they may live there and possess them.

The descendants of his servants will inherit it, and those who cherish his name will live there. To the Music director. Davidic. As a memorial.

and say, "God has abandoned him. Run after him and seize him, because there's no deliverer."

For he will deliver the needy when they cry out for help, and the poor when there is no deliverer.

For there is no struggle at their deaths, and their bodies are healthy.