2 Kings 18:12 This happened because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD their God, but violated His covenant--all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded--and would neither listen nor obey.

◄ 2 Kings 18:12 ►

New International Version
This happened because they had not obeyed the LORD their God, but had violated his covenant—all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. They neither listened to the commands nor carried them out.

New Living Translation
For they refused to listen to the LORD their God and obey him. Instead, they violated his covenant—all the laws that Moses the LORD’s servant had commanded them to obey.

English Standard Version
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. They neither listened nor obeyed.

Berean Standard Bible
This happened because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD their God, but violated His covenant—all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded—and would neither listen nor obey.

King James Bible
Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.

New King James Version
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant and all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded; and they would neither hear nor do them.

New American Standard Bible
This happened because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but violated His covenant, all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded; they would neither listen nor do it.

NASB 1995
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded; they would neither listen nor do it.

NASB 1977
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded; they would neither listen, nor do it.

Legacy Standard Bible
because they did not listen to the voice of Yahweh their God, but trespassed against His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded; they would neither listen nor do it.

Amplified Bible
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but broke His covenant, everything that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded; and they would not listen nor do it.

Christian Standard Bible
because they did not listen to the LORD their God but violated his covenant—all he had commanded Moses the servant of the LORD. They did not listen, and they did not obey.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD their God but violated His covenant—all He had commanded Moses the servant of the LORD. They did not listen, and they did not obey.

American Standard Version
because they obeyed not the voice of Jehovah their God, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.

Contemporary English Version
All of that happened because the people of Israel had not obeyed the LORD their God. They rejected the solemn agreement he had made with them, and they ignored everything that the LORD's servant Moses had told them.

English Revised Version
because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
This happened because they refused to obey the LORD their God and disregarded the conditions of the promise he made to them. They refused to obey everything that Moses, the LORD's servant, had commanded.

Good News Translation
Samaria fell because the Israelites did not obey the LORD their God, but broke the covenant he had made with them and disobeyed all the laws given by Moses, the servant of the LORD. They would not listen and they would not obey.

International Standard Version
because they would not obey the voice of the LORD their God. Instead, they transgressed his covenant, including everything that Moses, the servant of the LORD, had commanded, by neither listening nor putting what he had commanded into practice.

Majority Standard Bible
This happened because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD their God, but violated His covenant—all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded—and would neither listen nor obey.

NET Bible
This happened because they did not obey the LORD their God and broke his agreement with them. They did not pay attention to and obey all that Moses, the LORD's servant, had commanded.

New Heart English Bible
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.

Webster's Bible Translation
Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.

World English Bible
because they didn’t obey Yahweh their God’s voice, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded, and would not hear it or do it.

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
because that they have not listened to the voice of their God YHWH, and transgress His covenant—all that He commanded Moses, servant of YHWH—indeed, they have not listened nor done [it].

Young's Literal Translation
because that they have not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah their God, and transgress His covenant -- all that He commanded Moses, servant of Jehovah -- yea, they have not hearkened nor done it.

Smith's Literal Translation
Because they heard not to the voice of Jehovah their God, and they will pass by his covenant, all which Moses commanded, the servant of Jehovah, and they heard not and did not.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
Because they hearkened not to the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed his covenant: all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, they would not hear nor do.

Catholic Public Domain Version
For they did not listen to the voice of the Lord, their God. Instead, they transgressed his covenant. All that Moses, the servant of the Lord, had instructed, they would neither hear, nor do.

New American Bible
This happened because they did not obey the LORD, their God, but violated his covenant; they did not obey nor do all that Moses, the servant of the LORD, commanded.

New Revised Standard Version
because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God but transgressed his covenant—all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded; they neither listened nor obeyed.

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
Because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded them, and would not hearken nor do them.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because they did not listen to the voice of LORD JEHOVAH their God, and they violated his covenant, and they did not listen to neither did they do all that Moshe the Servant of LORD JEHOVAH had commanded them.

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
because they hearkened not to the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
because they hearkened not to the voice of the Lord their God, and transgressed his covenant, even in all things that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, and hearkened not to them, nor did them.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Hezekiah Destroys Idolatry in Judah
…11The king of Assyria exiled the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah, in Gozan by the Habor River, and in the cities of the Medes. 12This happened because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD their God, but violated His covenant— all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded— and would neither listen nor obey.

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Deuteronomy 28:15
If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His commandments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:

Deuteronomy 28:45-47
All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, since you did not obey the LORD your God and keep the commandments and statutes He gave you. / These curses will be a sign and a wonder upon you and your descendants forever. / Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart in all your abundance,

Deuteronomy 31:16-17
And the LORD said to Moses, “You will soon rest with your fathers, and these people will rise up and prostitute themselves with the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake Me and break the covenant I have made with them. / On that day My anger will burn against them, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, so that they will be consumed, and many troubles and afflictions will befall them. On that day they will say, ‘Have not these disasters come upon us because our God is no longer with us?’

2 Kings 17:7-23
All this happened because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They had worshiped other gods / and walked in the customs of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites, as well as in the practices introduced by the kings of Israel. / The Israelites secretly did things against the LORD their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city, they built high places in all their cities. ...

2 Kings 21:15
because they have done evil in My sight and have provoked Me to anger from the day their fathers came out of Egypt until this day.’”

Jeremiah 11:10
They have returned to the sins of their forefathers who refused to obey My words. They have followed other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their fathers.

Jeremiah 34:18-19
And those who have transgressed My covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before Me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces. / The officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf,

Hosea 9:17
My God will reject them because they have not obeyed Him; and they shall be wanderers among the nations.

Amos 2:4
This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Judah, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they reject the Law of the LORD and fail to keep His statutes; they are led astray by the lies in which their fathers walked.

Nehemiah 9:26-27
But they were disobedient and rebelled against You; they flung Your law behind their backs. They killed Your prophets, who had admonished them to return to You. They committed terrible blasphemies. / So You delivered them into the hands of enemies who oppressed them, and in their time of distress they cried out to You. From heaven You heard them, and in Your great compassion You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hands of their enemies.

1 Kings 9:6-9
But if indeed you or your sons turn away from following Me and do not keep the commandments and statutes I have set before you, and if you go off to serve and worship other gods, / then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and I will banish from My presence this temple I have sanctified for My Name. Then Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all peoples. / And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ ...

2 Chronicles 36:15-16
Again and again the LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to His people through His messengers because He had compassion on them and on His dwelling place. / But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.

Isaiah 1:2-4
Listen, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: “I have raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me. / The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s manger, but Israel does not know; My people do not understand.” / Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.

Ezekiel 20:13
Yet the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not follow My statutes and they rejected My ordinances—though the man who does these things will live by them—and they utterly profaned My Sabbaths. Then I resolved to pour out My wrath upon them and put an end to them in the wilderness.

Psalm 78:10
They failed to keep God’s covenant and refused to live by His law.

Treasury of Scripture

Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.

they obeyed not

2 Kings 17:7-23
For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, …

Deuteronomy 8:20
As the nations which the LORD destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the LORD your God.

Deuteronomy 11:28
And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

Moses

Numbers 12:7
My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.

Deuteronomy 34:5
So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD.

Joshua 1:1
Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying,

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2 Kings 18

1. Hezekiah's good reign
4. He destroys idolatry, and prospers
9. The inhabitants of Samaria are carried captive for their sins
13. Sennacherib invading Judah, is pacified by a tribute
17. Rabshakeh, by blasphemous persuasions, solicits the people to revolt

Berean Study Bible

because they did not listen
The Hebrew root for "listen" is "שָׁמַע" (shama), which implies not just hearing but also understanding and obeying. In the biblical context, listening to God is an act of faith and submission. The Israelites' failure to listen signifies a deeper spiritual rebellion, highlighting the importance of heeding God's word as a foundation for a faithful life.

to the voice of the LORD their God
The "voice of the LORD" represents divine revelation and authority. In the Hebrew tradition, God's voice is powerful and creative, as seen in Genesis where God speaks the world into existence. The Israelites' disregard for God's voice underscores their rejection of His sovereignty and guidance, a theme that resonates throughout the Old Testament as a call to recognize and submit to divine authority.

but transgressed His covenant
The term "transgressed" comes from the Hebrew "עָבַר" (avar), meaning to pass over or go beyond. This indicates a deliberate violation of the covenant, a sacred agreement between God and His people. The covenant, central to Israel's identity, required obedience and loyalty. Their transgression reflects a breach of trust and relationship with God, emphasizing the gravity of covenantal faithfulness.

all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded
Moses, as "the servant of the LORD," is a pivotal figure in delivering God's law. His role as mediator of the covenant at Sinai is foundational for Israel's religious and social life. The reference to Moses underscores the continuity of God's revelation and the enduring authority of the Mosaic Law. Disobedience to Moses' commands is equated with disobedience to God Himself, highlighting the importance of adhering to divinely instituted leadership and instruction.

and would neither listen nor obey
The repetition of "listen" and the addition of "obey" (Hebrew "שָׁמַע" and "עָשָׂה" - asah, meaning to do or act) emphasize the complete rejection of God's will. Obedience in the biblical sense involves action based on faith. The Israelites' refusal to listen and obey illustrates a hardened heart and a willful departure from God's path, serving as a cautionary tale about the consequences of spiritual defiance.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(12) Because they obeyed not . . .--Thenius calls this remark, which properly belongs to the historical abstract from which the compiler drew the narrative of 2Kings 18:1-12, "the theme" which suggested the reflections of 2Kings 17:7-23. They may have been suggested by passages of the Law and Prophets.

And all.--Omit and, with all the versions. "All that Moses . . . commanded" is in apposition with "his covenant."

And would not . . . do them.--Literally, and hearkened not, and did not.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 12. - Because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them (compare the expanded version of this statement in 2 Kings 17:7-23). The sin of Samaria may be summed up under three heads:

(1) disobedience;

(2) breach of the covenant; and

(3) disregard of Moses, and the other "servants of the Lord."

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

[This happened] because
עַ֣ל ׀ (‘al)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

they did not
לֹֽא־ (lō-)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

listen
שָׁמְע֗וּ (šā·mə·‘ū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

to the voice
בְּקוֹל֙ (bə·qō·wl)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 6963: A voice, sound

of the LORD
יְהוָ֣ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3069: YHWH

their God,
אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֔ם (’ĕ·lō·hê·hem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

but violated
וַיַּעַבְרוּ֙ (way·ya·‘aḇ·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 5674: To pass over, through, or by, pass on

His covenant—
בְּרִית֔וֹ (bə·rî·ṯōw)
Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1285: A covenant

all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

that
אֲשֶׁ֣ר (’ă·šer)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

Moses
מֹשֶׁ֖ה (mō·šeh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 4872: Moses -- a great Israelite leader, prophet and lawgiver

the servant
עֶ֣בֶד (‘e·ḇeḏ)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 5650: Slave, servant

of the LORD
יְהוָ֑ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3069: YHWH

had commanded—
צִוָּ֔ה (ṣiw·wāh)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6680: To lay charge (upon), give charge (to), command, order

and would neither
וְלֹ֥א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

listen
שָׁמְע֖וּ (šā·mə·‘ū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

nor
וְלֹ֥א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

obey.
עָשֽׂוּ׃ (‘ā·śū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 6213: To do, make

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OT History: 2 Kings 18:12 Because they didn't obey the voice (2Ki iiKi ii ki 2 kg 2kg)