INTRODUCTION: Two evil reigns follow the good reign of Hezekiah. We see the dangers of idolatry in these two reigns. We also see the influence a leader of the people has on those people. In both cases, the people follow their king. What kind of influence do you have on others?
- THE EVIL OF MANASSEHS REIGN (2 Kings 21:1-9)
- A Summary of His Reign (2 Kings 21:1)
- Began to reign at the age of twelve; Note: Unless Manasseh co-reigned with his father for a period of time (and we have no proof of that in scripture), he was born after Hezekiah was given fifteen extra years of life (2 Kings 20:5-6). We are not told how the line would have continued if Hezekiah had died, but perhaps he would have been a more godly king than Manasseh.
- Reigned 55 years in Jerusalem longest reign of any king in Judah or Israel
- His mothers name was Hephzibah means delight (Isaiah 62:4).
- His Return to Pagan Gods (2 Kings 21:2-3)
- He did evil in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 21:2).
- He went after the abominations of the heathen (2 Kings 21:2; Leviticus 18:25-29).
- He rebuilt high places Hezekiah had destroyed (2 Kings 21:3; 2 Kings 18:4).
- He reared up altars for Baal (2 Kings 21:3).
- He made a grove after the pattern of Ahab (2 Kings 21:3).
- He worshipped and served all the host of heaven (2 Kings 21:3; Deuteronomy 4:19; Deuteronomy 17:2-3).
- His Perversion of True Worship (2 Kings 21:4-5)
- He built pagan altars in the house of the Lord (2 Kings 21:4) in the place where the LORD chose to put His name (Jeremiah 32:34).He built other altars (2 Kings 21:5).
- He built other altars (2 Kings 21:5).
- For all the host of heaven
- In the two courts of the house of the Lord
- His Provoking of the Lord to Anger (2 Kings 21:6)
- He made his sons pass through the fire (Leviticus 18:21; Leviticus 20:2-3; 2 Kings 16:3; 2 Kings 17:17; 2 Chronicles 28:3; 2 Chronicles 33:6).
- He observed times astrology (Leviticus 19:26).
- He used enchantments he cast spells.
- He dealt with familiar spirits he practiced channeling (Leviticus 19:31).
- He used wizards male witches (Deuteronomy 18:10-14).
- He did it in the sight of the Lord to provoke the Lord to anger.
- His Leading of the People into Sin (2 Kings 21:7-9)
- He set a graven image of the grove in the house of the Lord (2 Kings 21:7).
- This is the house where God chose to place His name (2 Kings 21:7).
- This is the place God promised to bless Israels obedience (2 Kings 21:8).
- This was the final cause of judgment on the land of Judah (2 Kings 21:9).
- They were seduced by Manasseh.
- They did more evil than the heathen nations God had destroyed.
- THE JUDGMENT OF MANASSEHS SIN (2 Kings 21:10-16)
- The Cause of Judgment (2 Kings 21:10-11)
- The word of the Lord (2 Kings 21:10) spoken by the prophets
- The wickedness of Manasseh (2 Kings 21:11)
- In doing these abominations
- In doing wickedly above the Amorites
- In making Judah to sin with his idols
- The Extent of the Judgment (2 Kings 21:12-14)
- Such evil to cause ears to tingle (2 Kings 21:12)
- Done with the efficiency of a carpenter (2 Kings 21:13; Isaiah 28:17)
- With the line of Samaria
- With the plummet of the house of Ahab (Zechariah 4:10)
- Done as a man would wipe a dish (2 Kings 21:13)
- Wiping it clean
- Turning it upside down
- The judgment of God on the remnant (2 Kings 21:14)
- Forsaken by the Lord
- Delivered to their enemies
- Becoming a prey and a spoil
- The Provoking of the Lord to Anger (2 Kings 21:15-16)
- They have provoked God to anger (2 Kings 21:15).
- By all the evil they have done
- From the time they came forth from Egypt
- The major sins of Manasseh (2 Kings 21:16)
- In filling Jerusalem with innocent blood
- In making Judah to sin
- THE END OF MANASSEHS REIGN (2 Kings 21:17-18)
- The Completion of His Reign (2 Kings 21:17)
- All that he did
- The sin that he sinned
- In the chronicles of the kings of Judah
- Note: 2 Chronicles records a captivity of Manasseh and a prayer of repentance that is not recorded in 2 Kings (2 Chronicles 33:11-20).
- The Death of Manasseh (2 Kings 21:18)
- Slept with his fathers
- Buried in the garden of his own house
- THE EVIL OF AMONS REIGN (2 Kings 21:19-26)
- A Summary of His Reign (2 Kings 21:19)
- Began at age of 22
- Reigned for two years in Jerusalem
- The Character of His Reign (2 Kings 21:20-22)
- Did evil in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 21:20)
- Walked in the way of his father (2 Kings 21:21)
- Served the idols of his father (2 Kings 21:21)
- Forsook the Lord God of his fathers (2 Kings 21:22)
- Walked not in the way of the Lord (2 Kings 21:22)
- The End of His Reign (2 Kings 21:23-26)
- Conspired against and killed by his servants (2 Kings 21:23)
- The people slew the conspirators and made Josiah king (2 Kings 21:24).
- The record of the chronicles of the kings of Judah (2 Kings 21:25)
- The burial of Amon in the garden of Uzza (2 Kings 21:26)
- The reign of Josiah in the place of Amon (2 Kings 21:26)
CONCLUSION: Judah has turned their back on the Lord to the point that they are worse than the nations God destroyed in order to bring Israel and Judah into the land.