Manasseh Turns Back to God

Manasseh became king of Judah when he was twelve years old, and he ruled for fifty-five years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. He rebuilt high places, made altars to false gods, worshipped the stars, and even set idol worship inside the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.

The Lord had chosen Jerusalem and had commanded his people to walk in his law, but they did not listen. Manasseh led Judah and the people of Jerusalem into worse evil than the nations the Lord had driven out before Israel. He also practised sorcery and dealt with forbidden spirits.

Kings says that the Lord spoke through his prophets and announced disaster for Jerusalem and Judah because of Manasseh’s sins. The people would be handed over to their enemies. Kings also says Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, filling Jerusalem from one end to the other.

Chronicles adds what happened to Manasseh himself. The commanders of the king of Assyria captured him, bound him, and took him to Babylon. There, in his distress, Manasseh begged the Lord and deeply humbled himself before the God of his fathers. He prayed, and God heard him and brought him back to Jerusalem.

After that, Manasseh knew that the Lord is God. He built up the city’s defences, removed foreign gods and idols, threw out the altars he had built, and built up the Lord’s altar. He offered peace offerings and thank offerings there and told Judah to serve the Lord, though the people still sacrificed at the high places, only to the Lord their God.

Manasseh died, and his son Amon became king after him. Kings remembers the weight of his sin and the judgment spoken against Judah. Chronicles also remembers his prayer and how he humbled himself. This account shows both the great harm Manasseh did and his later turning back to God.