Divrei HaYamim II 30:1-9

30:1

וַיִּשְׁלַח יְחִזְקִיָּהוּ עַל־כׇּל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וִיהוּדָה וְגַֽם־אִגְּרוֹת כָּתַב עַל־אֶפְרַיִם וּמְנַשֶּׁה לָבוֹא לְבֵית־יְהֹוָה בִּירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם לַעֲשׂוֹת פֶּסַח לַיהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

And Yeĥizqiyyahu sent to all Yisra᾽el and Yehuda, and wrote letters also to Efrayim and Menashshe, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Yerushalayim, to keep the passover to the Lord God of Yisra᾽el.

Rashi

וגם אגרות כתב על אפרים ומנשה וגו'. כי עדיין לא גלו כי זה היה בשנה ראשונה למלכו והם לא גלו כי אם בשש למלכו כדכתיב (במלכים ב י״ח:י׳) וילכדה בקצה שלש שנים בשנת שש לחזקיה והיא שנת ט' להושע מלך ישראל כאשר תמצא כתוב בסוף הספר:

and he also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, etc. because they were not yet exiled, because this was in the first year of his reign and they were not exiled until the sixth year of his reign as it is written (II Kings 18:10): “And they captured it at the end of three years, in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea, king of Israel,” as you will find at the end of the Book.

30:2

וַיִּוָּעַץ הַמֶּלֶךְ וְשָׂרָיו וְכׇל־הַקָּהָל בִּירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם לַעֲשׂוֹת הַפֶּסַח בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַשֵּׁנִֽי׃

For the king had taken counsel, and his princes, and all the congregation in Yerushalayim, to keep the passover in the second month.

30:3

כִּי לֹא יָכְלוּ לַעֲשֹׂתוֹ בָּעֵת הַהִיא כִּי הַכֹּֽהֲנִים לֹֽא־הִתְקַדְּשׁוּ לְמַדַּי וְהָעָם לֹא־נֶאֶסְפוּ לִירוּשָׁלָֽ͏ִם׃

For they could not keep it in its time, because the priests had not sanctified themselves sufficiently, nor had the people gathered themselves together to Yerushalayim.

Rashi

כי לא יכלו לעשותו בעת ההיא. בחדש הראשון בניסן:

For they could not perform it at that time in the first month, in Nissan.

כי הכהנים לא התקדשו למדי. התקדשו להיות די לישראל בהם להקריב פסחיהם ואין צריך לומר שלא היו יכולים לעשותו בניסן שהרי לא כלו לקדש את הבית עד י"ו בניסן וכן פתרון כי לא יכלו לעשותו בעת ההיא כלומר אפי' אם לא עכבו טהר' הבי' שלא כלו עד י"ו בניסן לא היינו יכולין לעשותו עתה לפי כי הכהנים לא התקדשו למדי:

for the priests had not consecrated themselves sufficiently They had not consecrated themselves sufficiently for Israel to offer their Passover sacrifices, and it goes without saying that they could not perform it in Nissan, for they did not finish consecrating the Temple until the sixteenth of Nissan, but this is its meaning: For they could not perform it at that time; i.e., even if they had not delayed the purification of the Temple, which they did not complete until the sixteenth of Nissan, they would not have been able to perform it now [the offering of the Passover sacrifice] because not enough priests had consecrated themselves.

והעם לא נאספו. עדיין כולם לירושלים:

and the people had not gathered all of them [had not] yet [gathered] to Jerusalem.

30:4

וַיִּישַׁר הַדָּבָר בְּעֵינֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ וּבְעֵינֵי כׇּל־הַקָּהָֽל׃

And the thing pleased the king and all the congregation.

30:5

וַיַּעֲמִידוּ דָבָר לְהַעֲבִיר קוֹל בְּכׇל־יִשְׂרָאֵל מִבְּאֵֽר־שֶׁבַע וְעַד־דָּן לָבוֹא לַעֲשׂוֹת פֶּסַח לַיהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם כִּי לֹא לָרֹב עָשׂוּ כַּכָּתֽוּב׃

So they established a decree to make proclamation throughout all Yisra᾽el, from Be᾽er-sheva as far as Dan, that they should come to keep the passover to the Lord God of Yisra᾽el at Yerushalayim: for they had not done it for long as it was written.

Rashi

מבאר שבע ועד דן. זהו תחום עשרת השבטים:

from Beersheba to Dan This is the boundary of the Ten Tribes.

כי לא לרוב. פתרון כי רוב שנים עברו שלא עשהו כהלכתו:

because for many years The meaning is that many years had passed in which they had not performed it according to its law.

30:6

וַיֵּלְכוּ הָרָצִים בָּאִגְּרוֹת מִיַּד הַמֶּלֶךְ וְשָׂרָיו בְּכׇל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וִֽיהוּדָה וּכְמִצְוַת הַמֶּלֶךְ לֵאמֹר בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל שׁוּבוּ אֶל־יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיִשְׂרָאֵל וְיָשֹׁב אֶל־הַפְּלֵיטָה הַנִּשְׁאֶרֶת לָכֶם מִכַּף מַלְכֵי אַשּֽׁוּר׃

So the runners went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Yisra᾽el and Yehuda, and according to the commandment of the king, saying, You children of Yisra᾽el, turn back to the Lord God of Avraham, Yiżĥaq, and Yisra᾽el, and he will turn again to the remnant of you, who have escaped out of the hand of the kings of Ashshur.

Rashi

וישוב אל הפליטה הנשארת לכם מכף מלכי אשור. אע"פ שלא הגלו עדיין קורא להם פליט' כי הי' נחשב בעיניה' כאשר גלו כבר ועוד כי מלכי אשור תפשו הכל בימי אחז ומה שהיה בעיניה' כאילו גלו לפי כי ו' שנים היו ישראל למלך אשור עבדים נושאי מנחה והיה מושל בהם ומוליכן בגולה ועושה בהם כרצונו וזה היה בתוך אותן שש שנים וכבר גלו כמה פעמים בימי מלכי ישראל ואחז והם יודעים מיד כשימרדו ישראל במלך אשור יוליכם בגולה ולהם קורא פליטת אשור לפי שלא משל בהם ולא בכל ארץ יהודה:

so that He may return to the remnant that has escaped from the clutches of the kings of Assyria Although they had not yet been exiled, he calls them a remnant that has escaped because they considered themselves as if they had already been exiled, and moreover, the kings of Assyria had seized everything in the days of Ahaz, and the reason they saw themselves as if they had already been exiled was that for six years the Israelites were tribute-paying serfs to the king of Assyria, and he ruled over them and led them away into exile and did with them as he wished. This occurred within those six years, and they had already been exiled many times in the days of the kings of Israel and Ahaz, and they knew that as soon as Israel would rebel against the king of Assyria, he would lead them away in exile. He calls them ‘those who escaped from Assyria’ because he ruled neither over them, nor over the entire land of Judah.

30:7

וְאַל־תִּֽהְיוּ כַּאֲבֽוֹתֵיכֶם וְכַאֲחֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר מָעֲלוּ בַּיהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵיהֶם וַיִּתְּנֵם לְשַׁמָּה כַּאֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם רֹאִֽים׃

And be not like your fathers, and like your brethren, who trespassed against the Lord God of their fathers, who therefore gave them up to desolation, as you see.

Rashi

ואל תהיו כאבותיכם וכאחיכם. פתרון וא"ת עדיין בוטחים אנו שיעלה מעלינו מלך אשור אל תהיו כאבותיכם כל דור ודור שהיה לפניכם, ומה אירע להם כשעזבו את ה' וימעלו בו מעל ויתנם לשמה כאשר אתם רואים:

And do not be like your fathers or like your brothers The meaning is: Now if you say, “We still trust that the king of Assyria will withdraw from us,” do not be like your fathers, every generation that was before you. What happened to them when they forsook the Lord and acted treacherously? “He made them a desolation, as you see.”

30:8

עַתָּה אַל־תַּקְשׁוּ עׇרְפְּכֶם כַּאֲבוֹתֵיכֶם תְּנוּ־יָד לַיהֹוָה וּבֹאוּ לְמִקְדָּשׁוֹ אֲשֶׁר הִקְדִּישׁ לְעוֹלָם וְעִבְדוּ אֶת־יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וְיָשֹׁב מִכֶּם חֲרוֹן אַפּֽוֹ׃

Now be not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the Lord, and enter into his sanctuary, which he has sanctified for ever: and worship the Lord your God, so that the fierceness of his anger may turn away from you.

30:9

כִּי בְשׁוּבְכֶם עַל־יְהֹוָה אֲחֵיכֶם וּבְנֵיכֶם לְרַֽחֲמִים לִפְנֵי שֽׁוֹבֵיהֶם וְלָשׁוּב לָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת כִּֽי־חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וְלֹֽא־יָסִיר פָּנִים מִכֶּם אִם־תָּשׁוּבוּ אֵלָֽיו׃ {ס}

For if you return to the Lord, your brethren and your children shall find compassion before those who led them away captive, so that they shall come back into this land: for the Lord your God is gracious, and merciful, and he will not turn away his face from you, if you return to him.

Rashi

עתה אל תקשו ערפכם וגו'. בשובכם על ה' אחיכם ובניכם יהיו לרחמים לפני שוביה' ולשוב לארץ הזאת. אפילו אותן קצת שגלו כבר שהיו נלחמים עם ישראל ויכלו להם ומוליכין את בניה' ואת בנותיהם בשביה ואם תשובו אליו יתנם לרחמים לפני שוביהם לשובם לארץ הזאת כי חנון ורחום ה' אלהיכם:

For when you return to the Lord, your brothers and your sons will find compassion before their captors and shall return to this land Even those few who have already been exiled, for they waged war with Israel and they overwhelmed them, and they led their sons and daughters into captivity. But if you return to Him, He will grant them compassion before their captors, that they will return to this land, for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful.

Divrei HaYamim II 30:1-9 דברי הימים ב ל׳:א׳-ט׳

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