2 Chronicles 33
Expanded Bible
Manasseh King of Judah(A)
33 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he ·was king [reigned] for fifty-five years in Jerusalem. 2 He did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the Lord’s sight/eyes]. He did the ·hateful [detestable; abominable] things the nations had done—the nations that the Lord had ·forced [driven] out of the land ahead of the Israelites. 3 Manasseh’s father, Hezekiah, had torn down ·places where gods were worshiped [L the high places; 11:15], but Manasseh rebuilt them. He also built altars for the Baal gods, and he made Asherah ·idols [poles; 14:3] and worshiped all the ·stars of the sky [powers/hosts of heaven] and ·served [worshiped] them. 4 The Lord had said about the ·Temple [L house], “·I will be worshiped [L My name will be] in Jerusalem forever,” but Manasseh built altars in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. 5 He built altars to worship the ·stars [L powers/hosts of heaven] in the two courtyards of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. 6 He ·made his children pass through [sacrificed his children in the] fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom. He practiced magic and witchcraft and ·told the future by explaining signs and dreams [divination; augery]. He ·got advice from [dealt with] mediums and ·fortune-tellers [spiritualists; spiritists; Deut. 18:9–13]. He did ·many things the Lord said were wrong [L much evil in the Lord’s sight/eyes], which made the Lord angry.
7 Manasseh carved an idol and put it in the ·Temple [L house] of God. God had said to David and his son Solomon about the ·Temple [L house], “I will ·be worshiped [L put my name] forever in this ·Temple [L house] and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel. 8 I will never again make the ·Israelites [L feet of Israel] ·leave [wander from; C into exile] the land I ·gave to [appointed for] their ·ancestors [fathers]. But they must ·obey [be careful to do] everything I have commanded them in all the ·teachings [instructions; laws], ·rules [statutes; ordinances; requirements], and ·commands [judgments] I gave them through Moses.” 9 But Manasseh led the people of Judah and Jerusalem ·to do wrong [astray]. They did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed ahead of the Israelites.
10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they ·did not listen [paid no attention]. 11 So the Lord brought the king of Assyria’s army commanders to attack Judah. They captured Manasseh, put hooks in him [C in his nose], ·placed bronze chains on his hands [bound him with bronze chains], and took him to Babylon. 12 ·As Manasseh suffered [L When he was in distress], he ·begged [entreated; L sought] the Lord his God for help and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ·ancestors [fathers]. 13 When Manasseh prayed, the Lord heard ·him [L his plea] and ·had pity on him [was moved]. So the Lord ·let him return [brought him back] to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is the true God.
14 After that happened, Manasseh rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David [C Jerusalem] and made it higher. It was in the valley on the west side of the Gihon spring and went to the entrance of the Fish Gate and around the hill of Ophel. Then he ·put [stationed] ·commanders [officers] in all the ·strong, walled [fortified] cities in Judah.
15 Manasseh removed the ·idols of other nations [foreign gods], including the idol in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. He removed all the altars he had built on the hill of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord and in Jerusalem and threw them out of the city. 16 Then he ·set up [restored] the Lord’s altar and ·sacrificed [offered] on it ·fellowship [or peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1] and ·offerings to show thanks to God [thank/thanksgiving offerings]. Manasseh commanded all the people of Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. 17 The people continued to offer sacrifices at the ·places of worship [L high places], but their sacrifices were only to the Lord their God. 18 The ·other things Manasseh did as king [rest of the events/acts/history of Manasseh], his prayer to his God, and what the ·seers [prophets] said to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel—all are recorded in the ·book [scroll] of the ·history [annals; records] of the kings of Israel. 19 Manasseh’s prayer and ·God’s pity for him [how God responded to his plea/entreaty], his sins, his unfaithfulness, the ·places [sites on which] he built ·for worshiping gods [L high places; 11:15] and the Asherah ·idols [poles; 14:3] before he humbled himself—all are written in the ·book [scroll] of the ·seers [prophets]. 20 Manasseh ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried in his ·palace [L house]. Then Manasseh’s son Amon became king in his place.
Amon King of Judah(B)
21 Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he ·was king [reigned] for two years in Jerusalem. 22 He did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the Lord’s sight/eyes], as his father Manasseh had done. Amon ·worshiped [served] and ·offered [sacrificed] sacrifices to all the carved ·idols [images] Manasseh had made. 23 Amon did not humble himself before the Lord as his father Manasseh had done. Instead, Amon ·sinned even more [L multiplied guilt].
24 King Amon’s ·officers [officials; servants] ·made plans [conspired; plotted] against him and killed him in his ·palace [L house]. 25 Then the people of the land ·killed [executed] all those who had ·made plans [conspired; plotted] to kill King Amon, and they made his son Josiah king in his place.
2 Chronicles 33
English Standard Version
Manasseh Reigns in Judah
33 (A)Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to (B)the abominations of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. 3 For he rebuilt the high places (C)that his father Hezekiah had broken down, and he erected altars to the Baals, and made (D)Asheroth, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, (E)“In Jerusalem shall my name be forever.” 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in (F)the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 (G)And he burned his sons as an offering (H)in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and (I)used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with (J)mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. 7 And (K)the carved image of the idol that he had made he set in the house of God, of which God 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, (L)I will put my name forever, 8 and I will no more remove the foot of Israel from the land (M)that I appointed for your fathers, if only they will be careful to do all that I have commanded them, all the law, the statutes, and the rules given through Moses.” 9 Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray, to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.
Manasseh's Repentance
10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they paid no attention. 11 (N)Therefore the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and (O)bound him with chains of bronze and brought him to Babylon. 12 And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the Lord his God (P)and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. 13 He prayed to him, and (Q)God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. (R)Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God.
14 Afterward he built an outer wall for the city of David west of (S)Gihon, in the valley, and for the entrance into (T)the Fish Gate, and carried it around (U)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 (V)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 (W)Nevertheless, the people still sacrificed at the high places, but only to the Lord their God.
18 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and (X)his prayer to his God, and the words of (Y)the seers who spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, behold, they are in the (Z)Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 19 And his prayer, and how (AA)God was moved by his entreaty, and all his sin and his faithlessness, and the sites (AB)on which he built high places and set up the (AC)Asherim and the images, before (AD)he humbled himself, behold, they are written in the Chronicles of the Seers.[a] 20 So Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his house, and Amon his son reigned in his place.
Amon's Reign and Death
21 (AE)Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. 22 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as Manasseh his father had done. Amon sacrificed to all the images (AF)that Manasseh his father had made, and served them. 23 And he did not humble himself before the Lord, (AG)as Manasseh his father had humbled himself, but this Amon incurred guilt more and more. 24 And his servants conspired against him and put him to death in his house. 25 But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon. And the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 33:19 One Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts of Hozai
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