Bible Society of South Africa

Season after Pentecost: Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost

First reading and Psalm

1And so the king and Haman went to eat with Esther 2for a second time. Over the wine the king asked her again, “Now, Queen Esther, what do you want? Tell me and you shall have it. I'll even give you half the empire.”

3Queen Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty to grant my humble request, my wish is that I may live and that my people may live. 4My people and I have been sold for slaughter. If it were nothing more serious than being sold into slavery, I would have kept quiet and not bothered you about it; but we are about to be destroyed — exterminated!”

5Then King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who dares to do such a thing? Where is this man?”

6Esther answered, “Our enemy, our persecutor, is this evil man Haman!”

Haman stared at the king and queen in terror.

Esther 7:1-6GNBOpen in Bible reader

9Then one of them, who was named Harbonah, said, “Haman even went so far as to build a gallows at his house so that he could hang Mordecai, who saved Your Majesty's life. And it's 22 metres tall!”

“Hang Haman on it!” the king commanded.

10So Haman was hanged on the gallows that he had built for Mordecai. Then the king's anger cooled down.

Esther 7:9-10GNBOpen in Bible reader

The Festival of Purim

20Mordecai had these events written down and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, throughout the Persian Empire, 21telling them to observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar as holidays every year. 22These were the days on which the Jews had rid themselves of their enemies; this was a month that had been turned from a time of grief and despair into a time of joy and happiness. They were told to observe these days with feasts and parties, giving gifts of food to one another and to the poor.

Esther 9:20-22GNBOpen in Bible reader

God the Protector of his People

1What if the LORD had not been on our side?

Answer, O Israel!

2“If the LORD had not been on our side

when our enemies attacked us,

3then they would have swallowed us alive

in their furious anger against us;

4then the flood would have carried us away,

the water would have covered us,

5the raging torrent would have drowned us.”

6Let us thank the LORD,

who has not let our enemies destroy us.

7We have escaped like a bird from a hunter's trap;

the trap is broken, and we are free!

8Our help comes from the LORD,

who made heaven and earth.

Psalms 124:1-8GNBOpen in Bible reader
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