Esther 3:3
What does Esther 3:3 mean?
A plain-English look at Esther 3:3 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Esther 3:3 means
Those who regularly serve at the gate confront Mordecai, asking why he breaks the king’s commandment. Their question is practical rather than philosophical: the issue is civil obedience. Mordecai’s defiance is not private; it disrupts the expected public order. This inquiry shows peer pressure and the machinery of the court pressing him toward conformity. It also hints that loyalty to the king is framed in visible gestures. By asking “Why transgressest thou?” they frame Mordecai as the problem, not Haman’s demand. The tension grows as Mordecai refuses to justify himself on their terms, setting the stage for a higher appeal—to identity and conscience rather than to imperial custom.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000Then the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king’s commandment?
KJV
King James Version · 1611Then the king’s servants, which were in the king’s gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king’s commandment?
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901Then the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king’s commandment?
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949Then the king's servants who were in the king's house said to Mordecai, Why do you go against the king's order?
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862And the servants of the king, who <FI>are<Fi> in the gate of the king, say to Mordecai, `Wherefore <FI>art<Fi> thou transgressing the command of the king?'
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752And the king's servants that were chief at the doors of the palace, said to him: Why dost thou alone not observe the king's commandment?
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890Then the king's servants, who were in the king's gate, said to Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment?
Context
This challenge follows Mordecai’s refusal to bow (v. 2) and precedes the decision to escalate to Haman (v. 4). The gate servants act as intermediaries who try to enforce the king’s order. Their persistence increases the pressure on Mordecai, and their inability to persuade him leads to reporting the matter upward. The next verse connects Mordecai’s stance to his being a Jew, which becomes the decisive factor in Haman’s broader hatred.
v.2And all the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, bowed down, and did reverence to Haman; for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not down, nor did him reverence.
v.3This passage
v.4Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s matters would stand: for he had told them that he was a Jew.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Exodus 1:17
But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men-children alive.
- Esther 2:19
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting in the king’s gate.
- Esther 3:2
And all the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, bowed down, and did reverence to Haman; for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not down, nor did him reverence.
- Matthew 15:2
Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.