Esther 2:5
New International Version
Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish,

New Living Translation
At that time there was a Jewish man in the fortress of Susa whose name was Mordecai son of Jair. He was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei.

English Standard Version
Now there was a Jew in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

Berean Standard Bible
Now there was at the citadel of Susa a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish.

King James Bible
Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;

New King James Version
In Shushan the citadel there was a certain Jew whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite.

New American Standard Bible
There was a Jew at the citadel in Susa whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

NASB 1995
Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

NASB 1977
Now there was a Jew in Susa the capital whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Legacy Standard Bible
Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew. And his name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Amplified Bible
There was a certain Jew in the citadel of Susa whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Christian Standard Bible
In the fortress of Susa, there was a Jewish man named Mordecai son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
In the fortress of Susa, there was a Jewish man named Mordecai son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite.

American Standard Version
There was a certain Jew in Shushan the palace, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And there was a Jewish man in Shushan the palace, and his name was Murdacai, son of Yair, son of Shemei, son of Qish, from the tribe of Benyamin

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Now there was a Jew in the city Susa, and his name was Mardochaeus, the son of Jairus, the son of Semeias, the son of Cisaeus, of the tribe of Benjamin;

Contemporary English Version
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.

Douay-Rheims Bible
There was a man in the city of Susan, a Jew, named Mardochai, the son of Jair, the son of Semei, the son of Cis, of the race of Jemini,

English Revised Version
There was a certain Jew in Shushan the palace, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;

GOD'S WORD® Translation
In the fortress of Susa there was a Jew from the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai. He was the son of Jair, the grandson of Shimei, and the great-grandson of Kish.

Good News Translation
There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei.

International Standard Version
In Susa the capital there was a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin, Jair's son Mordecai, who was a descendant of Kish's son Shimei the descendant of Benjamin.

JPS Tanakh 1917
There was a certain Jew in Shushan the castle, whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair the son of Shimei the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Literal Standard Version
A man, a Jew, there has been in Shushan the palace, and his name [is] Mordecai son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjamite—

Majority Standard Bible
Now there was at the citadel of Susa a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish.

New American Bible
There was in the royal precinct of Susa a certain Jew named Mordecai, son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

NET Bible
Now there happened to be a Jewish man in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai. He was the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

New Revised Standard Version
Now there was a Jew in the citadel of Susa whose name was Mordecai son of Jair son of Shimei son of Kish, a Benjaminite.

New Heart English Bible
There was a certain Jew in the citadel of Shushan, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Webster's Bible Translation
Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite;

World English Bible
There was a certain Jew in the citadel of Susa whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Young's Literal Translation
A man, a Jew, there hath been in Shushan the palace, and his name is Mordecai son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjamite --

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Esther Finds Favor
5Now there was at the citadel of Susa a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish. 6He had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon among those taken captive with Jeconiah king of Judah.…

Cross References
Esther 2:4
Then let the young woman who pleases the king become queen in place of Vashti." This suggestion pleased the king, and he acted accordingly.

Esther 3:2
All the royal servants at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded that this be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage.


Treasury of Scripture

Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;

Shushan.

Esther 2:3
And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women, unto the custody of Hege the king's chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them:

Esther 1:2
That in those days, when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan the palace,

Esther 5:1
Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's house, over against the king's house: and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house, over against the gate of the house.

a certain Jew.

Esther 3:2-6
And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence…

Esther 10:3
For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed.

the son of Shimei.

1 Samuel 9:1
Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power.

2 Samuel 16:5
And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera: he came forth, and cursed still as he came.

Jump to Previous
Benjamin Benjaminite Benjamite Capital Castle Citadel Fortress Jair Ja'ir Jew Kish Mordecai Mor'decai Palace Shimei Shim'e-I Shushan Susa Tribe
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Benjamin Benjaminite Benjamite Capital Castle Citadel Fortress Jair Ja'ir Jew Kish Mordecai Mor'decai Palace Shimei Shim'e-I Shushan Susa Tribe
Esther 2
1. Out of the choice of virgins a queen is to be chosen.
5. Mordecai the nursing father of Esther.
8. Esther preferred before the rest.
12. The manner of purification, and going in to the king.
15. Esther, best pleasing the king, is made queen.
21. Mordecai, discovering a treason, is recorded in the chronicles.














(5) Mordecai.--Canon Rawlinson is disposed to identify Mordecai with Matacas, who was the most powerful of the eunuchs in the reign of Xerxes. It may be assumed that Mordecai was a eunuch, by the way in which he was allowed access to the royal harem (Esther 2:11; Esther 2:22). The name Mordecai occurs in Ezra 2:2; Nehemiah 7:7, as one of those who returned to Judaea with Zerubbabel.

The son of Jair.--It is probable that the names here given are those of the actual father, grandfather, and great-grandfather of Mordecai; though some have thought that they are merely some of the more famous ancestors, Shimei being assumed to be the assailant of David, and Kish the father of Saul. The character of Mordecai strikes us at the outset as that of an ambitious, worldly man; who, though numbers of his tribe had returned to the land of their fathers, preferred to remain behind on the alien soil. The heroic lament of the exiles by Babel's streams, who would not sing the Lord's song in a strange land, who looked with horror at the thought that Jerusalem should be forgotten--such were not Mordecai's thoughts, far from it: why endure hardships, when there is a chance of his adopted daughter's beauty catching the eye of the sensual king, when through her he may vanquish his rival, and become that king's chief minister?

Verse 5. - Now in Shushan... there was a certain Jew. Hitherto the narrative has been a mere story of the Persian court. Now at last a Jew is brought on the scene, very abruptly; and the history is to a certain extent attached to the other sacred books, and assigned its place, by the genealogy which follows. Whose name was Mordecai. The name Mordecai must almost certainly be connected with that of Marduk, or Merodach, the Babylonian and Assyrian god. But it may have been given to his son by a Baby-Ionian Jew without any thought of its derivation or meaning, perhaps out of compliment to a Babylonian friend or master. Another Mordecai, also a Jew, is mentioned by Ezra (Ezra 2:2) and Nehemiah (Nehemiah 7:7).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
[Now] there was
הָיָ֖ה (hā·yāh)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

at the citadel
הַבִּירָ֑ה (hab·bî·rāh)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1002: A castle, palace

of Susa
בְּשׁוּשַׁ֣ן (bə·šū·šan)
Preposition-b | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 7800: Susa -- residence of person kings

a Jewish
יְהוּדִ֔י (yə·hū·ḏî)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3064: Jews -- Jewish

man
אִ֣ישׁ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

from the tribe of Benjamin
יְמִינִֽי׃ (yə·mî·nî)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1145: Benjamite -- a Benjaminite

named
וּשְׁמ֣וֹ (ū·šə·mōw)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 8034: A name

Mordecai
מָרְדֳּכַ֗י (mā·rə·do·ḵay)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 4782: Mordecai -- a companion of Zerubbabel, also a cousin of Esther

son
בֶּ֣ן (ben)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

of Jair,
יָאִ֧יר (yā·’îr)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 2971: Jair -- 'he enlightens', three Israelites

the son
בֶּן־ (ben-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

of Shimei,
שִׁמְעִ֛י (šim·‘î)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 8096: Shimei -- the name of a number of Israelites

the son
בֶּן־ (ben-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

of Kish.
קִ֖ישׁ (qîš)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 7027: Kish -- father of Saul, also the name of several other Israelites


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OT History: Esther 2:5 There was a certain Jew (Est Esth. Es)
Esther 2:4
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