but if thou keep entirely silent at this time, respite and deliverance remaineth to the Jews from another place, and thou and the house of thy fathers are destroyed; and who knoweth whether for a time like this thou hast come to the kingdom?'
Esther 4:12 And they declare to Mordecai the words of Esther,
Esther 4:13 and Mordecai speaketh to send back unto Esther: `Do not think in thy soul to be delivered <FI>in<Fi> the house of the king, more than all the Jews,
Esther 4:14 but if thou keep entirely silent at this time, respite and deliverance remaineth to the Jews from another place, and thou and the house of thy fathers are destroyed; and who knoweth whether for a time like this thou hast come to the kingdom?'
Esther 4:15 And Esther speaketh to send back unto Mordecai:
Esther 4:16 `Go, gather all the Jews who are found in Shushan, and fast for me, and do not eat nor drink three days, by night and by day; also I and my young women do fast likewise, and so I go in unto the king, that <FI>is<Fi> not according to law, and when I have perished--I have perished.'
The verse centers on "thou", "keep", "entirely", "silent", "time", "respite", "deliverance", and "remaineth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thou" and "keep", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 13's "and Mordecai speaketh to send back unto..." into verse 15's "And Esther speaketh to send back unto...", so "thou" and "keep" belong inside that flow. In Esther context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "thou" and "keep" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.