King throws party to honor himself
1This is a story from the time of King Xerxes [1] the Great. He ruled a Persian empire of 127 provinces. They stretched from the borders of India in the east to Ethiopia in the south. 2Xerxes ran the empire from his capital city of Susa. [2]3He hosted a royal dinner during his third year as king. Officials, nobles, and military leaders came from Persia and Media, [3] along with the provinces scattered throughout his sprawling empire. 4The king followed that dinner with six months of extravagant displays of his wealth and power—180 days of regal pomp and circumstance.
5Afterward, the king hosted seven days of dining in the garden courtyard. He invited everyone in Susa, from the high and mighty to the low and hungry. 6Cotton curtains, blue and white framed the garden. Purple linen cords tied them back to marble pillars. Gold and silver benches provided guests a place to sit and rest. Under their feet lay a canvas of mosaics etched into pavements of marble, mother-of-pearl, and expensive stone.
Cheers!
7The king brought out wine, and plenty of it—served in expensive cups, including gold goblets. 8King Xerxes ordered no limits on the wine. [4] Everyone could drink all the wine they wanted. If someone wanted more, they got more.9Queen Vashti, [5] threw a palace party, too. This one for the women.
10At the end of the seven days of drinking lots of wine, the king was juiced and happy. He called in seven eunuchs [6] who serve the palace women. The eunuchs were Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Karkas. 11He told them to bring the queen, wearing her crown. He wanted officials who served him to get a good look at her because she was easy on the eyes. Yessir.
12The queen said no. [7] The king wasn’t happy anymore. And he got hot-headed.
When the queen tells the king “No”
13The king asked his advisor what the Persian law had to say about a situation like this. That’s what he did whenever he had questions about the law. 14Xerxes had appointed seven top advisors from the territories of Persia and Media. They were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan.15The king asked them, “I gave the eunuchs an order to pass on to Queen Vashti. She snubbed me. What does the law say I should do about this?”
16Memucan told the king, “Queen Vashti has done more than hurt you. She hurt every man here and every man in every province of Persia. [8] 17Women everywhere will hear what she did. Then they’ll start treating their husband with disrespect, too. They’ll say, ‘King Xerxes gave Queen Vashti an order and she refused.’ 18Word of this is already spreading. Women everywhere in Persia and Media are going to hear about this. When they do, men better brace themselves. Women are coming, and they’re mad and bringing baggage.
King’s decree: Men boss the home
19If you’re willing, here’s what you should do. Fire the queen. Forbid her from ever coming to see you again. [9] Then replace her. Find another top wife to serve as your queen. 20If you do this, women everywhere in your vast empire will show respect to their husbands, rich or poor.” [10]21King Xerxes and his officials loved Memucan’s advice. 22So, he sent orders to every province in his empire—written in a letter translated into their own languages. [11] He declared every man the boss of his own family. Period.
