Esther 2:7
What does Esther 2:7 mean?
A plain-English look at Esther 2:7 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Esther 2:7 means
Esther, also called Hadassah, is introduced as Mordecai’s orphaned cousin whom he adopted as his own daughter. She is described as fair and beautiful, but the emphasis on her being raised by Mordecai displays a bond of care and authority. Beauty will open the palace door, but family loyalty and wise guidance will shape her path. Her dual names hint at life between two worlds—Jewish roots and Persian surroundings. God’s providence often works through ordinary faithfulness: an orphan cared for becomes the woman through whom many will be preserved. The verse paints Esther as both vulnerable and favored, prepared by relationships as much as by appearance.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maiden was fair and beautiful; and when her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her for his own daughter.
KJV
King James Version · 1611And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took for his own daughter.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maiden was fair and beautiful; and when her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her for his own daughter.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And he had been a father to Hadassah, that is Esther, the daughter of his father's brother: for she had no father or mother, and she was very beautiful; and when her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her for his daughter.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and he is supporting Hadassah--she <FI>is<Fi> Esther--daughter of his uncle, for she hath neither father nor mother, and the young woman <FI>is<Fi> of fair form, and of good appearance, and at the death of her father and her mother hath Mordecai taken her to him for a daughter.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752And he had brought up his brother's daughter Edissa, who by another name was called Esther: now she had lost both her parents: and was exceeding fair and beautiful. And her father and mother being dead, Mardochai adopted her for his daughter.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle's daughter; for she had neither father nor mother — and the maiden was fair and beautiful — and when her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her for his own daughter.
Context
With Mordecai’s background set, the narrative spotlights Esther’s identity and upbringing. This personal detail prepares the reader for her entry into the royal process in verse 8 and for her dependence on Mordecai’s counsel in verses 10–11 and 20. The themes of beauty, adoption, and obedience introduced here will recur as Esther advances in the palace and as her hidden identity becomes a key plot element.
v.6who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captives that had been carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away.
v.7This passage
v.8So it came to pass, when the king’s commandment and his decree was heard, and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the palace, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was taken into the king’s house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Ephesians 6:4
And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but nurture them in the chastening and admonition of the Lord.
- Esther 1:11
to bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to show the peoples and the princes her beauty; for she was fair to look on.
- 1 John 3:1
Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are. For this cause the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
- Genesis 48:5
And now thy two sons, who were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh, even as Reuben and Simeon, shall be mine.
- Jeremiah 32:7
Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee, saying, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth; for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.
- 2 Corinthians 6:18
And will be to you a Father, And ye shall be to me sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.