Bigthan ( he, בִּגְתָן, בִּגְתָנָא ''Bīgṯān, Bīgṯānāʾ'') and Teresh ( he, תֶרֶשׁ ''Ṯereš'') were two

eunuch A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millenni ...

s in service of the Persian king

Ahasuerus Ahasuerus ( ; , commonly ''Achashverosh'';; fa, اخشورش, Axšoreš; fa, label= New Persian, خشایار, Xašāyār; grc, Ξέρξης, Xérxēs. grc, label= Koine Greek, Ἀσουήρος, Asouḗros, in the Septuagint; la, Assue ...

, according to the chapter 2 of the

Book of Esther The Book of Esther ( he, מְגִלַּת אֶסְתֵּר, Megillat Esther), also known in Hebrew as "the Scroll" ("the Megillah"), is a book in the third section (, "Writings") of the Jewish '' Tanakh'' (the Hebrew Bible). It is one of the ...

. According to the

deuterocanon The deuterocanonical books (from the Greek meaning "belonging to the second canon") are books and passages considered by the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and the Assyrian Church of the East to be ...

ical/

apocrypha Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

additions to the Book of Esther The Book of Esther ( he, מְגִלַּת אֶסְתֵּר, Megillat Esther), also known in Hebrew as "the Scroll" ("the Megillah"), is a book in the third section (, "Writings") of the Jewish ''Tanakh'' (the Hebrew Bible). It is one of the fi ...

available in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond t ...

translation of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

, they were known as Gabatha and Tharra (

Koine Greek Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...

: Γαβαθά καὶ Θαρρα). Bigthan's name is also spelled "Bigtan" or "Bigthana". It is a Persian name which means "Gift of God".

Narrative

Mordecai rested in the courtyard one day and overheard these two eunuchs plotting to kill the king. He went on to inform the king through

Esther Esther is the eponymous heroine of the Book of Esther. In the Achaemenid Empire, the Persian king Ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, Vashti, is deposed for disobeying him. Hadassah, a Jewess who goes by the name of Esther, is chosen ...

, thus thwarting the plot. The two conspirators were apprehended and impaled on poles, and Mordecai's service to the king was recorded in the royal chronicles.Finding Morality in the Diaspora?: Moral Ambiguity and Transformed Morality in the Books of Esther
/ref>

References

External links

Greek Esther, beginning with chapter 1
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Book of Esther Hebrew Bible people Duos Eunuchs Ancient slaves {{Bible-stub