When Mordecai learned of all that had happened, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the middle of the city, wailing loudly and bitterly.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now when Mordecai found out all that was done, Mordecai tore his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the middle of the city, and wailed loudly and a bitterly.
- KJV When Mordecai perceived all that was done, Mordecai rent his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and cried with a loud and a bitter cry;
- NKJV When Mordecai learned all that had happened, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city. He cried out with a loud and bitter cry.
- NASB When Mordecai learned of everything that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city and wailed loudly and bitterly.
- NLT When Mordecai learned about all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on burlap and ashes, and went out into the city, crying with a loud and bitter wail.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Learning of the decree, Mordecai tears his clothes, dons sackcloth and ashes, and wails publicly. His grief expresses the anguish of a people facing annihilation.
Overview
Mordecai's mourning follows the biblical pattern of repentance and lament before God, even though God is not named here. His public, bitter cry voices the desperate plight of the Jews. The scene marks the turning point where the faithful respond to crisis not with despair alone but with the humbling and crying out that God answers, beginning the movement toward deliverance.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 21
- Dan 9:3So I turned my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
- 2 Sam 1:11Then David took hold of his own clothes and tore them, and all the men who were with him did the same.
- Ezek 27:30–31They will raise their voices for you and cry out bitterly. They will throw dust on their heads and roll in ashes.
- 2 Sam 13:19And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore her robe. And putting her hand on her head, she went away crying bitterly.
- Job 42:6Therefore I retract my words, and I repent in dust and ashes.”
- Rev 18:17–19For in a single hour such fabulous wealth has been destroyed!” Every shipmaster, passenger, and sailor, and all who make their living from the sea, will stand at a distance
- Acts 14:14But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul found out about this, they tore their clothes and rushed into the crowd, shouting,
- Zeph 1:14The great Day of the LORD is near—near and coming quickly. Listen, the Day of the LORD! Then the cry of the mighty will be bitter.
- Mic 1:8Because of this I will lament and wail; I will walk barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and mourn like an ostrich.
- Josh 7:6Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown before the ark of the LORD until evening, as did the elders of Israel; and they all sprinkled dust on their heads.
- Job 1:20Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped,
- Ezek 21:6But you, son of man, groan! Groan before their eyes with a broken heart and bitter grief.
- Isa 22:4Therefore I said, “Turn away from me, let me weep bitterly! Do not try to console me over the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
- Job 2:8And Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself as he sat among the ashes.
- Isa 58:5Is this the fast I have chosen: a day for a man to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the LORD?
- Esth 4:3In every province to which the king’s command and edict came, there was great mourning among the Jews. They fasted, wept, and lamented, and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
- Matt 11:21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
- Gen 27:34When Esau heard his father’s words, he let out a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me too, O my father!”
- Isa 15:4Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far as Jahaz. Therefore the soldiers of Moab cry out; their souls tremble within.
- Jonah 3:4–9On the first day of his journey, Jonah set out into the city and proclaimed, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned!”
- Esth 3:8–13Then Haman informed King Xerxes, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples of every province of your kingdom. Their laws are different from everyone else’s, and they do not obey the king’s laws. So it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.
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Christ at the center
Though God is never named, his hidden hand preserves the people from whom the Messiah will come — a deliverance 'for such a time as this' that anticipates the open deliverance of Christ.
How Esther 4:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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