3 Let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom so that they may gather all the beautiful young virgins to the citadel of Susa, to the harem under the custody of Hegai the king’s eunuch, who is in charge of the harem, and let ointments and cosmetics be given to them.
4 May the young woman who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti.” And the idea pleased the king, so he acted accordingly.
5 Now in the citadel of Susa, there was a certain Jew named Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite.
6 He had been taken away from Jerusalem among the exiles and carried into captivity along with King Jeconiah of Judah by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.
7 He was the guardian of Hadassah, that is Esther (who was his uncle’s daughter) because she had neither father nor mother. The young woman was lovely to look at and beautiful in form. When her father and mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.
8 When the king’s notice and his decree were heard, many young women were then gathered to the citadel of Susa and placed under the custody of Hegai. Esther was likewise brought to the king’s house and placed under the custody of Hegai, who was in charge of the harem.
9 Because the young lady appeared pleasing to him and had gained favor in his sight, he quickly gave her the ointments and cosmetics, her allotted food, and seven young chosen women from the king’s palace. He also transferred her and her young women to the best place of the harem.