Esther 1:6
Hangings of white and blue linen were fastened with cords of fine white and purple material to silver rings on the marble pillars. Gold and silver couches were arranged on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator describes the temporary banquet furnishings arranged in the royal palace garden court for a seven-day feast attended by all residents of Susa.
The words — חוּר (chur) denotes white material and בּוּץ (vutz) specifies fine linen, both used for hangings fastened with cords to silver rings on marble pillars.
The thread — Comparable imagery of lavish couches and banquet tables appears in Amos 6:4 and Ezekiel 23:41, while Esther 7:8 later references a banquet couch within the same narrative sequence.
Why it lands — The text catalogs concrete architectural and decorative details to establish the scale of royal wealth, requiring the reader to note how material display frames the subsequent court events.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Where were white, green, and blue, hangings, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and pillars of marble: the beds were of gold and silver, upon a pavement of red, and blue, and white, and black, marble.
Cross-references
- Amos 6:4 You lie on beds inlaid with ivory, and lounge upon your couches. You dine on lambs from the flock and calves from the stall.
- Ezekiel 23:41 You sat on a couch of luxury with a table spread before it, on which you had set My incense and My oil,
- Esther 7:8 Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed, “Would he actually assault the queen while I am in the palace?” As soon as the words had left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.
- Amos 2:8 They lie down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge. And in the house of their God, they drink wine obtained through fines.
- Exodus 26:1 “You are to construct the tabernacle itself with ten curtains of finely spun linen, each with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and cherubim skillfully worked into them.
- Exodus 26:31 Make a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it.
- Exodus 26:36 For the entrance to the tent, you are to make a curtain embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen.
- Esther 8:15 Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal garments of blue and white, with a large gold crown and a purple robe of fine linen. And the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced.