1The king and Haman went to Queen Esther's dinner.

2At this second dinner, as they were drinking wine, the king asked Esther again, “What are you really asking for, Queen Esther? It will be given to you. What do you want? You shall have it, as much as half my empire!”

3Queen Esther answered, “If the king looks on me favorably, and if it please Your Majesty to grant me my life, that is my request; and the lives of my people, that is what I ask.

4For my people and I have been sold ²¹to be destroyed, killed, and annihilated. If we had only been sold as slaves, I would have kept quiet, because our suffering would not have justified disturbing the king.” ²²

5The king asked Queen Esther, demanding to know, “Who is this? Where is the man who has dared to do this?”

6“The man, the opponent, the enemy, is this evil Haman!” Esther replied. Haman shook with terror in front of the king and the queen.

7The king was furious. He got up, leaving his wine, and went out into the palace garden. Haman stayed behind to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he realized the king planned an evil ²³end for him.

8When the king came back in from the palace garden to the dining room, Haman had thrown himself ²⁴on the couch where Queen Esther was. The king shouted out, “Is he even going to rape the queen here in the palace, right in front of me?” As soon as the king said this, the servants covered Haman's face.

9Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said: “Haman set up a pole beside his house for Mordecai, the one whose report saved the king's life. The pole is fifty cubits high.” “Impale him on it!” the king ordered.

10So they impaled Haman on the pole that he had set up for Mordecai. Then the anger of the king died down.