Esther 8:15
in Esther 8Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal garments of blue and white, with a large gold crown and a purple robe of fine linen. And the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Mordecai went forth from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a robe of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan shouted and was glad.
KJV
And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.
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This verse in Esther 8
Commentary
10 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
See the Est 1:6 note. The “crown” was not a crown like the king’s, but a mere golden band or coronet. A garment - Or, “an inner robe.” The tunic or inner robe of the king was of purple, striped with white.
This site's exposition
royal garments of blue and white
Mordecai goes out "in royal garments of blue and white, with a large gold crown and a purple robe of fine linen." "And the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced," reversing 3:15. The reversal that has run through rings, houses and gallows now shows in cloth and color.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
It is to the great credit of our sacred teachers that with their teaching and encouragement the faithful are able to conquer, through the power of the supreme king, the savagery of a most wicked enemy; and their reward for this awaits them in the …
The glory of the holy teachers is exalted because it is through their doctrine and exhortation that the faithful defeat the cruelty of their most evil enemy with the help and strength of their heavenly king. And their reward remains with them in the heavenly …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Great crown - Which the chief of the Persian princes were permitted to wear but with sufficient distinction from the king's crown. The city - Not only Jews, but the greatest number of the citizens, who by the law of nature abhorred bloody counsels, and had a complacency in acts of mercy.
It was but lately that we had Esther and Mordecai in tears and in fears, but fasting and praying; now let us see how to them there arose light in darkness. Haman was hanged as a traitor, therefore his estate was forfeited to the crown, and the king gave it all to Esther, in recompence for the fright that wicked man had put her into and the vexation he had created her,
Haman was hanged; and, when the wicked perish, there is shouting, Prov. xi. Mordecai was preferred; and, when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice.
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Mordecai went out . . . in royal apparel--He was invested with the khelaat of official honor. A dress of blue and white was held in great estimation among the Persians; so that Mordecai, whom the king delighted to honor, was in fact arrayed in the royal dress and insignia.
Blue and white - Probably stripe interchanged with stripe; or blue faced and bordered with white fur. A great crown of gold - A large turban, ornamented with gold, jewels, etc. Fine linen and purple - See on Gen 41:42 (note). The בץ buts, here mentioned, is most probably the same with the byssus of the ancients; supposed to be the beautiful tuft or beard, growing out of the side of the pinna longa, a very large species of muscle, found on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea, of which there are a pair of gloves in the British Museum. This byssus I have described elsewhere. Shushan - was glad - Haman was too proud to be popular; few lamented his fall.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
And a cloak of linen. A wrap of linen, a shawl in which to enwrap oneself.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
Rushed. They hastened them to act swiftly, because they had no time, for they had to get ahead of the first couriers to overtake them.
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. 4 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
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּמָרְדֳּכַ֞י | umaredokhai | and Mordecai | H4782 → | 60 times |
| יָצָ֣א׀ | yatza' | he went out | H3318 → | 1067 times |
| מִלִּפְנֵ֣י | milifnei | from to before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| הַמֶּ֗לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| בִּלְב֤וּשׁ | bilvush | in clothing of | H3830 → | 33 times |
| מַלְכוּת֙ | malkhut | royalty of | H4438 → | 91 times |
| תְּכֵ֣לֶת | tekhelet | violet | H8504 → | |
| וָח֔וּר | vachur | and white cloth | H2353 → | |
| וַעֲטֶ֤רֶת | vaateret | and a crown of | H5850 → | |
| זָהָב֙ | zahav | gold | H2091 → | 389 times |
| גְּדוֹלָ֔ה | gedolah | great | H1419 → | 526 times |
| וְתַכְרִ֥יךְ | vetakhrikh | and a robe of | H8509 → | |
| בּ֖וּץ | butz | fine linen | H948 → | |
| וְאַרְגָּמָ֑ן | veargaman | and purple | H713 → | |
| וְהָעִ֣יר | vehair | and the city of | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| שׁוּשָׁ֔ן | shushan | Susa | H7800 → | 21 times |
| צָהֲלָ֖ה | tzahalah | it shouted for joy | H6670 → | |
| וְשָׂמֵֽחָה׃ | vesamechah | and it rejoiced | H8055 → |
וּמָרְדֳּכַ֞יand Mordecai
umaredokhaiH4782 →60 times
יָצָ֣א׀he went out
yatza'H3318 →1067 times
מִלִּפְנֵ֣יfrom to before
milifneiH6440 →2123 times
הַמֶּ֗לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
בִּלְב֤וּשׁin clothing of
bilvushH3830 →33 times
מַלְכוּת֙royalty of
malkhutH4438 →91 times
תְּכֵ֣לֶתviolet
tekheletH8504 →
וָח֔וּרand white cloth
vachurH2353 →
וַעֲטֶ֤רֶתand a crown of
vaateretH5850 →
זָהָב֙gold
zahavH2091 →389 times
גְּדוֹלָ֔הgreat
gedolahH1419 →526 times
וְתַכְרִ֥יךְand a robe of
vetakhrikhH8509 →
בּ֖וּץfine linen
butzH948 →
וְאַרְגָּמָ֑ןand purple
veargamanH713 →
וְהָעִ֣ירand the city of
vehairH5892 →1090 times
שׁוּשָׁ֔ןSusa
shushanH7800 →21 times
צָהֲלָ֖הit shouted for joy
tzahalahH6670 →
וְשָׂמֵֽחָה׃and it rejoiced
vesamechahH8055 →
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
Proverbs 29:2When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.
it leads to
- Proverbs 28:12
When the righteous triumph, there is great glory, but when the wicked rise, men hide themselves.
- Proverbs 11:10
When the righteous thrive, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.
- Proverbs 28:28
When the wicked come to power, people hide themselves; but when they perish, the righteous flourish.
- Ecclesiastes 10:5
There is an evil I have seen under the sun—an error that proceeds from the ruler:
- Proverbs 28:12
Through
Luke 16:19Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 16:49
Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed, and complacent; they did not help the poor and needy.
- Ezekiel 16:49
Through
Matthew 6:29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 9:20–22
All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, because it was accounted as nothing in the…
- 2 Chronicles 9:4–6
the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants and cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the LORD, it took her…
- 2 Chronicles 9:20–22
Through
Genesis 41:42Then Pharaoh removed the signet ring from his finger, put it on Joseph’s finger, clothed him in garments of fine linen, and placed a gold chain around his neck.
it leads to
- Daniel 5:29
Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel in purple, placed a gold chain around his neck, and proclaimed him the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
- Daniel 5:29
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Esther
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; 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; Rabanus Maurus, Commentary on Esther and Rabanus Maurus, EXPLANATION ON THE BOOK OF ESTHER 12.