Verse 3 begins in Hebrew with the word For, which is omitted in Today’s English Version as in many other translations (see New American Bible, New International Version). Chouraqui and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible translate it as an affirmative adverb, “Yes,” thereby emphasizing what follows. This verse states the reason that Mordecai is included in the Book of the Chronicles, and some languages may need to make this connection explicit, as Revised Standard Version has done (see also New Jerusalem Bible and Segond).
The structure of the verse is fairly complex. The use of repetition and of near synonyms is very prominent. First, Mordecai’s position is established in relation to the king and then in parallel fashion in relation to his own people. Then his high esteem among his people is given in twofold detail, he was great … and popular, and the justification for that esteem is also given in twofold detail, he sought the welfare and spoke peace. In the verse, four different terms are used for Mordecai’s people: Jews, brethren, people, and “seed.”
Next in rank: Mordecai was the second person in the kingdom; no one surpassed him in power except the king himself. For comment on rank and position, see 2.14 and 3.1.
Mordecai was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brethren. Great means that he was respected by his people, he was “highly regarded” by them (so New Jerusalem Bible), he was a “heavy person” among them. Popular means that he was widely esteemed (New International Version) or admired, he was “loved” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Bible en français courant), he was a “favorite” (Amplified Bible) among his brethren. The words the multitude of his brethren are parallel to the Jews, and some translations combine the two: “honored and well-liked by his fellow Jews” (Today’s English Version; also Bible en français courant).
He sought the welfare is literally “seeking the good of his people.” The words spoke peace to all his people are literally “speaking peace to all his seed.” In Hebrew the word peace means more than the absence of war. It includes prosperity, health, security, and good relationships (see comments on 9.30). Moffatt says “cared for the prosperity of all his race.” Many versions retain “good” in the first clause and use “welfare” in the second. Anchor Bible says “was concerned for the welfare of his kinsmen.” It may be helpful to restate slightly, “he was seeking what was good for his people, [he was] speaking for the people of his race to live in well-being.”
People at the end of the verse translates the Hebrew word that is literally “seed” and that is frequently rendered as “descendants” (see comments on “descendants” in 9.28). These are the generations who will live after Mordecai. This understanding is expressed in Today’s English Version “and for the security of all their descendants” (so also New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New English Bible). This interpretation probably expresses correctly the meaning of the Hebrew. Other interpreters, however, take the words people and “seed” to be parallel in meaning, so that both words refer to the generation alive at the time of Mordecai (so New Jerusalem Bible “all his kindred,” and New English Bible margin “with all his race”).
New Century Version provides a simplified translation that will be a useful model for some receptor languages: “Mordecai the Jew was second in importance to King Xerxes. He was the most important man among the Jews. And his fellow Jews respected him very much. They respected Mordecai because he had worked for the good of his people. And they respected him because he spoke up for the safety of all the Jews.”
Septuagint 10.3
Mordecai acted with authority on behalf of King Artaxerxes: New Revised Standard Version and Today’s English Version both indicate that Mordecai was second in rank to King Artaxerxes. Although the Greek verb may be translated as “Mordecai succeeded King Artaxerxes” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy), that is, Mordecai “became king,” New Revised Standard Version and Bible en français courant interpret it to mean that Mordecai acted on behalf of or “in the name of” the king. Most interpreters understand the Greek verb in this context to mean that Mordecai received power second only to the king (so Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Revised English Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), not that he himself became king. That is, the Greek is understood to be in agreement with the meaning of the Hebrew text. Normal Greek usage, however, favors the interpretation found in Traduction œcuménique de la Bible and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, that is, Mordecai became the next king; he was the successor to King Artaxerxes. Though the translation in Traduction œcuménique de la Bible and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy represents a minority interpretation, it seems to translate most faithfully the Greek verb and should probably be followed.
That Mordecai was great in the kingdom means that he was a very important person in the political affairs of the Persian Empire. He was honored is literally “he was glorified.” The meaning here is clearly that Mordecai was honored, but the occurrence of the concept of doxa twice in the three verses of the last chapter of Esther underscores this as one of the author’s themes. That is, the story of Esther takes place within a setting of “glory, splendor, honor.”
By the Jews: since Mordecai is himself a Jew, Today’s English Version adds the word “fellow” before Jews.
His way of life was such: New Revised Standard Version (also Revised English Bible) and Today’s English Version apparently follow different Greek manuscripts in the last sentence of verse 3. Some manuscripts, followed by Rahlfs and the Göttingen edition, have a compound verb that means “to set out something in detail,” “to describe” (see Traduction œcuménique de la Bible and Bible en français courant). Other manuscripts have a verb that means “to consider.”
The last sentence of this verse is difficult to translate because the meaning of the verb in this context is not clear. Some understand the verb to mean “to set [something] out in detail,” “to describe,” or “to tell.” This is the basis for the Traduction œcuménique de la Bible translation “Beloved by all his nation, he recounted to them what had been his conduct.” Bible en français courant is similar: “he recounted to them what had happened” (also Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). The words “what had happened” in Bible en français courant are less precise than the translation “what had been his conduct,” that is, “how he had lived on behalf of his people.”
Others understand the Greek verb plus the noun to be an idiom meaning “to pass one’s life.” The sense will then be “He passed his life being loved by all his people.” This seems to be the basis for the translations of New Revised Standard Version and Today’s English Version (also Revised English Bible and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). The words “he sought the welfare of his people” in Today’s English Version seem to be an attempt to make more explicit the sense of his way of life. Either interpretation is possible, though the first (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible) seems preferable to the second (New Revised Standard Version).
In the Septuagint an Addition here after verse 3 gives the interpr