Esther had not shewed her people nor her kindred: for Mordecai had charged her that she should not shew it.

Esther had not made known her people nor her kindred; for Mordecai had charged her that she should not make it known.

And she would not tell him her people nor her country. For Mardochai had charged her to say nothing at all of that:

Esther had not made known her people nor her birth; for Mordecai had charged her that she should not make it known.

Esther had not showed her people nor her kindred: for Mordecai had charged her that she should not show it.

Esther hath not declared her people, and her kindred, for Mordecai hath laid a charge on her that she doth not declare it;

Esther had not said what family or people she came from, for Mordecai had given her orders not to do so.

Esther had not made known her people nor her kindred; for Mordecai had charged her that she should not tell it.

The Persians had no special contempt for the Jews; but, of course, they despised more or less all the subject races. Esther, with her Aryan name, may have passed for a native Persian.

Esther had not showed her people - This might have prejudiced her with the king; for it was certainly no credit at the Persian court to be a Jew; and we shall find from the sequel that those who were in the Persian dominions were far from being reputable, or in a safe state. Besides, had her lineage been known, envy might have prevented her from ever having access to the king.

Esther had not showed her people nor her kindred,.... What nation or family she was of; it not being asked, she was under no obligation to declare it; and being born in Shushan, as very probable, she was taken to be a Persian:
for Mordecai had charged her that she should not show it; lest she should be despised and ill treated on that account; fearing, if the king knew it, he would not marry her, as Aben Ezra; or rather, as the same writer thinks, that she might keep the law of God privately, observe the sabbath, &c.

Esther 2:10 contains a supplementary remark. This kind and respectful treatment was shown to Esther, because, in obedience to Mordochai's command, she had not shown her people nor her kindred, i.e., her Jewish extraction; for a Jewish maiden would hardly have experienced such friendly usage. Esther 2:11 also contains an additional notice, prefixed here to enable what follows to be rightly understood, and repeated in another connection Esther 2:19, and on several other occasions: Mordochai walked every day before the court or enclosure of the women's house, to know the welfare (שׁלום) of Esther and what became of her (בּה יעשׂה, properly, what was done to her). Hence Mordochai was in constant communication with Esther. How this communication was effected is not more particularly stated; probably by means of the maids appointed to wait on her. Jewish expositors are of opinion, that Mordochai held high office, and that having consequently free access to the royal palace, he could easily find the means of communicating with his relative.

Shew it - Lest the knowledge hereof should either make her contemptible, or bring some inconvenience to the whole nation; but there was also an hand of God in causing this to be concealed, for the better accomplishment of that which he designed, though Mordecai was ignorant of it.