2 Kings 17:16 - Easy To Read Version The people stopped following the commands of the Lord their God. They made two gold statues of calves. They made Asherah poles. [209] They worshiped all the stars of heaven and served Baal. [210] Tuilleadh leaganachaKing James Version (Oxford) 1769 And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. Amplified Bible - Classic Edition And they forsook all the commandments of the Lord their God and made for themselves molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah and worshiped all the [starry] hosts of the heavens and served Baal. American Standard Version (1901) And they forsook all the commandments of Jehovah their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. Common English Bible They deserted all the commandments of the LORD their God. They made themselves two metal idols cast in the shape of calves and made a sacred pole. They bowed down to all the heavenly bodies. They served Baal. Catholic Public Domain Version And they abandoned all the precepts of the Lord, their God. And they made for themselves two molten calves and sacred groves. And they adored the entire celestial army. And they served Baal. Douay-Rheims version of The Bible - 1752 version And they forsook all the precepts of the Lord their God. And made to themselves two molten calves, and groves, and adored all the host of heaven. And they served Baal. |
So the king asked his advisers what he should do. {They gave him their advice.} So Jeroboam made two golden calves. King Jeroboam said to the people, “You should not go to Jerusalem to worship. Israel, these are the gods that brought you out of Egypt.” [155]
Then the Lord will hit Israel. The people of Israel will be very scared—they will shake like tall grass in the water. The Lord will pull up Israel from this good land. This is the land that he gave their ancestors. He will scatter them on the other side of the Euphrates River. This will happen because the Lord is angry with the people. The people made him angry when they made special poles to worship Asherah. [175]
The people built high places, stone memorials, and sacred poles. [177] They built them on every high hill and under every green tree.
Asa also removed his grandmother, Maacah, from being queen. Maacah had made one of those terrible images of the goddess Asherah. Asa cut down this terrible image. He burned it in Kidron Valley.
It was not enough for Ahab to do the same sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had done. So Ahab also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal. Ethbaal was the king of the people of Sidon. Then Ahab began to serve and worship Baal. [190]
Baasha, son of Ahijah, became king of Israel during the third year that Asa ruled over Judah. Baasha ruled in Tirzah for 24 years.
Ahaziah worshiped and served the false god Baal, like his father did before him. So Ahaziah caused the Lord God of Israel to be very angry. The Lord was angry at Ahaziah like he had been angry at his father before him.
One day, Ahaziah was on the roof [1] of his house in Samaria. Ahaziah fell down through the wooden bars on top of his house. He was hurt very badly. Ahaziah called messengers and told them, “Go to {the priests of} Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. Ask them if I will get well from my injuries.”
Then all the people went to the temple of {the false god} Baal. The people destroyed the statue of Baal, and they destroyed his altars. [141] They broke them into many, many pieces. The people also killed Baal’s priest, Mattan, in front of the altars.
Ahaz lived like the kings of Israel. He even sacrificed his son in fire. [187] He copied the terrible sins of the nations that the Lord forced to leave the country at the time the Israelites came.
The Israelites put up memorial stones [201] and Asherah poles [202] on every high hill and under every green tree.
Hezekiah was very faithful to the Lord. He did not stop following the Lord. He obeyed the commands that the Lord had given to Moses.
Manasseh built again the high places [251] that his father Hezekiah had destroyed. Manasseh also built altars [252] for Baal [253] and made an Asherah pole, [254] just like Ahab king of Israel. Manasseh worshiped and served the stars of heaven.
Aaron took the gold from the people. Then he used it to make a statue of a calf. Aaron used a chisel to carve the statue, {and then he covered it with gold}.
They have very quickly turned away from the things I commanded them to do. They made a calf from melted gold for themselves. They are worshiping that calf and making sacrifices [327] to it. The people have said, ‘Israel, these are the gods that led you out of Egypt.’”
Your land is full of statues that people worship. The people made those idols {\cf2\super [21]} and the people worship them.
‘The houses in Jerusalem will become as “dirty” as this place, Topheth. The kings’ palaces {\cf2\super [161]} will be ruined like this place, Topheth. Why? Because the people worshiped false gods on the roofs of those houses. {\cf2\super [162]} They worshiped the stars and burned sacrifices to honor them. They gave drink offerings to false gods.’”
We promised to make sacrifices to the Queen of Heaven. {\cf2\super [357]} And we will do everything we promised. We will offer sacrifices and pour out drink offerings in worship to her. We did that in the past. And our ancestors, our kings, and our officials did that in the past. All of us did those things in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. At the time we worshiped the Queen of Heaven, we had plenty of food. We were successful. Nothing bad happened to us.
Those men will spread those bones on the ground under the sun, the moon, and the stars. The people of Jerusalem love to worship the sun, the moon, and the stars. No person will gather those bones and bury them again. So, the bones of those people will be like dung thrown on the ground.
Besides that, she never stopped her love affair with Egypt. Egypt made love to her when she was a young girl. Egypt was the first lover to touch her young breasts. Egypt poured his untrue love on her.
“Don’t make idols for yourselves. Don’t set up statues or memorials [440] in your land to bow down to. Why? Because I am the Lord your God!
“When you set up an altar [109] for the Lord your God, you must not place beside the altar any of the wooden poles that honor the goddess Asherah. [110]
And be careful when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon, and the stars—all the many things in the sky. Be careful that you are not tempted to worship and serve those things. The Lord your God lets the other people in the world do those things.