מלכים ב 21

1 בן שתים עשרה שנה מנשה במלכו וחמשים וחמש שנה מלך בירושלם ושם אמו חפצי בה׃

Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to rule. He ruled Judah for 55 years from Jerusalem. His mother was Hephzibah.

2 ויעש הרע בעיני יהוה כתועבת הגוים אשר הוריש יהוה מפני בני ישראל׃

He did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He imitated the disgusting things that were formerly done by the people of the nations that Yahweh had expelled from the land of Israel as his people advanced [through the land].

3 וישב ויבן את הבמות אשר אבד חזקיהו אביו ויקם מזבחת לבעל ויעש אשרה כאשר עשה אחאב מלך ישראל וישתחו לכל צבא השמים ויעבד אתם׃

He commanded his workers to rebuild the shrines [for worshiping Yahweh] that his father Hezekiah had destroyed [because they were not in the place that Yahweh had said they should worship him]. He directed his workers to build altars for worshiping Baal. He made [a statue of the goddess] Asherah, like Ahab the king of Israel had done [previously]. And Manasseh worshiped [DOU] the stars.

4 ובנה מזבחת בבית יהוה אשר אמר יהוה בירושלם אשים את שמי׃

He directed his workers to build altars [for worshiping foreign gods] in the temple of Yahweh, about which Yahweh had said, “It is here in Jerusalem where I want people to worship [MTY] me, forever.”

5 ויבן מזבחות לכל צבא השמים בשתי חצרות בית יהוה׃

He directed that altars for worshiping the stars be built in both of the courtyards outside the temple.

6 והעביר את בנו באש ועונן ונחש ועשה אוב וידענים הרבה לעשות הרע בעיני יהוה להכעיס׃

He even sacrificed his own son by burning [him in a fire]. He performed rituals to practice sorcery and magic rituals. He also went to people who consulted the spirits of dead people to find out what would happen in the future. He did many things that Yahweh considered to be extremely evil, things that caused Yahweh to become very angry.

7 וישם את פסל האשרה אשר עשה בבית אשר אמר יהוה אל דוד ואל שלמה בנו בבית הזה ובירושלם אשר בחרתי מכל שבטי ישראל אשים את שמי לעולם׃

He placed the statue of the goddess Asherah in the temple, the place about which Yahweh had said to David and his son Solomon, “My temple will be here in Jerusalem. This is the city that I have chosen from all the territory of the twelve tribes of Israel, where I want people to worship me, forever.

8 ולא אסיף להניד רגל ישראל מן האדמה אשר נתתי לאבותם רק אם ישמרו לעשות ככל אשר צויתים ולכל התורה אשר צוה אתם עבדי משה׃

And if the Israeli people obey all my commands and all the laws that I gave to Moses, the man who served me [very well], I will not again force them to leave this land that I gave to their ancestors.”

9 ולא שמעו ויתעם מנשה לעשות את הרע מן הגוים אשר השמיד יהוה מפני בני ישראל׃

But the people did not heed Yahweh. And Manasseh persuaded them to commit sins that are more evil than the sins that were committed by the people of the nations that Yahweh had expelled from the land as the Israeli people advanced.

10 וידבר יהוה ביד עבדיו הנביאים לאמר׃

[These are some of the things that] the prophets said many times, messages that Yahweh had given them:

11 יען אשר עשה מנשה מלך יהודה התעבות האלה הרע מכל אשר עשו האמרי אשר לפניו ויחטא גם את יהודה בגלוליו׃

“Manasseh, the king of Judah, has done these abominable things, things that are much worse than the things that the Amor people-group did in this land long ago. He has persuaded the people of Judah to sin by [worshiping] idols.

12 לכן כה אמר יהוה אלהי ישראל הנני מביא רעה על ירושלם ויהודה אשר כל שמעיו תצלנה שתי אזניו׃

Therefore, this is what I, Yahweh, the God whom you Israeli people worship, say: I will the cause the people of Jerusalem and the rest of Judah to experience great disasters. It will be terrible, with the result that everyone who hears about it will be stunned [MTY].

13 ונטיתי על ירושלם את קו שמרון ואת משקלת בית אחאב ומחיתי את ירושלם כאשר ימחה את הצלחת מחה והפך על פניה׃

I will judge and punish [MET] the people of Jerusalem like I punished the family of King Ahab [of Israel]. I will (wipe Jerusalem clean/remove all the people from Jerusalem), like [MET] people wipe a plate and then turn it upside down [after they have finished eating, to show that they are now satisfied].

14 ונטשתי את שארית נחלתי ונתתים ביד איביהם והיו לבז ולמשסה לכל איביהם׃

And I will abandon the people who remain alive, and I will allow their enemies to conquer them and steal everything valuable from their land.

15 יען אשר עשו את הרע בעיני ויהיו מכעסים אתי מן היום אשר יצאו אבותם ממצרים ועד היום הזה׃

I will do this because my people have done things that I consider to be very evil, things which have caused me to become very angry. They have caused me to become angry continually, ever since their ancestors left Egypt.”

16 וגם דם נקי שפך מנשה הרבה מאד עד אשר מלא את ירושלם פה לפה לבד מחטאתו אשר החטיא את יהודה לעשות הרע בעיני יהוה׃

Manasseh [commanded his officials to] kill many innocent people in Jerusalem, with the result that their blood flowed in the streets. He did this in addition to persuading the people of Judah to sin against Yahweh [by worshiping idols].

17 ויתר דברי מנשה וכל אשר עשה וחטאתו אשר חטא הלא הם כתובים על ספר דברי הימים למלכי יהודה׃

[If you want to know more about] all the things that Manasseh did, they are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.

18 וישכב מנשה עם אבתיו ויקבר בגן ביתו בגן עזא וימלך אמון בנו תחתיו׃

Manasseh died [EUP] and was buried in the garden outside his palace, the garden that Uzza [had made]. Then Manasseh’s son Amon became the king.

19 בן עשרים ושתים שנה אמון במלכו ושתים שנים מלך בירושלם ושם אמו משלמת בת חרוץ מן יטבה׃

Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king. He ruled Judah from Jerusalem for [only] two years. His mother’s name was Meshullemeth. She was from Jotbah [town], and was the granddaughter of Haruz.

20 ויעש הרע בעיני יהוה כאשר עשה מנשה אביו׃

Amon did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil, like his father Manasseh had done.

21 וילך בכל הדרך אשר הלך אביו ויעבד את הגללים אשר עבד אביו וישתחו להם׃

He imitated the behavior of his father, and he worshiped the same idols that his father had worshiped [DOU].

22 ויעזב את יהוה אלהי אבתיו ולא הלך בדרך יהוה׃

He abandoned Yahweh, the God whom his ancestors [had worshiped], and did not behave as Yahweh wanted him to.

23 ויקשרו עבדי אמון עליו וימיתו את המלך בביתו׃

Then one day some of his officials plotted to kill him. They assassinated him in the palace.

24 ויך עם הארץ את כל הקשרים על המלך אמון וימליכו עם הארץ את יאשיהו בנו תחתיו׃

But then the people of Judah killed all those who had assassinated King Amon, and they appointed his son Josiah to be their king.

25 ויתר דברי אמון אשר עשה הלא הם כתובים על ספר דברי הימים למלכי יהודה׃

[If you want to read about] [RHQ] the other things that Amon did, they are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.

26 ויקבר אתו בקברתו בגן עזא וימלך יאשיהו בנו תחתיו׃

Amon was also buried in the tomb in the garden that Uzza [had made]. Then Amon’s son Josiah became the king.