Esita unobe Nfumakadzi
1 Kwakati shule kwe zwithu izwezwi, Mambo Ahasurusi asinowiligwa kakumbula ngekwa Nfumakadzi Vashiti ne zwaakayita nenge ndaulo yaakadusa nge kukwe. 2 Ngono bakumbuludzi ba mambo bakan'dwa bakati “Imani mushakigwe baanadi bakanaka basathu bakaziba balume. 3 Dusani makulukota mu mituthu yose yenyu kuti bakubunganye baanadi ibaba bose bakanaka ku Harimo ku ng'umba ya mambo mu Susa. Mutole Hagayi we ngomwa iye wakalingilila bakadzi kuti ibe iye nlingilili wabo ngono baanadi ibaba bapiwe zose zwinobanakisa. 4 Ngono ha kuna mwanadi pakati kwabo unomushathisa mutole iye mu bumo gwe Nfumakadzi Vashiti.” Nkumbulo iwoyu ukashathisa mambo kwazo ngono kathama saikoku.
5 Ngono kwakabe kuna Njuta we nsha wa Bhenjamini egala mu ng'umba ya mambo ye Susa edang'wa Modekayi ali nkololo wa Jairi, Jairi ali nkololo wa Shimeyi, Shimeyi ali nkololo wa Kishi. 6 Kishi wakabe ali mmwe we bathu bakabe batapiwa mu Jerusalema ne mambo we Bajuta Jekoniya, bakabe batapiwa ndi Mambo Nebukadineza mambo we Bhabhiloni. 7 Modekayi ndiye wakalela mwana wa batatenini babe Hadasa iye unodang'wa Esita, asinobe afigwa ndi mmeyabe na tate babe. Modekayi wakabe ali gamu la Hadasa le bhuda ndibhude, ndizo akantola kanthama mwana uwe. Hadasa ihwoyo wakabe akanaka kwazo. 8 Ngono kukati ndaulo ya mambo isinozibisiwa bathu ne baanadi bakubunganyigwa ku ng'umba ya mambo mu Susa kakale batjibe pasi kwa Hagayi we nlingilili we bakadzi, Esita wakabe mmwe we baanadi bakatolegwa ku ng'umba ya mambo naiyebo kabe pasi kwa Hagayi. 9 Ngono Hagayi kati elinga mwanadi Esita kanshathisa kwazo, katangisa kampa zwinozhogwa zwinothama kuti anake kwazo ne zojiwa ali ega zwakatini ne balandakadzi banonshinga bali kutendeka bakashagwa mu bamwe banoshinga mu ng'umba ya mambo. Esita kanogala ku magalo akanaka ku ng'umba ye bakadzi. 10 Modekayi wakabe adwa Esita kuti asitongoleba ludzi gugwe kene makamu awe ndizo Esita kathama tjaakadwiwa, kasilebe. 11 Zhuba ne zhuba Modekayi wakabe eyenda yenda mbeli kwe ng'umba ye bakadzi kuti azibe kuti Esita utjani. 12 Baanadi bakabe begala mimwedzi ili gumi lina mibili bezwinakisa basathu bakayenda kuna mambo sekwakabe ili fanilo. Bakabe begala mimwedzi ili tathatu bezhola mafuta akathamwa nge nti unoyi mira, mimwedzi mimwe mitathatu bezhola zwinonuhwa zwinozipa ne zwithu zwe bakadzi zwinobanakisa. Bakabe beti ha baligila mimwedzi iyeyi ndiko kwabanga yenda benobona mambo. 13 Ngono kwabe kuti ha mwanadi eyenda kuna mambo wakabe epiwa tjimwe ne tjimwe koga tjaakumbila tjinonnakisa kuti ungayenda natjo ku ng'umba ya mambo. 14 Mwanadi wakabe eyenda kuna mambo mu madekwana ngono ekobuya mu mangwanana e tjimuka eyenda ku ng'umba ye bubili ye bakadzi, yakabe yakalingisana na Shashegazi we ngomwa wakabe ali iye wakalingisana ne bakadzi ba mambo. Wakabe asingake kabgwilila kuna mambo kuzhe kwe adang'wa ndi mambo. 15 Ngono kwakati tjibaka tjatjizha kuti Esita nkololokadzi wa Abihaile batatenini ba Modekayi, iye wakantola kanlela kayenda kuna mambo kakumbila tjaakabe adwiwa ndi Hagayi ngomwa ya mambo kakale ali nlingilili we bakadzi. Ngono Esita wakashathisa mmwe ne mmwe wakabe embona. 16 Kwakabe kuli mu mwedzi we bugumi we Tebeti, mu gole le kutendeka le mbuso wa Mambo Ahasurusi, ha Esita eyisiwa kuna mambo. 17 Ngono mambo kada Esita kupinda bakadzi bose, mu baanadi bose kawana ada Esita kupinda ngono kambadza tjiala tje bushe mu bumo gwa Nfumakadzi Vashiti. 18 Mambo bakathamila makulukota awe ne balanda babe mabhikwa makulu kuli kushathila Esita. Kakale mambo wakati kube ne zhuba le kunyaluluka mu mituthu yose, kakale kadusa zwipo sekwakabe kwakawolobeleka.
Modekayi unotjidza mambo
19 Mu tjibaka itjetji Modekayi wakabe abigwa mmwe we makulukota a mambo. 20 Esita iye wakabe asathu akazwizibisa bathu kuti Njuta koga sekwa akabe adwiwa kuti asilebe ndi Modekayi atji ntukununu. 21 Mu tjibaka itjetjo tja Modekayi ali mmwe we makulukota a mambo, makobgwa a Mambo Bhigithani na Tereshi ibo bakabe bakalingisana nge magalo a mambo, bakamukilana na mambo ngono bakazhigwa nge nkumbulo we kubulaya Mambo Ahasurusi. 22 Ngono Modekayi kaziba ngekwe nkumbulo ihwoyo ndizo kazibisa Nfumakadzi Esita, Esita kadwapo kazibisa mambo tjaabudziwa ndi Modekayi. 23 Ngono kwakati kusinoshakisisiwa kukawanika kuli malebeswa, balume ibaba bakabulawa ngo sungiligwa mu thungamakole. Ngono ikoku kwakakwagwa ngekwako mbeli kwa mambo mu lukwalo gwe Zwiyitikalo.
Esther Becomes Queen
1 After a while, King Xerxes got over being angry. But he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and the law that he had written because of her. 2 Then the king's personal servants said:
Your Majesty, a search must be made to find you some beautiful young women. 3 You can select officers in every province to bring them to the place where you keep your wives in the capital city of Susa. Put your servant Hegai in charge of them since that is his job. He can see to it that they are given the proper beauty treatments. 4 Then let the young woman who pleases you most take Vashti's place as queen.
King Xerxes liked these suggestions, and he followed them.
5 At this time a Jew named Mordecai was living in Susa. His father was Jair, and his grandfather Shimei was the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. 6 Kish was one of the people that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem, when he took King Jeconiah of Judah to Babylonia.
7 Mordecai had a very beautiful cousin named Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah. He had raised her as his own daughter, after her father and mother died. 8 When the king ordered the search for beautiful women, many were taken to the king's palace in Susa, and Esther was one of them.
Hegai was put in charge of all the women, 9 and from the first day, Esther was his favorite. He began her beauty treatments at once. He also gave her plenty of food and seven special maids from the king's palace, and they had the best rooms.
10 Mordecai had warned Esther not to tell anyone that she was a Jew, and she obeyed him. 11 He was anxious to see how Esther was getting along and to learn what had happened to her. So each day he would walk back and forth in front of the court where the women lived.
12 The young women were given beauty treatments for one whole year. The first six months their skin was rubbed with olive oil and myrrh, and the last six months it was treated with perfumes and cosmetics. Then each of them spent the night alone with King Xerxes. 13 When a young woman went to the king, she could wear whatever clothes or jewelry she chose from the women's living quarters. 14 In the evening she would go to the king, and the following morning she would go to the place where his wives stayed after being with him. There a man named Shaashgaz was in charge of the king's wives. Only the ones the king wanted and asked for by name could go back to the king.
15-16 Xerxes had been king for seven years when Esther's turn came to go to him during Tebeth, the tenth month of the year. Everyone liked Esther. The king's personal servant Hegai was in charge of the women, and Esther trusted Hegai and asked him what she ought to take with her.
17 Xerxes liked Esther more than he did any of the other young women. None of them pleased him as much as she did, and he immediately fell in love with her and crowned her queen in place of Vashti. 18 In honor of Esther he gave a big dinner for his leaders and officials. Then he declared a holiday everywhere in his kingdom and gave expensive gifts.
Mordecai Saves the King's Life
19 When the young women were brought together again, Esther's cousin Mordecai had become a palace official. 20 He had told Esther never to tell anyone that she was a Jew, and she obeyed him, just as she had always done.
21 Bigthana and Teresh were the two men who guarded King Xerxes' rooms, but they got angry with the king and decided to kill him. 22 Mordecai found out about their plans and asked Queen Esther to tell the king what he had found out. 23 King Xerxes learned that Mordecai's report was true, and he had the two men hanged. Then the king had all of this written down in his record book as he watched.