Manasseh was, in fact, worse than King Ahab who had sold himself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. Moreover, he was worse than the heathen (II Chron 33:9). “He observed times and used enchantment and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirits, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger” (II Chron 33:6). There are many more things that Manasseh did to provoke God. He began his wicked works right from the time he began to reign at the age of twelve. During his long reign of fifty-five years, he hardly did anything to please God.
But when Manasseh was bound with fetters and carried to Babylon, the Word of God says, “he besought the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers” (vs 12). Although he was such a wicked king who angered the Lord greatly, because he humbled himself before the God of his fathers, God had mercy on him and brought him again to Jerusalem and into his kingdom; after that we see him doing many things for the Lord (Vs 14-16). And like any other saintly king, his end was peaceful and blessed – “Manasseh slept with his fathers” (vs 20). In the Old Testament period, “slept with the fathers” is a term that is generally taken as a godly death.
Dear reader, is it not amazing to see that when a man decides to humble himself, God forgets all his wickedness of the past and show him great mercy and blesses him – as if he never did any evil at all !
But when Manasseh was bound with fetters and carried to Babylon, the Word of God says, “he besought the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers” (vs 12). Although he was such a wicked king who angered the Lord greatly, because he humbled himself before the God of his fathers, God had mercy on him and brought him again to Jerusalem and into his kingdom; after that we see him doing many things for the Lord (Vs 14-16). And like any other saintly king, his end was peaceful and blessed – “Manasseh slept with his fathers” (vs 20). In the Old Testament period, “slept with the fathers” is a term that is generally taken as a godly death.
Dear reader, is it not amazing to see that when a man decides to humble himself, God forgets all his wickedness of the past and show him great mercy and blesses him – as if he never did any evil at all !
– Taken from Morning Manna – Thoughts for Daily Devotion
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