If there is one person who can be blamed for the churban of the first beis hamikdosh, it would be Menashe King of Judea. Chazal teach us that the posuk כי קצר המצע מהשתרע - for the bed is too short to allow one to stretch, refers to the time when Menashe brought an idol into the beis hamikdosh. Kavyochol then said, 'There isn't enough room for both of us, therefore I will abandon the beis hamikdosh."
At that moment the die was cast, and Hashem's decree was finalised. After that it was not a question of 'if', but 'when'.
The psukim relate that eventually, after 22 years of idol worship, Menashe was captured by the Assyrian king, and taken to Assyria bound in copper chains. From the words of the posukויאסרהו בנחשתים the midrash rabbah derives the following fascinating and inspiring tale:
The Assyrian king sealed Menashe in a specially designed copper pot which had holes at the top to allow him to breathe, then lit a small fire underneath, so that he should die a slow and painful death. When Menashe felt the heat building up he called out to all every idol in the world, and pleaded with them for help. Needless to say there was no response.
When he saw that no help was forthcoming he turned to Hashem and said, "I remember as a small child sitting on the lap of my saintly father (Chizkiyahu) and hearing him read the posuk 'בצר לך - when you will be in trouble, you should return to the G-d of your forefathers, for He is a merciful G-d, and He will not forget the covenant He made with your ancestors'.
"Hashem, I am now following this advice and calling out to you for salvation. However know this, I have already prayed to all the idols in the world to no avail; if You will also fail to save me I will claim that ח"ו 'it's all the same thing'..."
When the malochim heard such a brazen prayer they rushed to seal the gates of heaven so as not to allow it to enter, but Hashem wouldn't agree. "If I don't accept Menashe's supplication I am allowing other future sinners to have an excuse why they don't repent. They will point out that Menashe tried to return and found the way barred. Therefore I will accept his prayer and grant him the miracle he needs."
Kavyochol Himself 'drilled' a hole beneath the כסא הכבוד and embraced Menashe's tefillah; a powerful wind then came and blew Menashe all the way back to Yerushalayim.
To be continued...
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