The king rose: in some cultures the action of rising may signal judgment, but here it is the movement that will take the king out of the presence of Esther and Haman. Where the Hebrew style is sparse and elliptical, Good News Translation spells everything out. The Hebrew uses only one verb, “rose … into the garden,” while Good News Translation says “got up … left … went outside.” The translator should try to convey the anger of the king and his abrupt departure from the scene.
The feast is literally “the feast [or, banquet] of wine.” New Jerusalem Bible says “The king, in his fury, left the wine feast….” New International Version says “The king got up in a rage, left his wine and went out….” Neither Revised Standard Version nor Good News Translation translates the word “wine” here, perhaps assuming that it is not necessary, since verse 2 has already indicated that wine was being drunk at the banquet. Translators, however, are urged to follow the Hebrew here and retain this information in verse 7.
On the palace garden see comments on 1.5.
To beg his life (Revised Standard Version) or “to beg for his life” means “to beg the queen to save his life” (so Bible en français courant, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). In verse 3 above, Esther is pleading to the king for her nefesh, life; here Haman begs Esther for his nefesh, life.
Evil was determined against him: the Hebrew says raʿah “evil, calamity, wickedness,” which is interpreted by some to mean “fate” in this context (so New English Bible, New International Version). The author makes a play on words here. The same Hebrew word used here with reference to Haman was used by Esther when she described him in verse 6 (“This wicked Haman!”). Some languages may prefer to restructure the sentence and use an active verb, like New Jerusalem Bible, which says “he saw that the king had resolved to destroy him,” or Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, which says “upon realizing that the king had decided to condemn him to death.” Although there is an implication of punishment (compare Good News Translation), it is not punishment in a strictly legal sense, but more in the sense of vengeance. The emphasis in the following verses is not on Haman’s having broken a law but on the king’s anger over Haman’s actions. Gordis renders these words in idiomatic English as “he saw that his doom was sealed with the king.”
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Noss, Philip A. A Handbook on Esther (The Hebrew Text). (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .