And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name.
Parallel translations
- WEB He built altars in Yahweh’s house, of which Yahweh said, “I will put my name in Jerusalem.”
- BSB Manasseh also built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My Name.”
- NKJV He also built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name.”
- NASB And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name.”
- NLT He built pagan altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said, “My name will remain in Jerusalem forever.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Manasseh builds pagan altars within the very temple where God had placed His name. He defiles the place of true worship.
Overview
In a brazen act, the king erects idolatrous altars in the LORD's house, the dwelling God had chosen for His name. To corrupt the temple itself is to assault the heart of Israel's faith. This desecration anticipates the need for a greater cleansing, ultimately accomplished by Christ, who purifies a people to be God's true temple.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- 2 Sam 7:13He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
- 1 Kgs 8:29That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place.
- Jer 32:34But they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name, to defile it.
- 2 Kgs 16:10–16And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.
- Deut 12:5But unto the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:
- 1 Kgs 9:3And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
- Ps 78:68–69But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.
- Exod 20:24An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
- Ps 132:13–14For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 21:4 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.