Esther 9:7 — Word Study
WLCוְאֵ֧ת׀ פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא וְאֵ֥ת׀ דַּֽלְפ֖וֹן וְאֵ֥ת׀ אַסְפָּֽתָא׃
BSAincluding ParshandathaParshandâthâʼ△ [specifically, namely, a son of Haman] DalphonDalphôwn△ [meaning dripping] AspathaʼAçpâthâʼ△ [a son of Haman, one of the ten sons]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וְאֵ֧ת׀ | and the object marker | Conjunction, particle |
| פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא | Parshandatha | Noun proper masculine |
| וְאֵ֥ת׀ | and the object marker | Conjunction, particle |
| דַּֽלְפ֖וֹן | Dalphon | Noun proper masculine |
| וְאֵ֥ת׀ | and the object marker | Conjunction, particle |
| אַסְפָּֽתָא׃ | Aspatha | Noun proper masculine |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | including Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, |
| KJV | And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha, |
| ASV | And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha, |
| YLT | and Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha, |
| WEB | They killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, |
| BBE | They put to death Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, |
Where they part company is in the details of the names listed — see How Translations Differ.
The verse consists of a single main clause listing the names of Haman's sons.
7 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Trapp, Ellicott & more — read them ›
clause
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
3 of 6 occur nowhere else in the Old Testament — words chosen on purpose.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Esther 9:7
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Defeat of Haman's Sonsgenerated
Esther 9:7 recounts the events following the defeat of Haman and highlights the names of his sons who were killed. This moment is part of the larger narrative of the Jewish victory during the festival of Purim, celebrating their deliverance from destruction. The mention of each son emphasizes the completeness of Haman's downfall.
Cross References
The Key Word — פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא, par.shan.Da.ta'generated
The name פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא (Parshandatha) is a proper noun, a masculine name of Persian origin meaning 'given by prayer.' He is specifically identified as one of the ten sons of Haman, the antagonist in the Book of Esther. His inclusion in this verse highlights the consequences faced by Haman's family following the events of Purim.
The context of his mention is significant, as it reflects the Jewish people's triumph over their enemies, thus marking a pivotal moment in their history. The verse serves to memorialize the names of those who opposed them, ensuring that their defeat is recorded.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The structure of the verse is straightforward, with a main clause listing the names of Haman's sons. The finite verb is implied, as the action of including them is understood from the context. Each name is presented as part of a noun phrase, indicating their role as direct objects.
The Hebrew word order places emphasis on the names themselves, highlighting their significance in the narrative of the Jewish victory.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates וְאֵ֧ת as καὶ, indicating a conjunction. This choice maintains the connection between the names listed, similar to the Hebrew.
The Greek rendering does not include all the names but captures the essence of the original Hebrew text, emphasizing the defeat of Haman's lineage.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Esther 9:7 lists three of Haman's sons: Parshandatha, Dalphon, and Aspatha. These names are part of the account of the Jews' victory over their enemies during the events of Purim, highlighting the downfall of Haman's family.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
They were the sons of Haman, the antagonist in the Book of Esther, mentioned as part of the narrative surrounding the Jewish victory.
Listing their names emphasizes the defeat of Haman's family and serves as a reminder of the Jewish people's deliverance.
Parshandatha means 'given by prayer' and is of Persian origin.
This verse is crucial as it marks the culmination of the conflict between the Jews and Haman, celebrating their victory during Purim.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What do the names of Haman's sons tell us about the consequences of his actions?
- How does the story of Esther inspire us to reflect on our own challenges?
- In what ways can we celebrate victories in our lives like the Jews celebrated Purim?
- What lessons can we learn from the downfall of Haman's family?
Commentators on this verse — 7 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Esther 9:7 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleVer. 7-10. And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha, and Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha, and Parmashta, and Arisai, and Aridai, and Vajezatha, the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the
Read John Gill on Esther 9 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAnd in Shushan the palace the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men. No JFB commentary on these verses.
Read Robert Jamieson on Esther 9 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsEsther 9:7 And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha, Ver. 7-9. And Parshandatha, and Dalphon … and Vajezatha] This Vajezatha was the youngest, but most malicious of them all against the Jews, as their doctors guess and gather from the little Zain and great Vau found in his name.
Read John Trapp on Esther 9 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(7-9) The names of the ten sons of Haman are, except Adalia, all readily traceable to old Persian roots. It may be noted that in a Hebrew Bible the ten names are written vertically, one under the other, in a column; and the Targum or Chaldee paraphrase says that the ten sons were hanged one above the other at fixed distances.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Esther 9 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and CollegesChap. Esther 9:1-10. Overthrow of the Jews’ enemies The story, omitting the intermediate months of preparation, now passes to the date fixed by the decree for the Jews’ overthrow.
Read Cambridge on Esther 9 →Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleMost of these names are Persian, and readily traceable to Old Persian roots. Esther 9:10 On the spoil laid they not their hand - As they might have done (see the margin reference).
Read Albert Barnes on Esther 9 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible7-9. Parshandatha… Vajezatha — These names of Haman’s ten sons are written in Hebrew MSS. in perpendicular columns, and it is said that the reader in the synagogue is required to pronounce them all at one breath.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Esther 9 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
including Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
They killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
including Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
In addition, they also killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
Tyndale line
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
Strictly literal
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
and Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
and Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
And Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha,
They killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
From the Latin
Pharsandatha, and Delphon, and Esphatha,
Simplified
This included Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
They put to death Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text lists the names as וְאֵ֧ת׀ פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא וְאֵ֥ת׀ דַּֽלְפ֖וֹן וְאֵ֥ת׀ אַסְפָּֽתָא׃. The Septuagint matches 4 of the 6 words, but its word order differs, indicating a slight interpretive variation while retaining the core elements of the narrative.
וְאֵ֧ת׀ פַּרְשַׁנְדָּ֛תָא וְאֵ֥ת׀ דַּֽלְפ֖וֹן וְאֵ֥ת׀ אַסְפָּֽתָא׃
4 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Esther 9:7
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HC/To — Conjunction · particleHC/To
פַּרְשַׁנְדָּתָא (Parshandatha) is a name of Persian origin, meaning 'given by prayer.' He is mentioned in the context of the Book of Esther as one of the ten sons of Haman, specifically in Est. 9:7. Parshandatha is noted for being a figure during the time of the Exile and Return.
פַּרְשַׁנְדָּתָא n.pr.m. a son of Haman Est 9:7
ref
H6577 פַּרְשַׁנְדָּתָא
6577 Parshandatha' par-shan-daw-thaw'
of Persian origin; Parshandatha, a son of
Haman:--Parshandatha.
פַּרְשַׁנְדָּתָא (par.shan.da.ta) — Parshandatha.
A man living at the time of Exile and Return, only mentioned at Est.9.7;
son of: Haman (H2001);
brother of: Dalphon (H1813), Aspatha (H0630), Poratha (H6334), Adalia (H0118), Aridatha (H0743), Parmashta (H6534), Arisai (H0747), Aridai (H0742) and Vaizatha (H2055)
§ Parshandatha = "given by prayer"
one of the 10 sons of Haman the enemy of Mordecai and queen Esther
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
par-shan-da'-tha, par-shan'-da-tha (parshandatha; Septuagint Pharsan, or Pharsanestan; perhaps from the Persian fratsna-data, "given by prayer"): One of the sons of Haman (Es 9:7).
Parshandatha
An interpreter of the law, the eldest of Haman’s sons, slain in Shushan (Esther 9:7).
(given by prayer), the eldest of Haman’s ten sons who were slain by the Jews in Shushan. (Esther 9:7) (B.C. 473.)
given by prayer
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HC/To — Conjunction · particleHC/To
דַּלְפוֹן (dalphown) refers to Dalphon, a son of Haman, mentioned in Esther 9:7. The name is derived from a root meaning 'dripping.' Dalphon is noted as the second of Haman's ten sons, and he is associated with several brothers listed in the same context.
דַּלְפוֹן n.pr.m. a son of Haman, Est 9:7.
done
H1813 דַּלְפוֹן
1813 Dalphown dal-fone'
from 1811; dripping; Dalphon, a son of Haman:--Dalphon.
see HEBREW for 01811
דַּלְפוֹן (dal.phon) — Dalphon.
A man living at the time of Exile and Return, only mentioned at Est.9.7;
son of: Haman (H2001);
brother of: Parshandatha (H6577), Aspatha (H0630), Poratha (H6334), Adalia (H0118), Aridatha (H0743), Parmashta (H6534), Arisai (H0747), Aridai (H0742) and Vaizatha (H2055)
§ Dalphon = "dripping"
the second of the 10 sons of Haman
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
dal'-fon (dalphon, "crafty"): The second of the ten sons of Haman, slain by the Jews (Es 9:7).
(swift), the second of the ten sons of Hamam (Esther 9:7) (B.C. 610.)
the house of caves
→ Son of Haman Es 9:7
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HC/To — Conjunction · particleHC/To
אַסְפָּ֑תָא (as-paw-thaw') refers to Aspatha, the third son of Haman, mentioned in the context of the Exile and Return in Esther 9:7. The name is of Persian origin and is interpreted as meaning 'the enticed gathered.' Aspatha is noted alongside his brothers, who are also descendants of Haman.
אַסְפָּ֑תָא n.pr.m. 3rd son of Haman Est 9:7
ref
H630 אַסְפָּ֑תָא
630 'Acpatha' as-paw-thaw'
of Persian derivation; Aspatha, a son of Haman:--Aspatha.
אַסְפָּ֑תָא (as.pa.ta) — Aspatha.
A man living at the time of Exile and Return, only mentioned at Est.9.7;
son of: Haman (H2001);
brother of: Parshandatha (H6577), Dalphon (H1813), Poratha (H6334), Adalia (H0118), Aridatha (H0743), Parmashta (H6534), Arisai (H0747), Aridai (H0742) and Vaizatha (H2055)
§ Aspatha = "the enticed gathered"
the third son of Haman
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
as-pa'-tha ('acpatha'): One of the ten sons of Haman (Es 9:7) (Pers aspadata, "given by a sacred horse," according to Thesaurus, Add. 71, after Pott and Benfey).
third son of Haman. (Esther 9:7)
→ Son of Haman Es 9:7