Esther 1 · Verse 12

Esther 1:12

But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.

Esther 1:12, King James Version

Esther 1:12 in other translations

BSB	Queen Vashti, however, refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs. And the king became furious, and his anger burned within him.
WEB	But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by the eunuchs. Therefore the king was very angry, and his anger burned in him.
ASV	But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by the chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
YLT	and the queen Vashti refuseth to come in at the word of the king that is by the hand of the eunuchs, and the king is very wroth, and his fury hath burned in him.
DARBY	But the queen Vashti refused to come at the word of the king which was sent by the chamberlains; and the king was very wroth, and his fury burned in him.
BBE	But when the servants gave her the king's order, Vashti the queen said she would not come: then the king was very angry, and his heart was burning with wrath.
Webster	But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.

What does Esther 1:12 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Esther 1:10-12

10-12. On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine--As the feast days advanced, the drinking was more freely indulged in, so that the close was usually marked by great excesses of revelry. he commanded ... the seven chamberlains--These were the eunuchs who had charge of the royal harem. The refusal of Vashti to obey an order which required her to make an indecent exposure of herself before a…

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Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 12 Vashti refused to come - And much should she be commended for it. What woman, possessing even a common share of prudence and modesty, could consent to expose herself to the view of such a group of drunken Bacchanalians? Her courage was equal to her modesty: she would resist the royal mandate, rather than violate the rules of chaste decorum. Her contempt of worldly grandeur, when brought in competition with what every modest woman holds dear and sacred, is worthy of observation. She well knew that this act of disobedience would cost her her crown, if not her life also: but she was regardless of both, as she conceived her virtue and honor were at stake. Her humility was greatly evidenced in this refusal. She was beautiful; and might have shown herself to great advantage, and have had a fine opportunity of gratifying her vanity, if she had any: but she refused to come. Hail, noble woman! be thou a pattern to all thy sex on every similar occasion! Surely, every thing considered, we have few women like Vashti; for some of the highest of the land will dress and deck themselves with the utmost splendor, even to the selvedge of their fortunes, to exhibit themselves at balls, plays, galas, operas, and public assemblies of all kinds, (nearly half naked), that they may be seen and admired of men, and even, to the endless reproach and broad suspicion of their honor and chastity, figure away in masquerades! Vashti must be considered at the top of her sex: - Rara avis in terris, nigroque simillima cygno. A black swan is not half so rare a bird.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Esther 1:10-22

Ahasuerus's feast ended in heaviness, by his own folly. Seasons of peculiar festivity often end in vexation. Superiors should be careful not to command what may reasonably be disobeyed. But when wine is in, men's reason departs from them. He that had rule over 127 provinces, had no rule over his own spirit. But whether the passion or the policy of the king was served by this decree, God's providence made way for…

Read the full comment on Esther 1:10-22 →

Esther 1:12 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַתְּמָאֵ֞ןva.te.ma.'Enand she refusedH3985

הַמַּלְכָּ֣הha.mal.Kahthe queenH4436

וַשְׁתִּ֗יvash.TiVashtiH2060

לָבוֹא֙la.Vo'to comeH935

בִּדְבַ֣רbid.Varat [the] word ofH1697

הַמֶּ֔לֶךְha.Me.lekhthe kingH4428

אֲשֶׁ֖ר'a.SherwhichH834

בְּיַ֣דbe.Yad[was] by [the] hand ofH3027

הַסָּרִיסִ֑יםha.sa.ri.Simthe eunuchsH5631

וַיִּקְצֹ֤ףvai.yik.Tzofand he was angryH7107

הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ha.Me.lekhthe kingH4428

מְאֹ֔דme.'OdexceedinglyH3966

וַחֲמָת֖וֹva.cha.ma.Toand rage hisH2534

בָּעֲרָ֥הba.'a.Rahit burnedH1197

בֽוֹ\׃voin <the> him

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Esther 1:12

Proverbs 19:12
The king’s wrath is as the roaring of a lion; but his favour is as dew upon the grass.
1 Peter 3:1
Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
Proverbs 20:2
The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul.
Deuteronomy 29:20
The Lord will not spare him, but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven.
Exodus 32:22
And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief.
Nahum 1:6
Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.
Daniel 2:12
For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
Psalms 79:5
How long, Lord? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire?
Daniel 3:13
Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego. Then they brought these men before the king.
Ephesians 5:22
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
Psalms 74:1
Maschil of Asaph. O God, why hast thou cast us off for ever? why doth thine anger smoke against the sheep of thy pasture?
Ephesians 5:24
Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

the queen.This refusal of Vashti's, to expose herself to the view of such a group of drunken Bacchanalians, was highly praiseworthy, and became the dignity of her rank and the modesty of her sex.
refused.
Ge 3:16; Eph 5:22,24; 1Pe 3:1
by his chamberlains. Heb. which was by the hand of hiseunuchs. was the king.
Pr 19:12; 20:2; Da 2:12; 3:13,19; Na 1:6; Re 6:16,17
burned.
Ex 32:19,22; De 29:20; Ps 74:1; 79:5

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Esther 1:11
To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on.
Esther 1:12
But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
Esther 1:13
Then the king said to the wise men, which knew the times, (for so was the king’s manner toward all that knew law and judgment:

Read all of Esther 1

Esther 1:12 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Mas la reina Vasthi no quiso comparecer á la orden del rey, enviada por mano de los eunucos; y enojóse el rey muy mucho, y encendióse en él su ira.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Mais la reine Vasthi refusa de venir à la parole du roi transmise par les eunuques. Et le roi se mit fort en colère, et sa fureur s’embrasa en lui.
German Elberfelder 1871	Aber die Königin Vasti weigerte sich, auf das Wort des Königs zu kommen, welches ihr durch die Kämmerer überbracht wurde. Da erzürnte der König sehr, und sein Zorn entbrannte in ihm.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Quæ renuit, et ad regis imperium quod per eunuchos mandaverat, venire contempsit. Unde iratus rex, et nimio furore succensus,