Esther 3:11
in Esther 3“Keep your money,” said the king to Haman. “These people are given to you to do with them as you please.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the king said unto Haman, The silver is given to thee, the people also, to do with them as it seemeth good to thee.
KJV
And the king said unto Haman, The silver is given to thee, the people also, to do with them as it seemeth good to thee.
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This verse in Esther 3
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd the king said unto Haman, the silver is given unto thee,.... The 10,000 talents of silver Haman proposed to pay into the treasury were returned to him, or the king out of his great munificence refused to take them: the people also, to do with them as seemeth good unto thee; that is, the people of the Jews; he gave him full power to do with them as he thought fit, and who breathing revenge upon them, would not spare them.
This site's exposition
the king removed the signet ring
on Esther 3:10-11
The king gives his signet ring to "Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews," the name the narrator fixes on him. With the ring he hands over the people as well: "These people are given to you to do with them as you please".
This site's exposition
“Keep your money,” said the king
The king’s words about the silver are read two ways. Gill takes them as a refusal of Haman’s ten thousand talents, a show of royal generosity. Albert Barnes reads a grant to Haman of the possessions of the Jews to be killed, the plunder the decree of verse 13 allows.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Miserable is the kingdom that is at the disposal of such a head as this, which has one ear only, and a nose to be led by, but neither eyes nor brains, nor scarcely a tongue of its own.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The silver is given to thee - Some understand this to mean that Xerxes refused the silver which Haman had offered to him; but the passage is better explained as a grant to him of all the property of such Jews as should be executed Est 3:13.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
The king removed his ring. This represents the granting of any great matter that is required of the king; 6 Otherwise why would the king present the ring to Haman who did not ask for it but rather requested to annihilate the Jews.
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
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| לְהָמָ֔ן | lehaman | to Haman | H2001 → | 54 times |
| הַכֶּ֖סֶף | hakesef | the silver | H3701 → | 403 times |
| נָת֣וּן | natun | [is] given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לָ֑ךְ | lakh | to <the> you | ||
| וְהָעָ֕ם | vehaam | and the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת | laasot | to do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| בּ֖וֹ | bo | with <the> it | ||
| כַּטּ֥וֹב | katov | according to the good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| בְּעֵינֶֽיךָ׃ | beeineikha | in view your | H5869 → | 887 times |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
לְהָמָ֔ןto Haman
lehamanH2001 →54 times
הַכֶּ֖סֶףthe silver
hakesefH3701 →403 times
נָת֣וּן[is] given
natunH5414 →2011 times
לָ֑ךְto <the> you
lakh
וְהָעָ֕םand the people
vehaamH5971 →1873 times
לַעֲשׂ֥וֹתto do
laasotH6213 →2628 times
בּ֖וֹwith <the> it
bo
כַּטּ֥וֹבaccording to the good
katovH2896 →538 times
בְּעֵינֶֽיךָ׃in view your
beeineikhaH5869 →887 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
Luke 23:25As they had requested, he released the one imprisoned for insurrection and murder, and handed Jesus over to their will.
it leads to
- Acts 3:14
You rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.
- Mark 15:6–7
Now it was Pilate’s custom at the feast to release to the people a prisoner of their choosing.
- Mark 15:15
And wishing to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified.
- Acts 3:14
Through
Jeremiah 26:14As for me, here I am in your hands; do to me what you think is good and right.
it leads to
- Joshua 9:25
Now we are in your hands. Do to us whatever seems good and right to you.”
- 2 Samuel 15:26
But if He should say, ‘I do not delight in you,’ then here I am; let Him do to me whatever seems good to Him.”
- Joshua 9:25
Through
Jeremiah 40:4But now, behold, I am freeing you today from the chains that were on your wrists. If it pleases you to come with me to Babylon, then come, and I will take care of…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 39:11–12
Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had given orders about Jeremiah through Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, saying,
- Genesis 20:15
And Abimelech said, “Look, my land is before you. Settle wherever you please.”
- Jeremiah 39:11–12
Through
Psalms 73:7From their prosperity proceeds iniquity; the imaginations of their hearts run wild.
it leads to
- Psalms 17:10
They have closed their callous hearts; their mouths speak with arrogance.
- Psalms 17:10
Where this verse is studied
About Esther
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.