a thread opens
And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favor in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the scepter.
The Vigil
Today’s scroll, one verse at a time — each linked to the last by the cross-references rather than by any model of you. The same vigil for everyone, and a different one tomorrow.
Then the king held out the golden scepter toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king,
from Esther 5:2 · a strong link
All the king’s servants, and the people of the king’s provinces, do know, that whoever, whether man or woman, shall come to the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden scepter, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.
from Esther 8:4 · a strong link
Now it happened on the third day, that Esther put on her royal robes, and stood in the inner court of the king’s house, opposite the king’s house: and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house, opposite the gate of the house.
from Esther 4:11 · a strong link
And the king said, Who is in the court? Now Haman had come into the outward court of the king’s house, to speak to the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him.
from Esther 5:1 · a strong link
a thread opens
Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
I tell you, No: but, except you repent, you shall all likewise perish.
from Acts 20:21
And saying, Repent you: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
from Luke 13:3
Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents.
from Matthew 3:2
And I saw, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
from Luke 15:10
Praise him, all his angels: praise him, all his hosts.
a thread opens
Be it known to you therefore, men and brothers, that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins:
Then Peter said to them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
from Acts 13:38
Then drew near to him all the tax collectors and sinners to hear him.
from Acts 2:38
And it happened, as Jesus sat at table in the house, look, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
from Luke 15:1 · a strong link
And Levi made him a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of tax collectors and of others that sat down with them.
from Matthew 9:10
There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.
from Luke 5:29
For which is greater, he that sits at food, or he that serves? is not he that sits at food? but I am among you as he that serves.
from John 12:2
a thread opens
Because he has appointed a day, in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.
In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
from Acts 17:31
By no means: for then how shall God judge the world?
from Romans 2:16
That are far from you to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that are far from you: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
from Romans 3:6
a thread opens
For truly against your holy child Jesus, whom you have anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
By stretching forth your hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of your holy child Jesus.
from Acts 4:27 · a strong link
Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
from Acts 4:30
And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have you done this?
from Acts 3:6
And say to him, By what authority do you these things? and who gave you this authority to do these things?
from Acts 4:7
a thread opens
You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you do always resist the Holy Spirit: as your fathers did, so do you.
To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,
from Acts 7:51
And the children of Israel said to them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of food, and when we did eat bread to the full; for you have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
from Acts 7:39
And the people thirsted there for water; and the people grumbled against Moses, and said, Why is this that you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?
from Exodus 16:3
And the whole congregation of the children of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness:
from Exodus 17:3
And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?
from Exodus 16:2 · a strong link
a thread opens
And he said to me, Depart: for I will send you far hence to the Gentiles.
But the Lord said to him, Go your way: for he is a chosen vessel to me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
from Acts 22:21 · a strong link
By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
from Acts 9:15
But cursed be the deceiver, which has in his flock a male, and vows, and sacrifices to the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, says the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the pagans.
from Romans 1:5
Which in his times he shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
from Malachi 1:14
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
from I Timothy 6:15 · a strong link
No man has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and his love is perfected in us.
from I Timothy 1:17
That is the whole thread.
Every verse the cross-references reach from Esther 5:2 along this chain. Today’s own vigil is laid separately.
Each verse follows the one before it along the chain a study Bible draws — a century old, public, and compiled by people arguing about Scripture rather than about how long you stay. Every card says which verse it came from and opens the chapter it belongs to. Today’s vigil is the same for every reader and is worked out from the date alone, so there is no account, no counter, and nothing stored in your browser or ours.
The text is the Lantern Modern Standard. The links are openbible.info’s cross-reference set (CC BY), the same apparatus behind the reader’s Echoes drawer. Read a whole book · Today’s table