“For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the enemy could not countervail the king’s damage.”
For I and my people have been sold to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had merely been sold as slaves, men and women, I would have held my peace, but no one can compensate the king for the damage, demonstrating Esther's explanation of the threat facing her people and her assertion that while she might accept slavery, the threat to the very existence of her people is not tolerable and must be addressed. This statement contains a veiled accusation that the king has allowed the sale of his people to destruction, and Esther frames her petition in terms of the king's own interest (the loss of wealth and subjects cannot be compensated). The verse shows Esther's diplomatic skill in framing her request in terms that address the king's concerns while advocating for her people.
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