Mordecai Persuades Esther to Help

When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes,(A) put on sackcloth and ashes,(B) and went out into the city, wailing(C) loudly and bitterly. But he went only as far as the king’s gate,(D) because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

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Esther Agrees to Help the Jews

When Mordecai learned all that had happened, [a]he (A)tore his clothes and put on sackcloth (B)and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city. He (C)cried out with a loud and bitter cry. He went as far as the front of the king’s gate, for no one might enter the king’s gate clothed with sackcloth. And in every province where the king’s command and decree arrived, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

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Footnotes

  1. Esther 4:1 Lit. Mordecai

Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.(A)

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And he took for himself a potsherd with which to scrape himself (A)while he sat in the midst of the ashes.

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13 Then they sat on the ground(A) with him for seven days and seven nights.(B) No one said a word to him,(C) because they saw how great his suffering was.

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13 So they sat down with him on the ground (A)seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.

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30 They will raise their voice
    and cry bitterly over you;
they will sprinkle dust(A) on their heads
    and roll(B) in ashes.(C)
31 They will shave their heads(D) because of you
    and will put on sackcloth.
They will weep(E) over you with anguish of soul
    and with bitter mourning.(F)

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30 They will make their voice heard because of you;
They will cry bitterly and (A)cast dust on their heads;
They (B)will roll about in ashes;
31 They will (C)shave themselves completely bald because of you,
Gird themselves with sackcloth,
And weep for you
With bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.

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