May 11, 2021: Day 66 – II Chronicles 33

We find a bit of a redemption story with the next king.  The son of Hezekiah was Manasseh and he began reigning when he was 12 and he ruled for 55 years.  That was a long time!  We see that at the beginning of his reign he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.  He put back all of the things that his father had torn down which were used to worship false gods and idols.  He even made an idol and placed it in the temple.  Things were really going poorly.  

As a result of how bad things were Manasseh and Judah was overrun by Assyria and the king was taken into captivity into Babylon.  This is where we find Psalm 137 where those going into captivity were required to sing a song of Israel, but how could they sing in a foreign land?  It was a time of great sadness and tragedy in the life of the people of God, and it all came about because of the king who was unfaithful to God.  Manasseh himself was taken bound into Babylon.

But then he has his come to Jesus moment and realizes how far away he had strayed from where God wanted him to be.  He prays to God for forgiveness, and God actually does forgive.  He is given the chance for a do-over and he takes advantage of it.  When he returns to Jerusalem he throws outside of the city all of the idols that had been present there.  He makes sure that he turned a new leaf in his life.  That lasts until his son takes over, Amon.

Yeah, Amon doesn’t last long, just two years, and he was so bad that the people of Jerusalem killed him and put his son into power, that would be Josiah.   Let’s see how he does.