Hezekiah had set out to serve the Lord in the first year of
his reign, and had faithfully continued for twenty nine years. After God caused the death of a so many of
the Assyrian army half way through his reign, there had been no major challenges. His son Manasseh was born after this, and had
never experienced a time when God wasn’t blessing Judah. As a result, like many who,ve grown up in he
had no idea how blessed he was, and saw no reason for serving God, as II
Chronicles 33:1-5describes. “Manasseh was twelve years old when he began
to reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem: But did that which
was evil in the sight of the LORD, like unto the abominations of the heathen,
whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel.
For he built again the
high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down, and he reared up altars
for Baalim, and made groves, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served
them. Also he built altars in the house
of the LORD, whereof the LORD had said, In Jerusalem shall my name be for
ever. And he built altars for all the
host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD. And he built altars in the house of the LORD,
of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name. And he built altars for all the host of heaven
in the two courts of the house of the LORD.”
One of the first things Hezekiah had done was to reopen the
Temple, and clean out all the altars and high places and the idols, including
the ones that had been built in the temple grounds. Manasseh undid everything his father had
done, rebuilding the altars and high places, and encouraging the worship of
false gods, even encouraging worship of other gods in the Temple itself.
Manasseh went even further into sin, sacrificing his own
children to Molech and getting involved with witchcraft, astrology and the horoscope,
and with psychics, as II Chronicles 33:6 tells us. “And he
caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of
Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and
dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the
sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.”
In all these things, he was in direct violation of God’s command, in
Deuteronomy 18:9-12. “When thou art come into the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of
those nations. There shall not be found
among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire,
or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a
necromancer. For all that do these
things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the
LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.”
While Ahaz had closed up the Temple so they couldn’t use it,
Manasseh placed an idol inside it and began using it to practice other religions,
in direct defiance of God’s commands, as we see in II Chronicles 33:7-9. “And he
set a carved image, the idol which he had made, in the house of God, of which
God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem,
which I have chosen before all the tribes of Israel, will I put my name for
ever: Neither will I any more remove the foot of Israel from out of the land
which I have appointed for your fathers; so that they will take heed to do all
that I have commanded them, according to the whole law and the statutes and the
ordinances by the hand of Moses. So
Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to err, and to do worse
than the heathen, whom the LORD had destroyed before the children of Israel.
God sent various prophets to warn them of the Judgement that
would result, in II Kings 21:10-15. “And the LORD spake by his servants the
prophets, saying, Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations,
and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, which were before him,
and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols: Therefore thus saith the LORD
God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that
whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of
Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a
man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down. And I will forsake the remnant of mine
inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall
become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies; Because they have done that
which was evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger, since the day their
fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day.”
All of these things were a direct result of what Manasseh
had done and encouraged the people to do.
As II Chronicles 33:10 tells us, “…the
LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.” Rather than listening to God, Manasseh
had thousands who opposed him killed as II Kings 21:16 tells us. “Moreover
Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one
end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that
which was evil in the sight of the LORD.”
Like Manasseh, many times those who have grown up in the
best homes are the ones who most resent their parents and the society around
them. It is crucial they learn to appreciate
how blessed they are. When they accept
those blessings as normal, they begin to resent the very principles that caused
the blessings.
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