Esther 4:1

Esther 4:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)When Mordecai perceived all that was done, Mordecai rent his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and cried with a loud and a bitter cry;
• English Standard Version (ESV)When Mordecai learned all that had been done, Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and he cried out with a loud and bitter cry.
• New King James Version (NKJV)When Mordecai learned all that had happened, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city. He cried out with a loud and bitter cry.
• New Living Translation (NLT)When Mordecai learned about all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on burlap and ashes, and went out into the city, crying with a loud and bitter wail.

Context of Esther 4:1

When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

Esther 4:1 word by word

וּמָרְדֳּכַ֗י יָדַע֙ אֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֣ר נַעֲשָׂ֔ה וַיִּקְרַ֤ע מָרְדֳּכַי֙ אֶת־בְּגָדָ֔יו וַיִּלְבַּ֥שׁ שַׂ֖ק וָאֵ֑פֶר וַיֵּצֵא֙ בְּת֣וֹךְ הָעִ֔יר וַיִּזְעַ֛ק זְעָקָ֥ה גְדֹלָ֖ה וּמָרָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• When Mordecaiמׇרְדֳּכַיmordekay · MordecaiH4782
• perceivedיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• all that was doneעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• rentקָרַעqâra‛ · to tearH7167
• his clothesבֶּ֫גֶדbeged · garmentH899
• and put onלָבֵשׁlâbash lâbêsh · to clotheH3847
• sackclothשַׂקώaq · sackclothH8242
• with ashesאֵ֫פֶר'êpher · ashesH665
• and went outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• into the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• of the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• and criedזָעַקzâ‛aq · to cry outH2199
• with a loudגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• and a bitterמַרmar mârâh · bitterH4751
• cryזְעָקָהza‛aq ze‛âqâh · outcryH2201

Cross-references for Esther 4:1

• Esther 3:8Then Haman said to King Xerxes, “There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.
• 2 Samuel 1:11Then David and all the men with him took hold of their clothes and tore them.
• Job 1:20At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship
• Jonah 3:4Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
• Acts 14:14But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting:
• Esther 4:3In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
• Joshua 7:6Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.
• 2 Samuel 13:19Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornate robe she was wearing. She put her hands on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.
• Job 2:8Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.
• Job 42:6Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”
• Isaiah 58:5Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
• Ezekiel 27:30They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes.
• Daniel 9:3So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
• Jonah 3:6When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
• Matthew 11:21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
• Genesis 27:34When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me—me too, my father!”

Commentaries on Esther 4:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Mordecai rent his clothes - He gave every demonstration of the most poignant and oppressive grief. Nor did he hide this from the city; and the Greek says that he uttered these words aloud: , A people are going to be destroyed, who have done no evil!Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The Jews lament their danger. (1-4) Esther undertakes to plead for the Jews. (5-17) Verses 1-4 Mordecai avowed his relation to the Jews. Public calamities, that oppress the church of God, should affect our hearts more than any private affliction, and it is peculiarly distressing to occasion sufferings to others. God will keep those that are exposed to evil by the tenderness of their consciences.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1Mordecai's intense reaction showed deep sorrow and mourning (see 2 Samuel 1:11; Ezra 9; Jonah 3:5–9).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-141-2. When Mordecai perceived all that was done--Relying on the irrevocable nature of a Persian monarch's decree (Da 6:15), Hamman made it known as soon as the royal sanction had been obtained; and Mordecai was, doubtless, among the first to hear of it. On his own account, as well as on that of his countrymen, this astounding decree must have been indescribably distressing. The acts described in this passage are, according to the Oriental fashion…Read the comment

Topics related to Esther 4:1

• Ashes
• Readings, Select

In the dictionaries

• Mordecai
• Dress
• Sackcloth
• Bitter; Bitterness
• Esther, Book of
• Gesture

Commentaries on Esther 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings