2 Chronicles 33:1-13

New American Standard Bible

Manasseh Succeeds Hezekiah in Judah

33 ^(A)Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned for fifty-five years in Jerusalem. ²^(B)He did evil in the sight of the Lord according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord dispossessed before the sons of Israel. ³For ^(C)he rebuilt the high places which his father Hezekiah had torn down; ^(D)he also set up altars for the Baals and made ^[a]Asherim, and he worshiped all the heavenly ^[b]lights and served them. ⁴^(E)He built altars in the house of the Lord of which the Lord had said, “My name shall be ^(F)in Jerusalem forever.” ⁵He built altars for all the heavenly ^[c]lights in ^(G)the two courtyards of the house of the Lord. ⁶^(H)He also made his sons pass through the fire in the Valley of Ben-hinnom; and he practiced witchcraft, used divination, practiced sorcery, and ^(I)dealt with mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger. ⁷Then he put ^(J)the carved image of the idol which he had made in the house of God, of which God had said to David and his son Solomon, “^(K)In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever; ⁸and I will not remove the foot of Israel again from the land ^(L)which I have appointed for your fathers, if only they will take care to do everything that I have commanded them according to all the Law, the statutes, and the ordinances given through Moses.” ⁹So Manasseh encouraged Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the sons of Israel.

Manasseh’s Idolatry Rebuked

¹⁰So the Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but ^(M)they paid no attention. ¹¹^(N)Therefore the Lord brought the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria against them, and they captured Manasseh with hooks, ^(O)bound him with bronze chains, and led him to Babylon. ¹²When ^(P)he was in distress, he appeased the Lord his God and ^(Q)humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. ¹³When he prayed to Him, ^(R)He was moved by him and heard his pleading, and brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh ^(S)knew that the Lord alone is God.