| 4 καὶ εἰσῆλθον αἱ ἅβραι καὶ οἱ εὐνοῦχοι τῆς βασιλίσσης καὶ ἀνήγγειλαν αὐτῇ καὶ ἐταράχθη ἀκούσασα τὸ γεγονὸς καὶ ἀπέστειλεν στολίσαι τὸν Μαρδοχαῖον καὶ ἀφελέσθαι αὐτοῦ τὸν σάκκον ὁ δὲ οὐκ ἐπείσθη 5 ἡ δὲ Εσθηρ προσεκαλέσατο Αχραθαῖον τὸν εὐνοῦχον αὐτῆς ὃς παρειστήκει αὐτῇ καὶ ἀπέστειλεν μαθεῖν αὐτῇ παρὰ τοῦ Μαρδοχαίου τὸ ἀκριβές 6 7 ὁ δὲ Μαρδοχαῖος ὑπέδειξεν αὐτῷ τὸ γεγονὸς καὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν ἣν ἐπηγγείλατο Αμαν τῷ βασιλεῖ εἰς τὴν γάζαν ταλάντων μυρίων ἵνα ἀπολέσῃ τοὺς Ιουδαίους 8 καὶ τὸ ἀντίγραφον τὸ ἐν Σούσοις ἐκτεθὲν ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀπολέσθαι αὐτοὺς ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ δεῖξαι τῇ Εσθηρ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ ἐντείλασθαι αὐτῇ εἰσελθούσῃ παραιτήσασθαι τὸν βασιλέα καὶ ἀξιῶσαι αὐτὸν περὶ τοῦ λαοῦ μνησθεῖσα ἡμερῶν ταπεινώσεώς σου ὡς ἐτράφης ἐν χειρί μου διότι Αμαν ὁ δευτερεύων τῷ βασιλεῖ ἐλάλησεν κα{Q'} ἡμῶν εἰς θάνατον ἐπικάλεσαι τὸν κύριον καὶ λάλησον τῷ βασιλεῖ περὶ ἡμῶν καὶ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἐκ θανάτου 9 εἰσελθὼν δὲ ὁ Αχραθαῖος ἐλάλησεν αὐτῇ πάντας τοὺς λόγους τούτους 10 εἶπεν δὲ Εσθηρ πρὸς Αχραθαῖον πορεύθητι πρὸς Μαρδοχαῖον καὶ εἰπὸν ὅτι 11 τὰ ἔθνη πάντα τῆς βασιλείας γινώσκει ὅτι πᾶς ἄνθρωπος ἢ γυνή ὃς εἰσελεύσεται πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα εἰς τὴν αὐλὴν τὴν ἐσωτέραν ἄκλητος οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτῷ σωτηρία πλὴν ᾧ ἐκτείνει ὁ βασιλεὺς τὴν χρυσῆν ῥάβδον οὗτος σωθήσεται κἀγὼ οὐ κέκλημαι εἰσελθεῖν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα εἰσὶν αὗται ἡμέραι τριάκοντα |
4 Esther heard, from her maidservants and from the chamberlains, what Mardochaeus did; she was bewildered at the news, and sent out clothes for him to wear instead of his sackcloth, but he would have none of it. 5 Then she sent for Athach, the chamberlain whom the king had deputed for her needs, bidding him go and ask Mardochaeus what his doings meant. 6 There in the public square, before the gate that led to the palace, Athach found him, 7 and heard from him all the news; of the money Aman had promised to the royal treasury in return for the Jews’ destruction. 8 Mardochaeus gave him a copy, too, of the edict which had been posted in Susan, bidding him shew it to the queen; go she must into the king’s presence, and plead there the cause of her people.[1] 9 So Athach went back with his message. 10 But she sent this answer: 11 No subject of the king’s grace, no province in his domains, but knows the inner court of the palace to be sacred. Man or woman entering it unbidden dies there and then; unless indeed the king should grant them life, by holding out his gold sceptre in token of pardon. These thirty days past I have not been summoned to the king’s presence; how can I venture in? |
4 Ingressæ autem sunt puellæ Esther et eunuchi, nuntiaveruntque ei. Quod audiens consternata est, et vestem misit, ut ablato sacco induerent eum: quam accipere noluit. 5 Accitoque Athach eunucho, quem rex ministrum ei dederat, præcepit ei ut iret ad Mardochæum, et disceret ab eo cur hoc faceret. 6 Egressusque Athach, ivit ad Mardochæum stantem in platea civitatis, ante ostium palatii: 7 qui indicavit ei omnia quæ acciderant: quomodo Aman promisisset ut in thesauros regis pro Judæorum nece inferret argentum. 8 Exemplar quoque edicti, quod pendebat in Susan, dedit ei, ut reginæ ostenderet, et moneret eam ut intraret ad regem et deprecaretur eum pro populo suo. 9 Regressus Athach, nuntiavit Esther omnia quæ Mardochæus dixerat. 10 Quæ respondit ei, et jussit ut diceret Mardochæo: 11 Omnes servi regis, et cunctæ, quæ sub ditione ejus sunt, norunt provinciæ, quod sive vir, sive mulier non vocatus, interius atrium regis intraverit, absque ulla cunctatione statim interficiatur: nisi forte rex auream virgam ad eum tetenderit pro signo clementiæ, atque ita possit vivere. Ego igitur quomodo ad regem intrare potero, quæ triginta jam diebus non sum vocata ad eum? |