[Today’s English Version D.14; Revised Standard Version 15.14]

Esther contrasts the king with her first impressions in verses 6-7. Now he is not terrifying but wonderful, his face is not “burning with glory” but is full of grace. Charis, “grace,” here is not used with its New Testament theological meaning but simply in the sense of “kindness,” as in Today’s English Version and New American Bible. The word countenance, which translates the Greek word “face,” is used in reference to a person’s face as an indication of one’s mood or emotions.

A possible translation of this verse is “You are wonderfully good, my master, and your face is showing much kindness.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Noss, Philip A. A Handbook on the Book of Esther — Deuterocanon: The Greek Text. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .