And in every province, whithersoever the king’s commandment and his decree came, there was great mourning among the Jews, and fasting, and weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
In every area where the king's order arrived, the Jewish people were very sad. They mourned, didn't eat, cried, and yelled sadly. Many of them wore rough cloth and put ashes on their skin.