Who is redeemable and who is not? Last week we read about people who are irretrievably severed from Yahweh because of their own corrupt heart and soul. Yet redemption is possible before that point. Thankfully, with Yahweh, not everything is clear cut or cut and dried. We cannot determine who is spiritually incurable or irretrievably severed from the Lord, only Yahweh can. It is hardly appropriate for us to make a judgment of who may be severed, because we see some things written in the Bible that might challenge our own preconceived ideas. Yet we are to judge as to what is good and what is evil. Manasseh/Manasses was one of the most evil kings recorded in the Bible, yet he found repentance and redemption and forgiveness for his sins. He became someone to imitate. His father Hezekiah cleaned up the region of Judah, but the stronghold of corrupt people with evil minds and evil behaviors continued in their positions of power. The cleansing was not internal, it didn’t change the peoples’ hearts and souls, but was simply external as people went right back to their idolatrous sins when Manasseh came to power. We should look at some of the things that Yahweh points out to his prophets just prior to Manasseh’s reign. We see evil practices that Yahweh condemns. We also see bold prophets, who are considered minor prophets, speaking out against this evil. Micah calls out false prophets who seem very similar to people on public platforms today. Let’s consider Manasseh, and historical records of the time period.
2 Chronicles 33:1 Manasses was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem.
Our first clue that things would turn out badly is Manasseh’s age. Twelve year old’s do not have the wisdom or life experiences to understand spiritual matters. Manasseh did not see his father cleaning up the high places, the booths of prostitution, and the fire pits of baal sacrifice, because that happened before he was born. At twelve years old did he really understand those things? Once he came to power his advisors and servants would counsel him.
Hezekiah was twenty five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for twenty nine years, making him fifty four when he died. He cleaned out all the baal worship in Judah and Jerusalem. In Ezekias/Hezekiah’s day, Assyria took over Samaria. Then the Assyrians sent people to taunt Hezekiah in the Hebrew language. Hezekiah sent servants to Isaiah and twice Isaiah prophesied as a result. Then an angel of the Lord kills the Assyrians during the night. Hezekiah gets sick and Isaiah tells him to put his affairs in order because he was going to die. Then the Lord tells Isaiah to go back and give him another message.
4 Kings 20:4 {2 Kings 20} And Esaias was in the middle court, and the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 5 Turn back, and thou shalt say to Ezekias the ruler of my people, Thus saith the Lord God of thy father David, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up to the house of the Lord. 6 And I will add to thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of the Assyrians, and I will defend this city for my own sake, and for my servant’s David sake.
The sign of the Lord’s word was the sundial receding ten degrees. Hezekiah rejoiced in his healing and then made a mistake. The Babylonians were on good terms with Judah. Some ambassadors came to see Hezekiah as they heard he was sick. Hezekiah rejoiced in his healing with them and showed the Babylonians the storehouses of the Lord. Now Isaiah prophesies that there will be a day when all the treasures will end up in Babylon along with some of his sons who will be made eunuchs. Hezekiah saw this as good for him and his time of peace instead of lamenting for the future generation. This is the time period that Manasseh was born, about three years after Hezekiah’s healing.
What had been taking place in Judah prior to this time? The prophets Micah, Hosea, Amos, and Isaiah, were prophesying about some strange things. Most people don’t like reading the minor prophets because they do not understand the background of what was taking place. Their messages seem harsh and out of place with the fairytale stories we have been told regarding Israel and Judah. Since we have studied this over the last few weeks, we can gain a better understanding of the short directed messages these people were speaking to the people.
Micah lived and prophesied during the time of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Micah speaks of the same type of people that Solomon did, people who plan trouble for the innocent.
Micah 2:1 They meditated troubles, and wrought wickedness on their beds, and they put it in execution with the daylight; for they have not lifted up their hands to God. 2 And they desired fields, and plundered orphans, and oppressed families, and spoiled a man and his house, even a man and his inheritance.
The people were calculating evil or pain. They brought evil to their marriage bed. They did these things during the day, or in other words they were not hiding what they were doing. They lusted after other people’s land (remember Ahab and Jezebel?). They robbed and seized orphans, those without parents. What would they do with orphans? Think. They also overpowered and oppressed households. They stole everything people had inherited over the years. Property and possessions that had been in families for generations were being stolen. It sounds like a great society where everything the masses had was taken, and those who were dominant were showing loyalty to the baals with their deviant behaviors. Again, is there anything new under the sun?
Micah 3:1 And he shall say, Hear now these words, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and ye remnant of the house of Israel; is it not for you to know judgment? 2 who hate good, and seek evil; who tear their skins off them, and their flesh off their bones: 3 even as they devoured the flesh of my people, and stripped their skins off them, and broke their bones, and divided them as flesh for the caldron, and as meat for the pot, 4 thus they shall cry to the Lord, but he shall not hearken to them; and he shall turn away his face from them at that time, because they have done wickedly in their practices against themselves.
Micah wants to know if the people of Jacob can understand crimes and the law. Can they make a decision as to what is criminal under the Mosaic and societal law? Can they judge the people who hate, detest, and persecute the things that are beautiful, good, and intrinsic? Can they decide against those who are desiring evil, harm, and oppression? These evil people are seizing the skin off their bodies and the flesh off their bones. In other words these evil people who are planning wickedness are skinning and filleting the people. They were devouring the innocent masses. Physically they were practicing cannibalism as that is part of ritual baal worship, and figuratively they were consuming them so completely there was nothing left of them.
Maybe we have been taught not to “judge” people, but that has been taken completely out of context. Micah wants people to judge these things. We should be able to discern and make rational equitable judgements regarding people who intentionally plan evil. As Solomon wrote many years before, the twisted heart and the corrupted soul may become irretrievable from eternal death. Now Micah is going to rebuke the false prophets.
Micah 3:5 Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that lead my people astray, that bit with their teeth, and proclaim peace to them; and when nothing was put into their mouth, they raised up war against them: 6 therefore there shall be night to you instead of a vision, and there shall be to you darkness instead of prophecy; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be dark upon them. 7 And the seers of night-visions shall be ashamed, and the prophets shall be laughed to scorn: and all the people shall speak against them, because there shall be none to hearken to them. 8 Surely I will strengthen myself with the Spirit of the Lord, and of judgment, and of power, to declare to Jacob his transgressions, and to Israel his sins.
The prophets were causing people to be led astray. To relate that to today, we are not only speaking of prophets in the church, but in government as well, who promise a chicken in every pot and free benefits if we let them lead us. Although history has never proven that to be successful. Who are the false prophets misleading? Yahweh’s laos, the laity. The false prophets are biting the laity with their teeth, or cleaning the meat off their bones, while heralding public peace. Yahweh says that these words were not given to them. The false prophets are even making war against the people a holy thing. In other words, the false prophets are claiming their words are from Yahweh and they have to fight the people who are resisting the false prophets.
Isn’t it interesting that we see this today in our own political arenas. Somehow there seems to be a war against women, because the false prophets believe infanticide should be the right of everyone except the newborn baby. Anyone disagreeing with infanticide is said to be waging a war against women. Why is this being done? Both then and now it is for baal worship, the sacrificing and eating the flesh and drinking the blood of babies. It is also for harvesting organs and fetal tissue, and ritual purposes. But it is also a strategy of war. Now we may think that this is a new tactic, but as we see Micah calling it out we recognize that it is not. Neither is cutting open the womb/matrix to remove a baby, or in our terms, cesarean sections. In our recent history we have this type of war exposed with The Negro Project (see the foundation of “Planned Parenthood”).
Let’s read what Amos says. Amos lived and prophesied during the time of Uzziah and Jeroboam II (of the northern kingdom) which was during the time of Jotham and Ahaz. As a side note in history, see Uzziah and the earthquake. https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2017/04/uzziah-and-earthquake-son-of-perdition.html
The Galaadites were people living in Gilead, the mountains east of Jordan combining the tribes of Gad and Reuben. Gilead is a large region from the river Jabbok to Lake Gennesaret (the Sea of Galilee). North of Gilead is Damascus Syria, and south of Gilead is Ammon, a tribe derived from the incestuous relationship of Lot and his daughter. The region was known for a balsam or oil called “lord or chief of oils” from the Balsamodendron opobalsamum (Commiphora gileadensis or Amyris opobalsamum of Linnaeus). This was a healing oil which also may have been used in the temple for its fragrance. It is not a resin, but is said to weep, as in liquid form. People made an ointment out of this oil. Keep this in mind.
Amos 1:3 And the Lord said, For three sins of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away from it; because they sawed with iron saws the women with child of the Galaadites.
Yahweh seems as if he would be merciful overlooking three or four sins but he will not turn away from this sin. The Syrians sawed through, or cut in two, with iron saws, the pregnant women. What did they do? They preformed cesarean sections on pregnant woman. We don’t know exactly why the Syrians did this. Was this a ritual or were they experimenting? There was a healing oil in Gilead. The Ammonites did the same thing to the Galaadites.
Amos 1:13 Thus saith the Lord; For three sins of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away from him; because they ripped up the women with child of the Galaadites, that they might widen their coasts.
The people of Ammon wanted to increase their population so that they could increase their borders. They stole babies who were in utero, and added to their population. People were not supposed to be cutting open the womb/matrix and taking out the babies of the Galaadite women. The northern enemies were sawing open women and taking the babies and the southern enemies were ripping open women and taking out babies. This was probably not a “new” type of surgery, but one used for dominance. They had a healing oil that was well known in those days and they probably used it medicinally. At this same point in history we see the northern kingdom, Samaria dealing with the same practices.
Hosea lived and prophesied during the time of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. He married a prostitute as a prophetic analogy for the people. In his prophecy of the destruction of Samaria he notes this practice which sounds like our modern day abortion.
Osee 14:1 {Hosea 13:16} Samaria shall be utterly destroyed: for she has resisted her God; they shall fall by the sword, and their sucklings shall be dashed against the ground, and their women with child ripped up.
This is the incident. Elisha prophesied regarding Hazael/Azael. Ben-hadad II, king in Damascus, sent Hazael to Elisha to find out if he would recover from his sickness. Elisha tells Hazael to say to Ben-hadad that he would recover, but he really would not recover. Elisha tells Hazael that he sees what he is going to do. Hazael goes back to Ben-hadad and tells him that he will live, then takes a wet cloth and suffocates him. Hazael then is ruler in Damascus.
4 Kings 8:12 {2 Kings 8:12} And Azael said, Why does my lord weep? And he said, Because I know all the evil that thou wilt do to the children of Israel: thou wilt utterly destroy their strong holds with fire, and thou wilt slay their choice men with the sword, and thou wilt dash their infants against the ground, and their women with child thou wilt rip up.
After he became king in Damascus, Hazael went to Gilead and cut open women there as Amos told us. This was Hazael’s act of war. We don’t know if he was killing the babies in Gilead, or taking them to Damascus, but in Samaria he was ripping them up, which is one way we abort babies today, piece by piece. Murdering babies, whether as an act of sacrifice to baal or in an act of war, is once again the devil’s plan for being a life destroyer instead of a life giver. As we have noted in previous weeks, humans are created as life givers, like our Heavenly Father. The devil is a life destroyer. If people are inspired to murder, especially babies in the matrix/womb, they are driven by demonic spirits, and ultimately the devil. This practice happened once again in Israel.
During the years of Uzziah (southern kingdom), king Menahem killed king Shallum of Samaria and took over the reign of Israel.
4 Kings 15:16 {2 Kings 15:16} Then Manaem smote both Thersa and all that was in it, and its borders extending beyond Thersa, because they opened not to him: and he smote it, and ripped up the women with child.
These were the events that were taking place just prior to Manasseh’s birth. Evil people were either aborting babies or cutting them out of their mother’s womb and kidnapping them. Now Manasseh was young when he took over the kingdom. Let’s go back to Manasseh.
2 Chronicles 33:2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord destroyed from before the face of the children of Israel. 3 And he returned and built the high places, which his father Ezekias had pulled down, and set up images to Baalim, and made groves, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, concerning which the Lord said, In Jerusalem shall be my name for ever. 5 And he built altars to all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 He also passed his children through the fire in the valley of Benennom; and he divined, and used auspices, and sorceries, and appointed those who had divining spirits, and enchanters, and wrought abundant wickedness before the Lord, to provoke him. 7 And he set the graven image, the molten statue, the idol which he made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever; 8 and I will not again remove the foot of Israel from the land which I gave to their fathers, if only they will take heed to do all things which I have commanded them, according to all the law and the ordinances and the judgments given by the hand of Moses. 9 So Manasses led astray Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to do evil beyond all the nations which the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel.
Here is a list of Manasseh’s sins.
1. Built high places
2. Set up an images/altars to the baals
3. Made groves as Ahab did
4. Worshipped the angel armies of heaven
5. Served the angel armies of heaven
6. Built altars in the temple
7. Built altars to the angel armies of heaven in the two courts of the temple
8. Passed children through the fire in Hinnom/Benennom
9. He divined, a form of deduction
10. Used auspices, prophetic tokens
11. Used sorceries
12. Appointed diviners
13. Appointed enchanters, a sorcerer who puts people under spells
14. Brought wickedness before the Lord provoking Him
15. Set graven images, molten statues, idols in the temple
16. Shed innocent blood
Manasseh came to be known as the Nero of Palestine. Power can corrupt people, yet in Manasseh’s case his heart and soul were not irretrievably corrupted.
4 Kings 21:10 {2 Kings 21:10} And the Lord spoke by his servants the prophets, saying, 11 Forasmuch as Manasses the king of Juda has wrought all these evil abominations, beyond all that the Amorite did, who lived before him, and has led Juda also into sin by their idols, 12 it shall not be so. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Behold, I bring calamities upon Jerusalem and Juda, so that both the ears of every one that hears shall tingle. 13 And I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measure of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Achaab {Ahab}: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a jar is wiped, and turned upside down in the wiping. 14 And I will reject the remnant of my inheritance, and will deliver them into the hands of their enemies; and they shall be for a plunder and for a spoil to all their enemies: 15 forasmuch as they have done wickedly in my sight, and have provoked me from the day that I brought out their fathers out of Egypt, even until this day. 16 Moreover Manasses shed very much innocent blood, until he filled Jerusalem with it from one end to the other, beside his sins with which he caused Juda to sin, in doing evil in the eyes of the Lord.
We see that the practice of shedding innocent blood did not end in the previous generation. Yahweh wants to clean Jerusalem, like wiping a jar with a dish towel, holding the jar upside-down. Josephus adds some details.
Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 10:3:1. When king Hezekiah had survived the interval of time already mentioned, and had dwelt all that time in peace, he died, having completed fifty-four years of his life, and reigned twenty-nine. But when his son Manasseh, whose mother's name was Hephzibah, of Jerusalem, had taken the kingdom, he departed from the conduct of his father, and fell into a course of life quite contrary thereto, and showed himself in his manners most wicked in all respects, and omitted no sort of impiety, but imitated those transgressions of the Israelites, by the commission of which against God they had been destroyed; for he was so hardy as to defile the temple of God, and the city, and the whole country; for, by setting out from a contempt of God, he barbarously slew all the righteous men that were among the Hebrews; nor would he spare the prophets, for he every day slew some of them, till Jerusalem was overflown with blood. So God was angry at these proceedings, and sent prophets to the king, and to the multitude, by whom he threatened the very same calamities to them which their brethren the Israelites, upon the like affronts offered to God, were now under. But these men would not believe their words, by which belief they might have reaped the advantage of escaping all those miseries; yet did they in earnest learn that what the prophets had told them was true.
The Works of Flavius Josephus.
The blame for all of these things resides with Manasseh. Yet he was probably not the one carving idols, building altars, and planting groves. Josephus says that Manasseh took on the transgressions of the Israelites. This tells us that even though Hezekiah cleaned out all the evil baal worship, the people went back to those practices. By the time he was older, Manasseh did worship the baals. His senior officials were probably suggesting these things as the people wanted them. Therefore Manasseh allowed these things to be built. In this instance an adolescent king was probably taken advantage of by political and religious leaders. However, the blame for turning Judah and Jerusalem back to evil rests with Manasseh.
Manasseh threatened the prophets and spilled innocent blood. Isaiah might have been one of the innocent prophets Manasseh sawed asunder in the trunk of a carob tree. Every religion and form of worship was acceptable in Israel except the worship of Yahweh.
2 Chronicles 33:10 And the Lord spoke to Manasses, and to his people: but they hearkened not. 11 And the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, and they took Manasses in bonds, and bound him in fetters, and brought him to Babylon.
Manasseh was probably hooked through the nose, lips, or jaw, and led to Babylon. We might wonder why the Assyrians brought Manasseh to Babylon. There had been an alliance between Judah and Babylon. Yet Babylon was under Assyrian authority at this time. There were very few years that Babylon was its own nation. In fact, throughout Babylonian history it was usually under someone else’s authority, typically Assyria or Egypt. Later Babylon would be its own nation when Judah would be taken captive, but then Babylon would come under Assyrian control once again.
2 Chronicles 33:12 And when he was afflicted, he sought the face of the Lord his God, and was greatly humbled before the face of the God of his fathers; 13 and he prayed to him: and he hearkened to him, and listened to his cry, and brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom: and Manasses knew that the Lord he is God.
This incident was surely an attention getter for Manasseh. Josephus tells us that Manasseh realized he was the cause of his own captivity. This shows humility.
Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 10:3:2. And when they persevered in the same course of life, God raised up war against them from the king of Babylon and Chaldea, who sent an army against Judea, and laid waste the country; and caught king Manasseh by treachery, and ordered him to be brought to him, and had him under his power to inflict what punishment he pleased upon him. But then it was that Manasseh perceived what a miserable condition he was in, and esteeming himself the cause of all, he besought God to render his enemy humane and merciful to him. Accordingly, God heard his prayer, and granted him what he prayed for….
This is Manasseh’s prayer.
Prayer of Manasseh 1 O Lord, Almighty God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and of their righteous seed; who hast made heaven and earth, with all the ornament thereof; who hast bound the sea by the word of thy commandment; who hast shut up the deep, and sealed it by thy terrible and glorious name; whom all men fear, and tremble before thy power; for the majesty of thy glory cannot be borne, and thine angry threatening toward sinners is importable: but thy merciful promise is unmeasurable and unsearchable; for thou art the most high Lord, of great compassion, longsuffering, very merciful, and repentest of the evils of men. Thou, O Lord, according to thy great goodness hast promised repentance and forgiveness to them that have sinned against thee: and of thine infinite mercies hast appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be saved. Thou therefore, O Lord, that art the God of the just, hast not appointed repentance to the just, as to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, which have not sinned against thee; but thou hast appointed repentance unto me that am a sinner: for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea. My transgressions, O Lord, are multiplied: my transgressions are multiplied, and I am not worthy to behold and see the height of heaven for the multitude of mine iniquities. I am bowed down with many iron bands, that I cannot lift up mine head, neither have any release: for I have provoked thy wrath, and done evil before thee: I did not thy will, neither kept I thy commandments: I have set up abominations, and have multiplied offences. Now therefore I bow the knee of mine heart, beseeching thee of grace. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I acknowledge mine iniquities: wherefore, I humbly beseech thee, forgive me, O Lord, forgive me, and destroy me not with mine iniquites. Be not angry with me for ever, by reserving evil for me; neither condemn me to the lower parts of the earth. For thou art the God, even the God of them that repent; and in me thou wilt shew all thy goodness: for thou wilt save me, that am unworthy, according to thy great mercy. Therefore I will praise thee for ever all the days of my life: for all the powers of the heavens do praise thee, and thine is the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
What a remarkable prayer. Yahweh appoints repentance to the sinner, not to the just. If we think about this from the context of the fall feasts, we realize that the ten days of atonement are not for those who do not sin, but for those who do. It is the time for sinners to be reconciled to God. Manasseh was repentant, he bowed the knee of his heart. This is where we realize that if he had been incurably severed he would not have bowed his heart because his heart would have been twisted. He asks for forgiveness. He asks not to be left in Hades. He says that he will praise Yahweh for the rest of his life. Then it seems that he really did turn around.
2 Chronicles 33:14 And afterward he built a wall without the city of David, from the southwest southward in the valleys and at the entrance through the fish-gate, as men go out by the gate round about, even as far as Opel: and he raised it much, and set captains of the host in all the fortified cities in Juda. 15 And he removed the strange gods, and the graven image out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars which he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord, and in Jerusalem, and without the city. 16 And he repaired the altar of the Lord, and offered upon it a sacrifice of peace-offering and thank-offering, and he told Juda to serve the Lord God of Israel. 17 Nevertheless the people still sacrificed on the high places, only to the Lord their God.
18 And the rest of the acts of Manasses, and his prayer to God, and the words of the seers that spoke to him in the name of the God of Israel, 19 behold, they are in the account of his prayer; and God hearkened to him. And all his sins, and his backslidings, and the spots on which he built the high places, and set there groves and graven images, before he repented, behold, they are written in the books of the seers. 20 And Manasses slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the garden of his house: and Amon his son reigned in his stead.
Josephus adds to the story. Manasseh became a pattern for imitation.
Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 10:3:2…So Manasseh was released by the king of Babylon, and escaped the danger he was in; and when he was come to Jerusalem, he endeavored, if it were possible, to cast out of his memory those his former sins against God, of which he now repented, and to apply himself to a very religious life. He sanctified the temple, and purged the city, and for the remainder of his days he was intent on nothing but to return his thanks to God for his deliverance, and to preserve him propitious to him all his life long. He also instructed the multitude to do the same, as having very nearly experienced what a calamity he was fallen into by a contrary conduct. He also rebuilt the altar, and offered the legal sacrifices, as Moses commanded. And when he had re-established what concerned the Divine worship, as it ought to be, he took care of the security of Jerusalem: he did not only repair the old walls with great diligence, but added another wall to the former. He also built very lofty towers, and the garrisoned places before the city he strengthened, not only in other respects, but with provisions of all sorts that they wanted. And indeed, when he had changed his former course, he so led his life for the time to come, that from the time of his return to piety towards God he was deemed a happy man, and a pattern for imitation. When therefore he had lived sixty-seven years, he departed this life, having reigned fifty-five years, and was buried in his own garden; and the kingdom came to his son Amon, whose mother's name was Meshulemeth, of the city of Jotbath.
The Works of Flavius Josephus.
To compare and contrast the people Solomon was warning us about with Manasseh, we see the first liability was his age. The second was the lack of training in spiritual matters, and the third was the prophecy that because Hezekiah was showing off the riches that the Lord bestowed on the nation, Manasseh would suffer. Solomon’s reference to people who plan and plot to harm the innocent is a crooked heart and an unclean soul. But Manasseh is a wonderful example of redemption. His heart was not crooked, although he promoted evil baal worship. His soul was not unclean even though he shed innocent blood. Somehow Manasseh is not incurable
or irretrievable.
Thirty years after Micah died Jeremiah mentions one of his prophecies in the days of Hezekiah. He says that Hezekiah did not kill Micah when he prophesied Zion would be ploughed like a field. The unspoken incident Jeremiah might be referencing is that Manasseh may have killed Isaiah for his prophetic words. Jeremiah’s own life was in danger in prison and in the pit as the people mocked the prophets.
Jeremiah 33:17 And there rose up men of the elders of the land, and said to all the assembly of the people, 18 Michaeas the Morathite lived in the days of Ezekias king of Juda, and said to all the people of Juda, Thus saith the Lord; Sion shall be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become a desolation, and the mountain of the house shall be a thicket of trees. 19 Did Ezekias and all Juda in any way slay him? Was it not that they feared the Lord, and they made supplication before the Lord, and the Lord ceased from the evils which he had pronounced against them? whereas we have wrought great evil against our own souls
Just before the second wave of captives went into Babylon, Jeremiah tells us that Judah will be scattered because of the sin of Manasseh. By this time Josiah had also cleaned up Judah and Jerusalem, but the people were not clean. The people refused to change their ways and again went back to worshipping the baals’.
Jeremias 15:1 And the Lord said to me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before my face, my soul could not be toward them: dismiss this people, and let them go forth. 2 And it shall be, if they say to thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt say to them, Thus saith the Lord; As many as are for death, to death; and as many as are for famine, to famine; and as many as are for the sword, to the sword; and as many as are for captivity, to captivity. 3 And I will punish them with four kinds of death, saith the Lord, the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the wild beasts of the earth, and the birds of the sky to devour and destroy. 4 And I will deliver them up for distress to all the kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasses son of Ezekias king of Juda, for all that he did in Jerusalem.
5 Who will spare thee, O Jerusalem? and who will fear for thee? or who will turn back to ask for thy welfare? 6 Thou hast turned away from me, saith the Lord, thou wilt go back: therefore I will stretch out my hand, and will destroy thee, and will no more spare them. 7 And I will completely scatter them; in the gates of my people they are bereaved of children: they have destroyed my people because of their iniquities.
This is an unusual idea to us. Judah and Jerusalem’s sins are attributed to Manasseh. Manasseh repents and is granted favor. He serves the Lord the rest of his life. Yet the payment for his sins is weighed like a debt. Why? Because Manasseh allowed evil to flourish. The people did not follow Manasseh in piety and humility before Yahweh when he changed his ways. Even though Manasseh had become a pattern for imitation, people didn’t follow him. What does this tell us? This tells us that the people with the corrupted hearts and unclean souls continued in their crooked ways, but in the shadows. While Manasseh’s sins allowed the people to behave in evil ways out in the open, once Manasseh repented, those people continued their evil underground.
This is how we know that the people with corrupt hearts and unclean souls were still around. Amon, Manasseh’s son, restored all the baal worship with images and idols. He was twenty two when he started to reign, yet his own servants killed him. Amon reigned two years. They had probably been the servants of Manasseh. Then the people rose up and killed those servants who killed Amon. They then made eight year old Josiah king.
There is something else we should note about these people. Joseph, the stepfather of Jesus our Messiah, came from this family heritage. As an adopted son of Joseph, Jesus came from the Kingly line, and Jesus came from the priestly line through Mary. Jesus is a King Priest.
Matthew 1:10 (AMP)
10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah,
One might think that the Heavenly Father could have found a better family line for Jesus’ stepfather. This shows us that even when our families are not right with the Lord, our heritage does not seal our destiny. There is redemption and forgiveness available for people no matter our family lineage.
Today, our only redemption is through Jesus because of his own blood sacrifice. He cleansed us. Repeated sacrifice on our part is not necessary. If one is far from the Lord in one’s own heart and soul, imitate Manasseh, seek redemption. Do what Manasseh did in his repentance. The apostle Paul is also a great example of redemption. Paul tells us this:
Ephesians 1:7 (AMP)
7 In Him we have redemption (deliverance and salvation) through His blood, the remission (forgiveness) of our offenses (shortcomings and trespasses), in accordance with the riches and the generosity of His gracious favor,
The forgiveness of our sins and offenses is mitigated through Jesus. Jesus is holding the redeemable coupon for all those who confess him as Lord and Savior. Jesus has a coupon wallet ready to give to the god of this world at the time of the fulfillment of the nations entering into the sheepfold.
Colossians 1:14 (AMP)
14 In Whom we have our redemption through His blood, [which means] the forgiveness of our sins.
The point of the story of Manasseh is redemption and forgiveness. But there is a wage for sin that had to be paid. Today, Jesus made the payment for us. The story of evil is not black and white, or cut and dried. There are gray areas that we cannot see, that only Yahweh sees. Solomon tells us that some people will be incurably and irretrievably severed from Yahweh for eternity. The story of Manasseh tells us that redemption is a possibility before becoming severed. If there are people that are intentionally committed to evil, they may work in the shadows or they may work in the open. It depends on the ruling leaders.
The horror of aborting babies or cutting them from their mother’s womb to kidnap them is a murderous practice, the opposite behavior of our life-giving Most High God. Our goal is to make disciples of all people, and like Manasseh and the apostle Paul, sometimes a bad experience wakes people up. We will see the evidence of the Holy Spirit in people who are redeemed; and in our age the apostle Paul is our example. Micah wants us to be able to judge behaviors. While Paul murdered Christians, people of the Old Covenant times were skilled in aborting babies. What a horrid time in history, a practice that moved into the shadows. This is why the minor prophets sound harsh. This is why the minor prophets are ignored. Micah gives us some wisdom to live by. There is nothing new under the sun.
Micah 6:8 Has it not been told thee, O man, what is good? or what does the Lord require of thee, but to do justice, and love mercy, and be ready to walk with the Lord thy God? http://ecmarsh.com/lxx/Michaeas/index.htm
