Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
2 Kings 15:18 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 18. 18And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse advances the thought unit through its next reported action, speech, or consequence: “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his….” Its responsible meaning belongs to the complete movement “Menahem buys Assyrian support by taxing the wealthy.”
Menahem rents Assyria with a tax on the strong
This verse is one part of that explanation in 2 Kings 15:17–22. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- 2 Kings 15:17–22
Read 2 Kings 15:18 with 15:17–22. The selected wording supplies one step in the thought unit through its next reported action, speech, or consequence; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: Menahem continues royal evil, pays Pul of Assyria to secure his rule, and raises the tribute from wealthy Israelites before dying.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “Menahem buys Assyrian support by taxing the wealthy,” 2 Kings 15:18 advances the thought unit through its next reported action, speech, or consequence through the wording “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: 2 Kings 15:13–16 establishes this prior movement: Shallum rules one month before Menahem kills him; Menahem then sacks resistant Tiphsah and rips open pregnant women. 2 Kings 15:17–22 continues the same royal, prophetic, household, military, reform, or exile movement; that evidenced relationship, rather than database adjacency alone, explains its placement.
Read 2 Kings 15:17–22 together
Why these verses belong together: 2 Kings 15:17–22 forms one scene or regnal notice: Menahem continues royal evil, pays Pul of Assyria to secure his rule, and raises the tribute from wealthy Israelites before dying.
Verse 17. 17 In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria.
Verse 18. 18 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.
Verse 19. 19 And Pul the king of Assyria came against the land: and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.
Verse 20. 20 And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land.
Verse 21. 21 And the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
Verse 22. 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.
Follow the Context
- Menahem continues royal evil, pays Pul of Assyria to secure his rule, and raises the tribute from wealthy Israelites before dying.
- The unit closes by establishing the result or tension named in “Menahem buys Assyrian support by taxing the wealthy” before the next narrated movement.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
2 Kings 15:18 does not permit the wording “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. Foreign backing and elite taxation do not prove legitimate rule, and the burden must not be erased by a neutral fiscal summary.
What Remains True
Theological interpretation never makes imperial domination morally clean or turns displaced and subjected people into scenery for a ruler's story. This unit tests that truth through the narrated movement: Menahem continues royal evil, pays Pul of Assyria to secure his rule, and raises the tribute from wealthy Israelites before dying. In 2 Kings 15:18, the concrete line “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his…” keeps that truth accountable to narrated evidence.
Teach It Back
In 70–220 words, explain 2 Kings 15:18's role in 15:17–22. Paraphrase “And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his…,” identify one agent or affected person, state one material source or historical limit, and name one conclusion the context does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read 2 Kings 15:17–22 — Menahem buys Assyrian support by taxing the wealthySources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Pul is commonly identified with Tiglath-pileser III; regnal dates and mechanisms of payment remain reconstructed from multiple sources.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: 2 Kings 15:17–22, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 2 Kings
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, royal formulas, clause relationships, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/2Kgs.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 15:17–22
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: 2 Kings with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: A unit-bounded translation comparison plus only the lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, or older-English notes actually printed for these verses; silence is not treated as evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible 2 Kings PDF, printed pp. 649–651, translation and translator notes for 15:17–22
Open source ↗