Esther 2:13

Study note

Setting — The narrator records the procedural moment when a harem woman’s turn arrives to present herself to King Xerxes, following the twelve-month beauty regimen outlined in the preceding verse. The account addresses the reader through historical narration of palace protocol.

The words — The Hebrew phrase וּבָזֶה (u-va-Zeh) translates literally as “and in this [way]” or “according to this [regulation],” tethering the action to the established harem rules. The verb בָּאָה (ba-Ah) marks the young woman’s physical movement into the king’s presence.

The thread — The administrative pattern of a ruler granting a subject’s specific requests for provisions appears in Esther 8:2–3 and Nehemiah 2:7–8.

Why it lands — The text states a factual detail of royal provision before any narrative consequence, requiring the reader to note how institutional mechanisms operate independently of personal merit.

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.