Esther 6:1
in Esther 6That night sleep escaped the king; so he ordered the Book of Records, the Chronicles, to be brought in and read to him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
On that night could not the king sleep; and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles, and they were read before the king.
KJV
On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king.
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This verse in Esther 6
Commentary
9 notes on this verseSleep was removed from the eyes of Ahasuerus, whom the Seventy call Artaxerxes, that he might turn over the memoirs of his faithful ministers and come on Mordecai, by whose evidence he was delivered from a conspiracy; and that thus Esther might be more acceptable and the whole people of the Jews escape imminent death.
This site's exposition
That night sleep escaped the king
"That night sleep escaped the king," and the narrator lets an ordinary sleepless night carry the plot forward. No reason is given and no hand is named. The king has "the Book of Records, the Chronicles" read to him, and the reversal opens from a night the text never explains.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Above all we should at least know that there are three origins of our thoughts, that is, from God, from the devil and from ourselves. They come from God when he deigns to visit us with the illumination of the Holy Spirit, lifting us up to a higher state of progress; or when we have made but little progress or through sloth have been overcome, he chastens us with most salutary compunction; or when he discloses to us heavenly mysteries or turns our purpose and will to better actions. This was the case of king Ahasuerus when, chastened by the Lord, he was prompted to ask for the books of the annals, by which he was reminded of the good deeds of Mordecai and promoted him to a position of the highest honor and at once recalled his most cruel sentence concerning the slaughter of the Jews.
The Medieval Church1 voice
What can the fact that the king spent a sleepless night mean but that which is written in the Psalm: "See, the one who guards Israel will not sleep or slumber" (Psalms 121). They read before him the histories and chronicles of earlier times in …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Commentary on Chapter VI 1. Sleep - How vain are all the contrivances of foolish man against the wise and omnipotent God, who hath the hearts and hands of kings and all men perfectly at his disposal, and can by such trivial accidents (as they are accounted) change their minds, and produce such terrible effects.
But God put it into his heart to call for it, rather than for music or songs, which the Persian kings used to be attended with ( Dan. vi. 18 ) and which would have been more likely to compose him to rest. When men do that which is unaccountable we know not what God intends by it.
On that night could not the king sleep,....
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
On that night could not the king sleep - The Targum says the king had a dream, which was as follows: - “And the king saw one in the similitude of a man who spoke these words to him: Haman desireth to slay thee, and to make himself king in thy stead. Behold, he will come unto thee early in the morning, to ask from thee the man who rescued thee from death, that he may slay him: but say thou unto Haman, What shall be done for the man whose honor the king studieth?
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
the king . . . commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles--In Eastern courts, there are scribes or officers whose duty it is to keep a journal of every occurrence worthy of notice. A book of this kind, abounding with anecdotes, is full of interest.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
The king’s sleep was disturbed. It was a miracle. 1 Otherwise, would Achashveirosh’s sleep be disturbed, particularly on this night, after having partied earlier in the day. Achashveirosh’s sleep was disturbed by a dream in which he saw Haman grabbing a sword to kill him.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בַּלַּ֣יְלָה | balaylah | in the night | H3915 → | |
| הַה֔וּא | hahu' | <the> that | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| נָדְדָ֖ה | nadedah | it fled | H5074 → | |
| שְׁנַ֣ת | shenat | [the] sleep of | H8142 → | |
| הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וַיֹּ֗אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לְהָבִ֞יא | lehavi' | to bring | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| סֵ֤פֶר | sefer | [the] book of | H5612 → | 186 times |
| הַזִּכְרֹנוֹת֙ | hazikhronot | the reminders | H2146 → | |
| דִּבְרֵ֣י | divrei | [the] words of | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| הַיָּמִ֔ים | haiyamim | the days | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| וַיִּהְי֥וּ | vaiyihyu | and they were | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| נִקְרָאִ֖ים | nikraim | read aloud | H7121 → | 733 times |
| לִפְנֵ֥י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
בַּלַּ֣יְלָהin the night
balaylahH3915 →
הַה֔וּא<the> that
hahu'H1931 →1879 times
נָדְדָ֖הit fled
nadedahH5074 →
שְׁנַ֣ת[the] sleep of
shenatH8142 →
הַמֶּ֑לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
וַיֹּ֗אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לְהָבִ֞יאto bring
lehavi'H935 →2568 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
סֵ֤פֶר[the] book of
seferH5612 →186 times
הַזִּכְרֹנוֹת֙the reminders
hazikhronotH2146 →
דִּבְרֵ֣י[the] words of
divreiH1697 →1440 times
הַיָּמִ֔יםthe days
haiyamimH3117 →2304 times
וַיִּהְי֥וּand they were
vaiyihyuH1961 →3559 times
נִקְרָאִ֖יםread aloud
nikraimH7121 →733 times
לִפְנֵ֥י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 41:17The poor and needy seek water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
it leads to
- Isaiah 55:1
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost!
- Isaiah 30:19
O people in Zion who dwell in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will surely be gracious when you cry for help; when He hears, He will answer you.
- Isaiah 44:3
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
- Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
- Psalms 72:12–13
For he will deliver the needy who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper.
- Isaiah 55:1
Through
Daniel 6:18Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting. No entertainment was brought before him, and sleep fled from him.
it leads to
- Daniel 2:1
In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that troubled his spirit, and sleep escaped him.
- Daniel 2:1
Through
Esther 5:8If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, may the king and Haman come tomorrow to the…
it leads to
- Proverbs 16:9
A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.
- Proverbs 16:9
Through
Daniel 2:1In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that troubled his spirit, and sleep escaped him.
it leads to
- Daniel 4:5
I had a dream, and it frightened me; while in my bed, the images and visions in my mind alarmed me.
- Daniel 4:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this chapter
About Esther
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Against the Pelagians 3.10; John Cassian, CONFERENCE 1.19; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil, The Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Rabanus Maurus, Commentary on Esther.