| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the causal particle ya’an {יַעַן | ya‛an} ‘because’ to introduce the reason for judgment. The repeated relative pronoun asher {אֲשֶׁר | ’ăšer} ‘which/that’ binds Manasseh’s actions to his identity (menashsheh melekh Yehudah). The pairing of ’asah {עָשָׂה | ʿā-sāh} ‘he did’ in Qal and hera {הֵרַע | hē-rā‘} ‘did evil’ in Hifil underscores both the performance and moral character of his deeds. The comparative expression mikol asher asu ha’emori {מִכֹּל אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ הָאֱמֹרִי | mi-kōl ’ăšer ʿā-sû hā-’ĕ-mō-rî} ‘more than all that the Amorites did’ intensifies the wickedness in historical perspective. The causative vayachati {וַיַּחֲטִא | wə-ya-ḥă-ṭî} ‘and he caused to sin’ combined with the adverb gam {גַּם | gam} ‘also’ conveys Manasseh’s active leadership in leading Judah astray. The direct object marker et {אֶת | ’et} before Yehudah highlights the national scope of sin, and the prepositional phrase begilulav {בְּגִלּוּלָיו | bə-gi-lū-lāw} ‘with his idols’ specifies the means of apostasy. |