Articles
Too Little, Too Late
The interesting story of King Manasseh is told in 2 Chronicles 33, a single chapter devoted to the longest reign of Davidic monarchs – 55 years (2 Kgs 21 has even a shorter version of this wicked king’s life).
The Bad News. Manasseh was only twelve years old when he began to reign, and it seems there were no counselors who could or would advise him to follow his father’s footsteps. Hezekiah had reigned for 29 years during which he led Judah in spiritual restoration including eradication of idolatry, reinstatement of priests and Levites, proper temple worship, resumption of annual feasts, etc. He also guided the people during the Assyrian invasion in which Jerusalem teetered on the brink of destruction.
To the contrary, Manasseh embarked on a mission to overturn everything his father stood for. He reinstituted idol worship, even corrupting the temple for this purpose. He used witchcraft, sorcery, necromancy and mediums; he sacrificed his children to Molech; he “shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another” (2 Kgs 21:16).
In short, Manasseh’s ungodliness knew no bounds. His works are summarized thus: “Manasseh seduced Judah … to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel” (2 Chr 33:9).
The Good News: When God had enough of his antics, He allowed Manasseh to be taken captive by the Assyrians who literally led him into captivity by a hook through his nose. But an ember of faith still flickered within the vile Manasseh : “When he was in affliction, he implored the Lord his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, and prayed to Him; and He received his entreaty, heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom” (2 Chr 33:12-13).
The Bad News: Upon his return Manasseh tried to reverse the idolatry that he had so enthusiastically promoted. “Nevertheless the people still sacrificed on the high places, but only to the Lord their God” (33:17). But this turnabout was only temporary, for after Manasseh died his son, Amon, installed Manasseh 2.0. “Amon sacrificed to all the carved images which his father … had made, and served them. And he did not humble himself before the Lord as his father Manasseh had humbled himself, but Amon trespassed more and more” (2 Chr 33:22-23).
While we can rejoice in Manasseh’s repentance, the flip side is that he had done such damage that Judah would never recover. Amon was followed by another reformer, Josiah, who could not turn the hearts of the people back to God – not even with the bold, confrontational preaching of his ally Jeremiah. “Though Moses and Samuel stood before Me, yet My mind could not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth … I will hand them over to trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem” (Jer 15:1, 4).
Some thoughts:
1. Why is the pendulum of righteousness and evil sometimes so extreme between father and son or generation to generation? Ezekiel’s famous analysis notes this strange occurrence (Ezk 18). It is easy to see why a godly son would abandon the harmful ways of his wicked father. But what of the reverse scenario? Why, if the clear advantages of Hezekiah’s righteousness were so clearly documented, would Manasseh pursue with wild abandon every vile practice imaginable? I suppose the bottom line is that some people just love evil so much that they will pursue it regardless of the consequences. Their pride and selfishness have no regard for the effect of their indulgence upon others. It is hard to imagine such a mindset, but there is evidence of it even in our own world.
2. Why does it take extreme suffering or tragedy to turn some people toward God? After Manasseh’s restoration to the throne, “Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God” (2 Chr 33:13). To his credit, at least he repented. There are others whom God chastises again and again to no avail. We humans can be so stubborn. We insist that our way will work. We don’t see the trail of misery and failure in our wake because we have convinced ourselves that success is just around the next corner.
3. Sometimes we can dig a hole so deep that the consequences of sin will be incredibly difficult – if not impossible – to reverse. Repentance makes various demands. Murder cannot be undone; leaving a sinful relationship can be devastating; pregnancy out of wedlock brings a lifetime of responsibility. At least Manasseh applied himself to cleaning up the mess he made. But he had already trained his son to follow in his original footsteps. The damage was done, and it was irreversible.
