In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
and as they were drinking wine on the second day, the king again asked,“ Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted.”
The king said to Queen Esther,“ The Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men and the ten sons of Haman in the citadel of Susa. What have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? Now what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? It will also be granted.”