2 Kings 21:15 kjv
Because they have done that which was evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day.
2 Kings 21:15 nkjv
because they have done evil in My sight, and have provoked Me to anger since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day.' "
2 Kings 21:15 niv
they have done evil in my eyes and have aroused my anger from the day their ancestors came out of Egypt until this day."
2 Kings 21:15 esv
because they have done what is evil in my sight and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day."
2 Kings 21:15 nlt
For they have done great evil in my sight and have angered me ever since their ancestors came out of Egypt."
2 Kings 21 15 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference Note |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 26:14-17 | "But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these...I will appoint over you a panic... consume your eyes..." | Covenant curses for disobedience. |
| Deut 9:7-8 | "Remember and do not forget how you provoked the LORD your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day that you departed out of the land of Egypt..." | Israel's history of rebellion from the Exodus. |
| Deut 28:58-63 | "If you are not careful to do all the words...the LORD will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions..." | Consequences for breaking God's commands. |
| Josh 24:19-20 | "Then Joshua said to the people, 'You cannot serve the LORD...if you forsake the LORD...he will turn and do you harm...'" | Warning of divine judgment for forsaking God. |
| Judg 2:11-13 | "And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals..." | Cycle of apostasy and judgment in Judges. |
| 1 Sam 8:7-8 | "They have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done..." | Rejection of God's direct rule. |
| 2 Ki 17:7-8 | "And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD...and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had dispossessed before them..." | Reason for Samaria's downfall: consistent sin. |
| Ps 78:8 | "...and not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast..." | Israel's generational pattern of rebellion. |
| Ps 78:40 | "How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the desert!" | Israel's repeated provocation of God. |
| Ps 106:6 | "Both we and our fathers have sinned; we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness." | Confession of long-standing national sin. |
| Ps 106:29 | "They provoked him to anger with their deeds, and a plague broke out among them." | Specific instance of provocation leading to judgment. |
| Jer 7:25-26 | "From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them..." | God's persistent grace met by persistent disobedience. |
| Jer 32:30-32 | "For the people of Israel and the people of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth...from their youth they have kept provoking me to anger..." | Consistent evil from early national history. |
| Dan 9:5 | "We have sinned and done wrong, and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and your rules." | Daniel's prayer acknowledging national sin. |
| Ezek 2:3 | "And he said to me, 'Son of man, I am sending you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me.'" | Israel described as rebellious. |
| Ezek 20:21 | "But the children rebelled against me and did not walk in my statutes..." | Repeated rebellion in wilderness and thereafter. |
| Amos 2:4 | "Thus says the LORD: 'For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment...because they have rejected the law of the LORD...'" | Judah's rejection of God's law. |
| Neh 9:16-17 | "But they and our fathers acted proudly and stiffened their neck and did not obey your commandments...but they became stubborn and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt." | Rebellion shortly after Exodus. |
| Acts 7:51 | "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you." | Stephen's rebuke: continuation of ancestral rebellion. |
| Heb 3:7-11 | "Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, 'Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness...'" | Warning against hardening hearts like ancestors. |
2 Kings 21 verses
2 Kings 21 15 Meaning
This verse declares God's righteous judgment upon Judah, specifically Jerusalem, because of their persistent wickedness and idolatry. It emphasizes that their rebellion against Him was not a recent phenomenon but had characterized their national history since the very inception of their relationship with God, beginning with their exodus from Egypt. Manasseh's grievous sins marked a pinnacle of this long-standing rebellion, cementing the nation's fate.
2 Kings 21 15 Context
This verse is part of God's pronouncement of judgment against Jerusalem and Judah during the reign of Manasseh (2 Ki 21:1-18). Manasseh, son of the righteous King Hezekiah, tragically reversed his father's reforms. He rebuilt high places, erected altars for Baal, made an Asherah pole, worshipped the host of heaven, built altars to foreign gods in the Temple courts, practiced child sacrifice, divination, sorcery, and consulted mediums and necromancers. He led Judah to do more evil than the nations God had driven out (2 Ki 21:9). This verse explains why such extreme judgment (to make Judah a ruin like Samaria, wiped out as a dish) is coming. It links Manasseh's abominations to a long history of national apostasy, presenting Manasseh's reign as the culmination of Judah's accumulated sin. The historical context reflects a deeply syncretistic period in Judah, influenced by powerful Assyrian empires. The pronouncement of judgment signifies God's justice in light of centuries of covenant-breaking.
2 Kings 21 15 Word analysis
- because they have done what is evil: The Hebrew term for "evil" is raʿ (רַע), signifying badness, wickedness, moral evil, disaster. It covers a broad range of sinful acts and their destructive consequences. In this context, it refers primarily to idolatry, cultic abominations, and rejection of God's commands. Their actions directly contradicted the Mosaic Law.
- in my sight: This emphasizes divine omnipresence and perfect knowledge. God observes all actions, and judgment is based on His righteous standard, not human assessment. It highlights His holiness, which cannot tolerate such flagrant disobedience.
- and have provoked me to anger: The Hebrew verb is kaʿas (כַּעַס), meaning "to vex, provoke, grieve, be angry." It implies an intentional and persistent irritation, causing God's righteous indignation to flare. The repetitive nature of their sin suggests a deliberate challenging of God's authority and character. This is anthropopathic language, describing God's reaction in human terms to convey the seriousness of their offense.
- since the day their fathers came out of Egypt: This phrase highlights the profound historical depth of their disobedience. The Exodus (yatsa' יָצָא 'to come out', mimitzrayim מִמִּצְרַיִם 'from Egypt') was the foundational redemptive act establishing Israel as God's covenant people. From this very beginning, marked by God's faithfulness and their solemn covenant vow, they began a cycle of rebellion. This sets up a contrast: God's unfailing commitment versus Israel's unfaithful defection.
- even to this day: This emphasizes the continuous, unbroken, and cumulative nature of their sin. It points to Manasseh's reign not as an isolated incident, but as the climax of generations of persistent rebellion. It suggests that patience has been exhausted.
Words-group analysis
- "because they have done what is evil in my sight and have provoked me to anger": This phrase encapsulates the two primary accusations against Judah: direct moral transgression and the emotional/relational consequence of that transgression on God. "Doing evil" describes the act, while "provoking to anger" describes the relational offense against a holy God. Their actions were a direct affront to His Person.
- "since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day": This segment outlines the entire temporal span of Israel's persistent disobedience. It traces a continuous, unbroken line of apostasy from the foundational covenant moment (Exodus) through every generation, culminating in Manasseh's unprecedented wickedness. This extensive historical timeframe justifies the severe and ultimate judgment to come, demonstrating God's immense patience stretched to its limit. It also negates any claim that Manasseh's sin was an anomaly; rather, it was the bitter fruit of a long-standing national disposition.
2 Kings 21 15 Bonus section
The historical indictment laid out in 2 Kings 21:15 connects deeply with prophetic themes throughout the Old Testament. Many prophets (e.g., Jeremiah, Ezekiel) repeatedly appeal to Israel's history of rebellion from the Exodus as the basis for their warnings and condemnations. The use of "fathers" emphasizes the ancestral legacy of unfaithfulness passed down through generations. Manasseh's reign, therefore, serves as the point of no return for Judah, a final example of a nation choosing to spurn God's covenant and grace over centuries. Although Manasseh personally repented later (2 Chr 33:10-13), his extensive and severe introduction of idolatry so deeply corrupted the nation's spiritual fabric that it effectively sealed Judah's national fate of exile, demonstrating the principle that even individual repentance may not avert corporate consequences for widespread national sin.
2 Kings 21 15 Commentary
2 Kings 21:15 provides the divine rationale for the imminent, severe judgment upon Judah and Jerusalem. It underscores that this punishment is not arbitrary or solely due to Manasseh's extreme wickedness, but is a just response to a deeply entrenched pattern of apostasy spanning centuries. From their miraculous deliverance out of Egypt, which forged their covenant relationship with Yahweh, Israel continually "provoked" God, indulging in idolatry and breaking His laws. Manasseh's reign simply amplified and consummated this national sin, crossing a final threshold beyond which divine forbearance could no longer extend. The phrase "even to this day" is critical; it demonstrates God's long-suffering patience reaching its limit and signals that the cumulative effect of generations of sin has now resulted in irreversible national judgment. This verse illustrates that prolonged, persistent disobedience leads to inevitable divine consequence.