Esther 2:2-16

Great^{(i) 2} Then sayd the kynges seruauntes that ministred vnto him: Let there be fayre young virgins sought for the kyng, ³ and the kyng appointed certayne men in all the landes of his empyre, whom he charged that they shuld bryng together all the fayre yong virgins vnto Susan the head cite, to the wemens buylding, vnder the hand of Hagei the kynges chamberlayne, that kepte the wemen, to geue them their apparell. ⁴ And that the damsell whych pleased the kynge shuld be quene in Uasthis steade. And this pleased the kyng, and he dyd so. ⁵ In the cyte of Susan there was a Iewe, whose name was Mardocheus, the sonne of Iair, the sonne of Semei, the sonne of Cis a man of Iemini, ⁶ which was caryed awaye from Ierusalem, whan Iekonia the kyng of Iuda was led awaye, (whom Nabuchodonozor the kyng of Babilon caryed thence) ⁷ & he norished Hadassa (that is Esther) his vncles daughter: for she had nether father nor mother, and she was a fayre & beutyfull damsell: whom Mardocheus (when her father & mother was deed) receaued for his awne daughter. ⁸ So it fortuned that when the kynges commaundement & commission was published, and many damosels were brought together in the cite of Susan vnder the hande of Hagei. Esther was brought also vnto the kynges house vnder the hand of Hagei the keper of the wemen, ⁹ & the damsell pleased him, and she founde fauoure in his syght. And he caused ornamentes to be geuen her & soch thynges as belonged to her, and appoynted her seuen comlye damsels out of the kynges house, & fauoured both her and her gentyll wemen singularly in the house of the wemen. ¹⁰ But Esther shewed not her people & her kynred: for Mardocheus had charged her, that she shuld not tell it. ¹¹ And Mardocheus walked euery daye before the court of the wemens house, that he myght knowe howe Esther dyd, and what shulde become of her. ¹² And when the appoynted tyme of euery damsell came, that she shuld go into the kyng Ahasuerus, after that she had bene twelue monethes in the deckynge of the wemen (for their deckynge must haue so moch tyme, namely syxe monethes with Balme & Myrre, and syxe monethes with good spices, so were the wemen beutyfyed) ¹³ then went there one damosell vnto the kyng, and whatsoeuer she requyred that must be geuen her to go wyth her out of the wemens buylding vnto the kynges palace. ¹⁴ In the euenyng she went, and in the morow agayne into the seconde house of the wemen abyding vnder the hand of Saasgas the kynges chamberlayne, whych kept the concubines. And she came in vnto the kyng nomore, excepte it pleased the kyng to haue her, and that he called her by name. ¹⁵ Now when the tyme came of Esther the daughter of Abihan the vncle of Mardocheus (whych had receaued her as hys awne daughter) that she shuld come into the kyng, she desyred nothyng, but what Hagei the kynges chamberlayne the keper of the wemen, sayde. And Esther found fauoure in the syght of all them that loked vpon her. ¹⁶ And Esther was taken vnto kyng Ahasuerus into his house royall, in the tenth moneth which is the moneth Tebeth, in the seuenth yeare of his raygne.