By these refers back to the letters of the preceding verse. The translator may need to be more explicit and say “In these letters the king gave the way” or “In the letters [mentioned], the king gave authority.”

To gather and defend their lives is translated in Today’s English Version as “to organize for self-defense.” “Organize” may imply more than the original gather, so “gather for self-defense” will be closer to the original.

Defend their lives: this is literally “to stand upon their nefesh” (see comments on 7.3), and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible interprets it to mean “to be on the alert.” However, most versions translate similarly to Revised Standard Version. It may be necessary to restate as “to protect themselves” (New International Version) or “to fight for their lives” (New Jerusalem Bible).

With their children and women poses a difficult problem for translators. Most translators consider these words to be patterned after 3.13, in which non-Jewish people were given permission “to destroy, to slay, and to annihilate all Jews, young and old, women and children.” New Jerusalem Bible is unambiguous in 8.11: “they may destroy, massacre, and exterminate its armed force together with women and children, and plunder their possessions” (also Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente actually restructures the verse and places “children and women” before “the armed force of any people”: “to gather and defend their lives, to destroy, kill, and annihilate, including children and women, all the armed force of any people.” Bible en français courant says “They can even kill their women and their children and plunder their goods” (see also New American Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy).

The Hebrew syntax of verses 3.13 and 8.11, however, is different; and it is possible to take the words with their children and women as the object of the participle “attacking” as in Today’s English Version (see also New International Version and An American Translation), rather than as the object of the verbs destroy, slay, and annihilate. Verses 9.12, 15 say that “men” were slain by the Jews, but they do not mention women and children. Possibly the use of “men” in these two verses is not intended to exclude women and children, but the fact that women and children are not specifically mentioned may give some support to the interpretation followed by Today’s English Version.

Gordis argues that the end of this verse and all of the next verse are a quotation from the decree of 3.13. His translation of verses 11-12 is as follows:
• … that the king was permitting the Jews in every city to assemble to defend themselves, and to destroy, kill, and annihilate the armed force of any people or province attacking “them, their children and their women, their goods to be taken as booty, on one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is Adar.”

Today’s English Version and the translation by Gordis both reject the interpretation found in nearly all translations, that is, that the Jews are authorized to kill not only enemy soldiers but also children and women of the people who attack them. The most natural reading of the Hebrew, however, supports the Revised Standard Version translation. New Century Version, which follows the recommended interpretation, provides a clear translation:
• These were the king’s orders: The Jews in every city have the right to gather together to protect themselves. They have the right to destroy, kill and completely wipe out the army of any area or people who attack them. And they are to do the same to the women and children of that army. The Jews also have the right to take by force the property of the enemies.

Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente provides another model that may be helpful:
• In the letters it was written that the king authorized [or, gave the right to] the Jews wherever they lived to organize themselves for defense. In case of armed aggression by men of any population or province, the Jews have the right to defend themselves. They can fight the army and kill all their enemies, including women and children, and seize their possessions.

Septuagint 8.11

This verse is considerably condensed in the Greek and omits the words “and to plunder their goods.” The Greek is more explicitly religious by the addition that the Jews were to observe their own laws, nomos, that is, the Laws of Moses (see also comment on LXX 3.8).

To defend themselves is more specifically “to help each other” (so Bible en français courant and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), and in a situation of war this would be in self-defense.

Opponents … enemies: the Greek uses a pair of near synonyms remindful of the Hebrew words that were used by Esther to describe Haman (see 7.6). The two words here are very similar to each other in meaning, and the second should be translated much like the first, “adversaries” or “those who are against us.” Traduction œcuménique de la Bible says “their opponents and their adversaries.”

Note that the Greek, unlike the Hebrew parallel, is not specific about how the Jews may treat their enemies. The Greek says simply that they may act against their enemies as they wished. Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente says “The Jews were authorized also to decide on their initiative how to help one another and how to resist the enemies and opponents.” Translators should not harmonize the Greek with the Hebrew here.

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 .