¹²When Esther’s words were relayed to Mordecai, ¹³he sent back to her this reply: “Do not imagine that because you are in the king’s palace you alone will escape the fate of all the Jews. ¹⁴For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows if perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” ¹⁵Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: ¹⁶“Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day, and I and my maidens will fast as you do. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish!”