1 Det skjedde i de dager da Ahasverus, den Ahasverus som hersket over hundreogtjuesju provinser fra India til Etiopia,

Now it came about in the days of Ahasuerus, (that Ahasuerus who was ruler of a hundred and twenty-seven divisions of the kingdom, from India as far as Ethiopia:)

2 og da han regjerte i borgen Susa,

That in those days, when King Ahasuerus was ruling in Shushan, his strong town,

3 at han i sitt tredje regjeringsår holdt et festmåltid for alle sine fyrster og tjenere. De militære lederne av Persia og Media, samt de fremste og høvdingene i provinsene, var til stede hos ham.

In the third year of his rule he gave a feast to all his captains and his servants; and the captains of the army of Persia and Media, the great men and the rulers of the divisions of his kingdom, were present before him;

4 I hele hundreogåtti dager lot han dem se all rikdommen og herligheten i sitt rike og det store velde og ære han hadde.

And for a long time, even a hundred and eighty days, he let them see all the wealth and the glory of his kingdom and the great power and honour which were his.

5 Da denne tiden var omme, holdt kongen et festmåltid for alle folkene som var til stede i borgen Susa, små like mye som store, i sju dager på gårdsplassen i hagen ved kongens hus.

And at the end of that time, the king gave a feast for all the people who were present in Shushan, the king's town, small as well as great, for seven days, in the outer square of the garden of the king's house.

6 Der var praktfulle draperier av hvit, grønn og blå stoff, festet med purpurrøde snorer til sølvringer og søyler av marmor; benkene var av gull og sølv på et gulv av mosaikk av alabast, marmor, perlemor og andre edelstener.

There were fair hangings of white and green and blue, fixed with cords of purple and the best linen to silver rings and pillars of polished stone: the seats were of gold and silver on a floor of red and white and yellow and black stone.

7 Drikkene ble servert i gullbegre, alle forskjellige, og kongens vin ble skjenket i overflod, slik kongen hadde bestemt.

And they gave them drink in gold vessels, every vessel being different, and wine of the kingdom, freely given by the king.

8 Men drikkingen foregikk uten tvang, for kongen hadde befalt alle hans hushovmestere at hver skulle få det som behaget ham.

And the drinking was in keeping with the law; no one was forced: for the king had given orders to all the chief servants of his house to do as was pleasing to every man.

9 Dronning Vashti holdt også et festmåltid for kvinnene i kong Ahasverus' palass.

And Vashti the queen gave a feast for the women in the house of King Ahasuerus.

10 Den sjuende dagen, da kongen var munter av vin, befalte han Mehuman, Bizta, Harbona, Bigta og Abagta, Zetar og Karkas, de sju evnukkene som tjente kong Ahasverus,

On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was glad with wine, he gave orders to Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven unsexed servants who were waiting before Ahasuerus the king,

11 å føre dronning Vashti frem for kongen med kongelig krone, for at folkene og fyrstene kunne se hennes skjønnhet, for hun var meget vakker.

That Vashti the queen was to come before him, crowned with her crown, and let the people and the captains see her: for she was very beautiful.

12 Men da tjenerne overbrakte kongens befaling, nektet dronning Vashti å komme. Da ble kongen meget vred og brant av sinne.

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.

13 Kongen spurte da de vise menn som forstod tidene, for slik var kongens sedvane med alle som forstod lov og rett.

And the king said to the wise men, who had knowledge of the times, (for this was the king's way with all who were expert in law and in the giving of decisions:

14 Nærmest han satt Karsena, Sjetar, Admata, Tarsis, Meres, Marsena og Memukan, de sju persiske og mediske fyrstene, som hadde tilgang til kongen og var de øverste i riket.

And second only to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven rulers of Persia and Media, who were friends of the king, and had the first places in the kingdom:)

15 Hva skal en etter loven gjøre med dronning Vashti, fordi hun ikke har adlydt ordrene fra kong Ahasverus ved hans tjenere?

What is to be done by law to Vashti the queen, because she has not done what King Ahasuerus, by his servants, gave her orders to do?

16 Memukan svarte for kongen og fyrstene: Dronning Vashti har ikke bare gjort urett mot kongen, men også mot alle fyrstene og mot alle folkene i alle kong Ahasverus' provinser.

And before the king and the captains, Memucan gave his answer: Vashti the queen has done wrong, not only to the king, but to all the captains and to all the peoples in all the divisions of the kingdom of King Ahasuerus;

17 For hva dronningen har gjort vil bli kjent blant alle kvinnene, og de vil se ned på sine menn når det sies at kong Ahasverus befalte at dronning Vashti skulle komme frem for ham, men hun kom ikke.

For news of what the queen has done will come to the ears of all women, and they will no longer give respect to their husbands when it is said to them, King Ahasuerus gave orders for Vashti the queen to come before him and she came not.

18 Og i dag vil kvinner blant persiske og mediske fyrster, når de hører om dronningens handling, tale på samme måte til kongens fyrster, og det vil bli forakt og vrede i overflod.

And the wives of the captains of Persia and Media, hearing what the queen has done, will say the same to all the king's captains. So there will be much shame and wrath.

19 Hvis det behager kongen, la en kongelig forordning gå ut, og la den bli innskrevet blant perserne og medernes lover, så den aldri kan bli forandret, at Vashti aldri mer skal komme for kong Ahasverus, og la kongen gi hennes kongelige rang til en annen som er bedre enn hun.

If it is pleasing to the king, let an order go out from him, and let it be recorded among the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it may never be changed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her place to another who is better than she.

20 Når denne forordningen, som kongen befaler, blir kjent i hele hans rike (for det er stort), vil alle kvinnene gi respekt til sine menn, stor som liten.

And when this order, given by the king, is made public through all his kingdom (for it is great), all the wives will give honour to their husbands, great as well as small.

21 Dette råd tiltalte kongen og fyrstene, og kongen gjorde som Memukan hadde sagt.

And this suggestion seemed good to the king and the captains; and the king did as Memucan said;

22 Han sendte brev til alle rikets provinser, til hver provins med dens egen skrift og til hvert folk på deres eget språk, at hver mann skulle være herre i sitt eget hus, og at dette skulle bli kunngjort på alle folks tungemål.

And sent letters to all the divisions of the kingdom, to every division in the writing commonly used there, and to every people in the language which was theirs, saying that every man was to be the ruler in his house, and that this order was to be given out in the language of his people.