2 Kings 21 Bible in Basic English

About BBE

Scholarly edition
OT: Masoretic Hebrew (not verified)
NT: Critical text (not verified)
Protestant (66 books)
Simplified language
1965
Public domain

Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings

BBE Bible in Basic English

WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)

1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king; for fifty-five years he was ruling in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hephzi-bah.

1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah.

2 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, copying the disgusting ways of those nations whom the Lord had sent out before the children of Israel.

2 He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, after the abominations of the nations whom Yahweh cast out before the children of Israel.

3 He put up again the high places which had been pulled down by Hezekiah his father; he made altars for Baal, and an Asherah, as Ahab, king of Israel, had done; he was a worshipper and servant of all the stars of heaven.

3 For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he raised up altars for Baal, and made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel did, and worshiped all the army of the sky, and served them.

4 And he put up altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, In Jerusalem will I put my name.

4 He built altars in Yahweh’s house, of which Yahweh said, “I will put my name in Jerusalem.”

5 And he put up altars for all the stars of heaven in the two outer squares of the house of the Lord.

5 He built altars for all the army of the sky in the two courts of Yahweh’s house.

6 And he made his son go through the fire, and made use of secret arts and signs for reading the future; he gave positions to those who had control of spirits and to wonder-workers; he did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, moving him to wrath.

6 He made his son to pass through the fire, practiced sorcery, used enchantments, and dealt with those who had familiar spirits and with wizards. He did much evil in Yahweh’s sight, to provoke him to anger.

7 He put the image of Asherah which he had made in the house of which the Lord had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, the town which I have made mine out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever.

7 He set the engraved image of Asherah that he had made in the house of which Yahweh said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever;

8 And never again will I send the feet of Israel wandering from the land which I gave to their fathers; if only they will take care to do all my orders, and keep all the law which my servant Moses gave them.

8 I will not cause the feet of Israel to wander any more out of the land which I gave their fathers, if only they will observe to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that my servant Moses commanded them.”

9 But they did not give ear; and Manasseh made them do more evil than those nations did, whom the Lord gave up to destruction before the children of Israel.

9 But they didn’t listen, and Manasseh seduced them to do that which is evil more than the nations did whom Yahweh destroyed before the children of Israel.

10 And the Lord said, by his servants the prophets,

10 Yahweh spoke by his servants the prophets, saying,

11 Because Manasseh, king of Judah, has done these disgusting things, doing more evil than all the Amorites before him, and making Judah do evil with his false gods,

11 “Because Manasseh king of Judah has done these abominations, and has done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and has also made Judah to sin with his idols;

12 For this cause, says the Lord, the God of Israel, I will send such evil on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of all to whom the news comes will be burning.

12 therefore Yahweh the God of Israel says, ‘Behold, I will bring such evil on Jerusalem and Judah that whoever hears of it, both his ears will tingle.

13 And over Jerusalem will be stretched the line of Samaria and the weight of Ahab; Jerusalem will be washed clean as a plate is washed, and turned over on its face.

13 I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plumb line of Ahab’s house; and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down.

14 And I will put away from me the rest of my heritage, and give them up into the hands of their haters, who will take their property and their goods for themselves;

14 I will cast off the remnant of my inheritance and deliver them into the hands of their enemies. They will become a prey and a plunder to all their enemies,

15 Because they have done evil in my eyes, moving me to wrath, from the day when their fathers came out of Egypt till this day.

15 because they have done that which is evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day.’”

16 More than this, Manasseh took the lives of upright men, till Jerusalem from one end to the other was full of blood; in addition to his sin in making Judah do evil in the eyes of the Lord.

16 Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, until he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; in addition to his sin with which he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight.

17 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all he did, and his sins, are they not recorded in the book of the history of the kings of Judah?

17 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

18 So Manasseh went to rest with his fathers, and was put into the earth in the garden of his house, in the garden of Uzza; and Amon his son became king in his place.

18 Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza; and Amon his son reigned in his place.

19 Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, ruling in Jerusalem for two years; his mother's name was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah.

19 Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign; and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Meshullemeth the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah.

20 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as Manasseh his father had done.

20 He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, as Manasseh his father did.

21 He went in all the ways of his father, being a servant and worshipper of the false gods to which his father had been a servant;

21 He walked in all the ways that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshiped them;

22 Turning away from the Lord, the God of his fathers, and not walking in his ways.

22 and he abandoned Yahweh, the God of his fathers, and didn’t walk in the way of Yahweh.

23 And the servants of Amon made a secret design against him, and put the king to death in his house.

23 The servants of Amon conspired against him, and put the king to death in his own house.

24 But the people of the land put to death all those who had taken part in the design against the king, and made Josiah his son king in his place.

24 But the people of the land killed all those who had conspired against King Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place.

25 Now the rest of the acts which Amon did, are they not recorded in the book of the history of the kings of Judah?

25 Now the rest of the acts of Amon which he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

26 He was put in his last resting-place in the garden of Uzza, and Josiah his son became king in his place.

26 He was buried in his tomb in the garden of Uzza, and Josiah his son reigned in his place.

People & places in this chapter

From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.

People

Amon
King of Judah
A short-lived wicked king, assassinated by his own officials.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 21:19-26; 2 Chron. 33:21-25; Matt. 1:10
See in the family tree
Haruz
Father of Meshullemeth
Named as the father of Meshullemeth, the mother of King Amon.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 21:19
See in the family tree
Manasseh
King of Judah
Judah's longest-reigning and most wicked king — who finally repented in exile.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 21:1-18; 2 Chron. 33:1-20; Matt. 1:10
See in the family tree
Meshullemeth
Mother of Amon
Daughter of Haruz from Jotbah and mother of King Amon of Judah.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 21:19
See in the family tree

Cross references (25)

Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.

Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences

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People & places in this chapter

People