No matter where you live in the world, there are bound to be moments, seasons, or even years when evil appears to have the upper hand.
Wars and other atrocities have peppered the globe and will continue to do so.
Knowing this sobering reality, how can we learn who God is in these evil times?
Join me in a study of the life of Manasseh, a king of Judah from the Old Testament, with the biblical reputation of being the evilest king ever.
Learning Who God Is in Evil Times
A study of 2 Kings 21 and 2 Chronicles 33 | The Life of Manasseh
21 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah. 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. 3 For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal and made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel had done, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them.[1]
How is Manasseh different from his father Hezekiah?
The reference to Ahab reminds the reader of the northern tribes of Israel, who went into captivity because of their own evil practices. (See 1 Kings 16:29ff for an introduction to Ahab.)
What does the reference to Ahab reveal about Manasseh and the tribe of Judah, the southern kingdom?
4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem will I put my name.” 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 And he burned his son as an offering and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.[2]
What is the Lord’s reaction to Manasseh’s activities? Why?
7 And the carved image of Asherah that he had made he set in the house of which the Lord said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever. 8 And I will not cause the feet of Israel to wander anymore out of the land that I gave to their fathers, if only they will be careful to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the Law that my servant Moses commanded them.” [3]
What had the Lord promised Israel?
Using Exodus 20:1-17, describe how the activities of Manasseh went against the commandments of the Lord?
9 But they did not listen, and Manasseh led them astray to do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel. [4]
What is the warning here for Manasseh and the people of Judah?
10 And the Lord said by his servants the prophets, 11 “Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and has made Judah also to sin with his idols, 12 therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such disaster that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle. [5]
Explain the meaning of the phrase, “the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle.”
13 And I will stretch over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria, and the plumb line of the house of Ahab, and I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. 14 And I will forsake the remnant of my heritage and give them into the hand of their enemies, and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies, 15 because they have done what is evil in my sight and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day.” [6]
What is God describing he will do to Judah with the imagery of wiping out and turning upside a dish?
16 Moreover, Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another, besides the sin that he made Judah to sin so that they did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
17 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh and all that he did, and the sin that he committed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 18 And Manasseh slept with his fathers and was buried in the garden of his house, in the garden of Uzza, and Amon his son reigned in his place. [7]
Describe the character of Manasseh based on 2 Kings 21.
Learning Who God Is in Evil Times
A study of 2 Kings 21 and 2 Chronicles 33 | The Life of Manasseh
We will now turn our attention to the part of the 2 Chronicles 33 account of Manasseh, King of Judah, that isn’t included in the 2 Kings 21 account.
10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention. 11 Therefore the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze and brought him to Babylon.[8]
What does this add to the account in 2 Kings 21:12-15?
12 And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. 13 He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God. [9]
How does Manasseh respond to being taken captive by the Assyrians?
Describe God based on His response to Manasseh.
14 Afterward he built an outer wall for the city of David west of Gihon, in the valley, and for the entrance into the Fish Gate, and carried it around Ophel, and raised it to a very great height. He also put commanders of the army in all the fortified cities in Judah. 15 And he took away the foreign gods and the idol from the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built on the mountain of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem, and he threw them outside of the city. 16 He also restored the altar of the Lord and offered on it sacrifices of peace offerings and of thanksgiving, and he commanded Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. 17 Nevertheless, the people still sacrificed at the high places, but only to the Lord their God. [10]
What happens when someone truly knows the Lord?
18 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer to his God, and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, behold, they are in the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 19 And his prayer, and how God was moved by his entreaty, and all his sin and his faithlessness, and the sites on which he built high places and set up the Asherim and the images, before he humbled himself, behold, they are written in the Chronicles of the Seers. 20 So Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his house, and Amon his son reigned in his place. [11]
Based on the phrase, “before he humbled himself,” what was Manasseh’s greatest need and how did God meet it?
Could this be why God allowed Manasseh to reign for fifty-five years? Why or why not?
Learning Who God Is in Evil Times
A study of 2 Kings 21 and 2 Chronicles 33 | Application Questions
Manasseh disregarded his earthly father’s example of faithfulness to the Lord, choosing to engage in evil for years. Yet after Manasseh truly repented, God granted him mercy.
Is anyone a lost cause according to this story? Why or why not?
How does God’s willingness to forgive the most wicked king of Judah once he repented encourage you to forgive those who have harmed you or those you love?
Does your lifestyle match your profession of faith in God? Why or why not?
Heavenly Father, thank you for this intriguing story of the life of Manasseh. Thank you for providing us with this model of what true repentance looks like. Thank you also for the glimpse into not only your unlimited power to engage with human affairs but also your amazing grace to all who acknowledge You as Lord and Savior. Amen.
What are you thankful for? Share in the comments below!
Warmly,
Barbara Lynn
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:1–3.
[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:4–6.
[3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:7–8.
[4] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:9.
[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:10–12.
[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:13–15.
[7] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ki 21:16–18.
[8] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ch 33:10–11.
[9] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ch 33:12–13.
[10] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ch 33:14–17.
[11] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), 2 Ch 33:18–20.