And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women, unto the custody of Hege the king’s chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them:
Let the king choose officials in every province of his kingdom to gather all the beautiful young unmarried women and bring them to the palace in Shushan. They should be placed in the women's quarters under the care of Hegai, the king's official who oversees the women, and let them be given everything they need for their beauty treatments.
The writer is describing how King Ahasuerus organized a kingdom-wide search for beautiful young women to potentially become his new queen, with officials gathering them at the palace for preparation.
📚 Historical Context
In the Book of Esther, King Ahasuerus of Persia had just deposed his queen, Vashti, for disobeying his command, creating a vacancy in the royal court. To find a suitable replacement, his advisors proposed gathering beautiful young virgins from across the empire to the palace in Susa, where they would be prepared under the supervision of the king's eunuch. This reflects the customs of ancient Persian royalty, where harems were maintained and women were selected based on beauty and purity for the king's favor.
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