Esther 9 Summary

On the thirteenth day of Adar, when the king's commandment to be put in execution draws near, the Jews gather themselves together in all the provinces to lay hands on those who sought their hurt, and no man can withstand them. The rulers of the provinces, lieutenants, and deputies help the Jews because the fear of Mordecai falls upon them; for Mordecai is great in the king's house and his fame goes throughout all provinces. The Jews smite all their enemies with the sword and destroy them, doing what they will unto those that hated them. In Shushan the palace, they slay five hundred men, and they slay the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha. On the fourteenth day, they slay three hundred more in Shushan. The other Jews in the king's provinces gather together and stand for their lives, having rest from their enemies, and slay seventy-five thousand, laying not their hands on the prey. Mordecai writes these things and sends letters to all Jews, both near and far, establishing them to keep the fourteenth day of Adar and the fifteenth day yearly as days of feasting, joy, and sending portions to one another and gifts to the poor, commemorating the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies and the month turned from sorrow to joy. Esther and Mordecai confirm this second letter of Purim with all authority, and it is written in the book.