Esther 4:1 (LSB)

Passage

Now Mordecai came to know of all that had been done. And he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city and cried out loudly and bitterly.

Nearby Context

Esther 4:1 Now Mordecai came to know of all that had been done. And he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city and cried out loudly and bitterly.

Esther 4:2 And he went as far as the king’s gate, for no one was to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth.

Esther 4:3 Now in each and every province where the word and law of the king reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping, and wailing; and many made their bed in sackcloth and ashes.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mordecai", "came", "been", "done", "tore", "clothes", "sackcloth", and "ashes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mordecai" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "And he went as far as the...", so "mordecai" and "came" should be read forward into that movement. In Esther context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "mordecai" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.