2 Chronicles 33:1–20

Manasseh King of Judah

33:1–10pp—2Ki 21:1–10 33:18–20pp—2Ki 21:17–18

33Manasseh^m was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. ²He did evil in the eyes of the Lord,ⁿ following the detestable^o practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites. ³He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had demolished; he also erected altars to the Baals and made Asherah poles.^p He bowed down^q to all the starry hosts and worshiped them. ⁴He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “My Name^r will remain in Jerusalem forever.” ⁵In both courts of the temple of the Lord,^s he built altars to all the starry hosts. ⁶He sacrificed his children^t in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced divination and witchcraft, sought omens, and consulted mediums^u and spiritists.^v He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.

⁷He took the image he had made and put it in God’s temple,^w of which God had said to David and to his son Solomon, “In this temple and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my Name forever. ⁸I will not again make the feet of the Israelites leave the land^x I assigned to your ancestors, if only they will be careful to do everything I commanded them concerning all the laws, decrees and regulations given through Moses.” ⁹But Manasseh led Judah and the people of Jerusalem astray, so that they did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites.^y

¹⁰The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention. ¹¹So the Lord brought against them the army commanders of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh prisoner,^z put a hook^a in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles^b and took him to Babylon. ¹²In his distress he sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled^c himself greatly before the God of his ancestors. ¹³And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.

¹⁴Afterward he rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, west of the Gihon^d spring in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate^e and encircling the hill of Ophel;^f he also made it much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities in Judah.

¹⁵He got rid of the foreign gods and removed^g the image from the temple of the Lord, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem; and he threw them out of the city. ¹⁶Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings and thank offerings^h on it, and told Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. ¹⁷The people, however, continued to sacrifice at the high places, but only to the Lord their God.

¹⁸The other events of Manasseh’s reign, including his prayer to his God and the words the seers spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, are written in the annals of the kings of Israel.^{a 19}His prayer and how God was moved by his entreaty, as well as all his sins and unfaithfulness, and the sites where he built high places and set up Asherah poles and idols before he humbledⁱ himself—all these are written in the records of the seers.^{bj 20}Manasseh rested with his ancestors and was buried^k in his palace. And Amon his son succeeded him as king.