II Chronicles 33

¹Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem:

²But did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, like unto the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.

³For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down, and he reared up altars for Baalim, and made groves, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them.

⁴Also he built altars in the house of the Lord, whereof the Lord had said, In Jerusalem shall my name be for ever.

⁵And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord.

⁶And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.

⁷And he set a carved image, the idol which he had made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen before all the tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever:

⁸Neither will I any more remove the foot of Israel from out of the land which I have appointed for your fathers; so that they will take heed to do all that I have commanded them, according to the whole law and the statutes and the ordinances by the hand of Moses.

⁹So Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to err, and to do worse than the heathen, whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel.

¹⁰And the Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.

¹¹Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.

¹²And when he was in affliction, he besought the Lord his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,

¹³And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord he was God.

¹⁴Now after this he built a wall without the city of David, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even to the entering in at the fish gate, and compassed about Ophel, and raised it up a very great height, and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah.

¹⁵And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord, and in Jerusalem, and cast them out of the city.

¹⁶And he repaired the altar of the Lord, and sacrificed thereon peace offerings and thank offerings, and commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel.

¹⁷Nevertheless the people did sacrifice still in the high places, yet unto the Lord their God only.

¹⁸Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer unto his God, and the words of the seers that spake to him in the name of the Lord God of Israel, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel.

¹⁹His prayer also, and how God was intreated of him, and all his sin, and his trespass, and the places wherein he built high places, and set up groves and graven images, before he was humbled: behold, they are written among the sayings of the seers.

²⁰So Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his own house: and Amon his son reigned in his stead.

²¹Amon was two and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned two years in Jerusalem.

²²But he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as did Manasseh his father: for Amon sacrificed unto all the carved images which Manasseh his father had made, and served them;

²³And humbled not himself before the Lord, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself; but Amon trespassed more and more.

²⁴And his servants conspired against him, and slew him in his own house.

²⁵But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead.

II Chronicles 33

¹Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he was ruling for fifty-five years in Jerusalem.

²He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, copying the disgusting ways of the nations whom the Lord had sent out of the land before the children of Israel.

³For he put up again the high places which had been pulled down by his father Hezekiah; and he made altars for the Baals, and pillars of wood, and was a worshipper and servant of all the stars of heaven;

⁴And he made altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, In Jerusalem will my name be for ever.

⁵And he made altars for all the stars of heaven in the two outer squares of the house of the Lord.

⁶More than this, he made his children go through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom; and he made use of secret arts, and signs for reading the future, and unnatural powers, and gave positions to those who had control of spirits and to wonder-workers: he did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, moving him to wrath.

⁷And he put the image he had made in the house of God, the house of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, the town which I have made mine out of all the tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever:

⁸And never again will I let the feet of Israel be moved out of the land which I have given to their fathers; if only they will take care to do all my orders, even all the law and the orders and the rules given to them by Moses.

⁹And Manasseh made Judah and the people of Jerusalem go out of the true way, so that they did more evil than those nations whom the Lord gave up to destruction before the children of Israel.

¹⁰And the word of the Lord came to Manasseh and his people, but they gave no attention.

¹¹So the Lord sent against them the captains of the army of Assyria, who made Manasseh a prisoner and took him away in chains to Babylon.

¹²And crying out to the Lord his God in his trouble, he made himself low before the God of his fathers,

¹³And made prayer to him; and in answer to his prayer God let him come back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh was certain that the Lord was God.

¹⁴After this he made an outer wall for the town of David, on the west side of Gihon in the valley, as far as the way into the town by the fish doorway; and he put a very high wall round the Ophel; and he put captains of the army in all the walled towns of Judah.

¹⁵He took away the strange gods and the image out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars he had put up on the hill of the Lord's house and in Jerusalem, and put them out of the town.

¹⁶And he put the altar of the Lord in order, offering peace-offerings and praise-offerings on it, and said that all Judah were to be servants of the Lord, the God of Israel.

¹⁷However, the people still made offerings in the high places, but only to the Lord their God.

¹⁸Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer to his God, and the words which the seers said to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, are recorded among the acts of the kings of Israel.

¹⁹And the prayer which he made to God, and how God gave him an answer, and all his sin and his wrongdoing, and the places where he made high places and put up pillars of wood and images, before he put away his pride, are recorded in the history of the seers.

²⁰So Manasseh went to rest with his fathers, and they put his body to rest in his house, and Amon his son became king in his place.

²¹Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king; and he was ruling for two years in Jerusalem.

²²He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as Manasseh his father had done; and Amon made offerings to all the images which his father Manasseh had made, and was their servant.

²³He did not make himself low before the Lord, as his father Manasseh had done, but went on sinning more and more.

²⁴And his servants made a secret design against him, and put him to death in his house.

²⁵But the people of the land put to death all those who had taken part in the design against King Amon, and made his son Josiah king in his place.