In each of the provinces of King Xerxes, the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who sought to harm them. No man could withstand them, because the fear of them had fallen upon all peoples.
Parallel translations
- WEB the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the King Ahasuerus, to lay hands on those who wanted to harm them. No one could withstand them, because the fear of them had fallen on all the people.
- KJV The Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, to lay hand on such as sought their hurt: and no man could withstand them; for the fear of them fell upon all people.
- NKJV The Jews gathered together in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could withstand them, because fear of them fell upon all people.
- NASB The Jews assembled in their cities throughout the provinces of King Ahasuerus to attack those who sought to harm them; and no one could stand against them, because the dread of them had fallen on all the peoples.
- NLT The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the king’s provinces to attack anyone who tried to harm them. But no one could make a stand against them, for everyone was afraid of them.
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
The Jews gather in their cities to strike those seeking their harm, and no one can stand against them because fear of them has spread. Their defense succeeds completely.
Overview
Acting under the king's decree, the Jews unite to resist their attackers, and a dread of them paralyzes their foes. The fear that falls on the nations recalls how God put dread of Israel on surrounding peoples in earlier history. The verse shows the Jews delivered and their enemies overcome, a vindication of God's threatened people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Esth 8:17In every province and every city, wherever the king’s edict and decree reached, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating. And many of the people of the land themselves became Jews, because the fear of the Jews had fallen upon them.
- Esth 8:11By these letters the king permitted the Jews in each and every city the right to assemble and defend themselves, to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the forces of any people or province hostile to them, including women and children, and to plunder their possessions.
- Ps 71:24My tongue will indeed proclaim Your righteousness all day long, for those who seek my harm are disgraced and confounded.
- Ps 71:13May the accusers of my soul be ashamed and consumed; may those who seek my harm be covered with scorn and disgrace.
- Esth 9:15–18On the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, the Jews in Susa came together again and put to death three hundred men there, but they did not lay a hand on the plunder.
- Exod 23:27I will send My terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn and run.
- Isa 8:9Huddle together, O peoples, and be shattered; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for battle, and be shattered; prepare for battle, and be shattered!
- Gen 35:5As they set out, a terror from God fell over the surrounding cities, so that they did not pursue Jacob’s sons.
- Esth 9:10They killed these ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they did not lay a hand on the plunder.
- Deut 2:30But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day.
- Josh 11:20For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts to engage Israel in battle, so that they would be set apart for destruction and would receive no mercy, being annihilated as the LORD had commanded Moses.
- Josh 2:9and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 9:2 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.