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And it came to pass in the days of Achashverosh— this is Achashverosh who reigned from Hodu to Kush, over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces—
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in those days, when King Achashverosh sat upon the Throne of his Kingdom in Shushan the citadel,
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in the third year of his reign, he made a feast for all his rulers and his servants. The power of Paras and Madai, the nobles and rulers of the provinces, were before him.
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And he displayed the wealth of the glory of his Kingdom and the splendor of the honor of his greatness for many days— one hundred and eighty days.
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And when these days were completed, the king made a feast for all the people who were present in Shushan the citadel, from the great to the small, for seven days in the court of the garden of the king’s palace.
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There were hangings of white cloth, fine linen and blue, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple upon rings of silver and pillars of marble. Couches of gold and silver stood upon a pavement of alabaster, marble, mother-of-pearl, and precious stone.
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Drinks were given in vessels of gold, each vessel different from another, and royal wine was abundant according to the hand of the king.
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And the drinking was according to decree: “No compulsion.” For thus the king had established concerning every official of his house, that each ish should do according to his own desire.
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Vashti the queen also made a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to King Achashverosh.
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On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was good with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Charvona, Bigtha, Avagtha, Zetar, and Karkas— the seven eunuchs who served before the face of King Achashverosh—
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to bring Vashti the queen before the face of the king, wearing the royal crown, to show the peoples and the rulers her beauty, for she was beautiful in appearance.
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But Queen Vashti refused to come at the Word of the King which had been delivered by the hand of the eunuchs. And the king became exceedingly angry, and his wrath burned within him.
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Then the king said to the wise men who knew the times— for thus was the king’s manner before all who knew law and Judgment.
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And those nearest to him were Karshena, Shetar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memukhan— the seven rulers of Paras and Madai who saw the face of the king and sat first in the Kingdom.
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“According to law, what shall be done to Queen Vashti, because she did not perform the Word of King Achashverosh which was delivered by the hand of the eunuchs?”
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And Memukhan said before the king and the rulers: “Queen Vashti has not acted crookedly against the king alone, but also against all the rulers and against all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Achashverosh.
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For the matter of the queen shall go out to all the women, causing them to despise their husbands in their eyes, when they say: ‘King Achashverosh commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before his face, but she did not come.’
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And this very day the noble women of Paras and Madai who hear of the matter of the queen shall speak likewise to all the king’s rulers, and there shall be an abundance of contempt and wrath.
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If it is good before the king, let a Royal Word go forth from before him, and let it be written among the laws of Paras and Madai so that it cannot be passed over: that Vashti shall no longer come before King Achashverosh, and let the king give her royal station to another ishah better than she.
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And when the king’s decree, which he shall make, is heard throughout all his Kingdom— for it is great— all the women shall give honor to their husbands, from the great to the small.”
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And the matter was good in the eyes of the king and the rulers. And the king acted according to the word of Memukhan.
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He sent sefarim into all the king’s provinces, to every province according to its writing, and to every people according to its tongue, that every ish should rule in his own house and speak according to the tongue of his own people.