Manasseh also built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD had said, "My Name will remain in Jerusalem forever." Manasseh built altarsThe phrase "Manasseh built altars" indicates a direct violation of God's commandments. Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, was a king of Judah who reigned for 55 years. His actions in building altars within the temple precincts were a stark departure from the religious reforms of his father. The Hebrew root for "altars" (מִזְבְּחוֹת, mizbechot) often refers to structures for sacrifice, typically associated with worship. In this context, it suggests idolatrous practices, as Manasseh erected these altars for pagan deities, defiling the sacred space dedicated to Yahweh. in the house of the LORD
The "house of the LORD" refers to the temple in Jerusalem, the central place of worship for the Israelites. This temple, originally constructed by Solomon, was meant to be the dwelling place of God's presence among His people. The Hebrew term for "house" (בַּיִת, bayit) signifies not just a physical structure but a place of familial and divine relationship. Manasseh's actions in this sacred space were a profound desecration, symbolizing a breach in the covenant relationship between God and His people. of which the LORD had said
This phrase underscores the divine authority and the specific instructions given by God regarding the temple. The LORD's declarations are foundational to Israel's identity and worship practices. The Hebrew word for "said" (אָמַר, amar) conveys not just speech but a binding promise or command. It highlights the gravity of Manasseh's transgressions against God's explicit instructions. 'My Name will remain in Jerusalem forever.'
The declaration "My Name will remain in Jerusalem forever" is a powerful testament to God's enduring covenant with Israel. The "Name" of the LORD (שֵׁם, shem) represents His character, authority, and presence. In ancient Near Eastern culture, a name was more than a label; it embodied the essence and reputation of the individual. God's promise to place His Name in Jerusalem signifies His commitment to dwell among His people and establish Jerusalem as the spiritual center of His kingdom. Manasseh's actions, therefore, were not just a political or cultural rebellion but a spiritual affront to the eternal promise of God. This phrase serves as a reminder of God's faithfulness despite human unfaithfulness, offering hope for restoration and redemption through repentance. Persons / Places / Events 1. ManassehThe king of Judah who reigned for 55 years and is known for his idolatrous practices, including building altars to foreign gods in the temple of the LORD. 2. The House of the LORDRefers to the temple in Jerusalem, which was the central place of worship for the Israelites and where God's presence was said to dwell. 3. JerusalemThe city chosen by God to place His Name and the location of the temple, representing the spiritual and political center of Israel. 4. The LORD (Yahweh)The covenant God of Israel, who had established His Name and presence in Jerusalem and commanded exclusive worship. 5. AltarsStructures built for the purpose of offering sacrifices, which in this context were erected for idolatrous worship within the temple. Teaching Points The Sanctity of WorshipThe temple was a sacred space dedicated to the worship of Yahweh alone. Manasseh's actions serve as a warning against compromising the purity of worship with idolatry. The Consequences of IdolatryManasseh's idolatry led to spiritual and national decline. This reminds us of the destructive nature of turning away from God to serve other "gods" in our lives. God's Faithfulness to His NameDespite Manasseh's unfaithfulness, God's promise to keep His Name in Jerusalem underscores His enduring faithfulness and commitment to His covenant. Repentance and RestorationLater in the chapter, Manasseh repents and is restored, illustrating God's mercy and willingness to forgive those who turn back to Him. Guarding Our HeartsJust as the temple was defiled by foreign altars, we must guard our hearts against influences that lead us away from exclusive devotion to God. Bible Study Questions 1. What does Manasseh's building of altars in the temple reveal about his understanding of God's commands regarding worship? 2. How does the defilement of the temple in Jerusalem reflect the spiritual state of Judah during Manasseh's reign? 3. In what ways can we ensure that our worship remains pure and focused solely on God in our personal lives and church communities? 4. How does Manasseh's account of repentance and restoration encourage us in our own spiritual journeys? 5. What "altars" or idols might we be tempted to build in our own lives, and how can we actively work to remove them? Connections to Other Scriptures Deuteronomy 12:5-14God commands the Israelites to seek the place He chooses to put His Name and to worship Him there, emphasizing the exclusivity of worship in the temple. 1 Kings 9:3God affirms to Solomon that His Name will be in the temple in Jerusalem forever, highlighting the significance of the temple as a sacred space. 2 Kings 21:4-7Provides a parallel account of Manasseh's idolatry, detailing his actions in defiling the temple with altars to other gods. Exodus 20:3-5The Ten Commandments, where God commands His people to have no other gods before Him and prohibits the making of idols. People Amon, Ben, David, Hezekiah, Israelites, Josiah, Manasseh, SolomonPlaces Assyria, Babylon, Fish Gate, Gihon, Jerusalem, Ophel, Valley of HinnomTopics Age, Altars, Built, Forever, Jerusalem, Temple, WhereofDictionary of Bible Themes 2 Chronicles 33:1-6 8807 profanity 2 Chronicles 33:1-7 8831 syncretism 2 Chronicles 33:1-9 5714 men 2 Chronicles 33:1-25 5366 king 2 Chronicles 33:2-10 7245 Judah, kingdom of 2 Chronicles 33:3-5 4170 host of heaven
8709 astrology 2 Chronicles 33:3-6 4185 sorcery and magic Library Manasseh's Sin and Repentance
'So 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. 10. And the Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken. 11. Wherefore 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. 12. And when he was in affliction, he besought the Lord his God, and humbled …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureManasseh
BY REV. J. G. GREENHOUGH, M.A. "Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem."--2 CHRON. xxxiii. l. Fifty and five years--he wore the crown a longer time than any other of the house of David. Of all the kings that reigned in Jerusalem, this man's reign filled the largest space; yet he is the one king of Judah about whom we are told least. In the modern city of Venice there is a hall which is adorned with the portraits of all the doges …
George Milligan—Men of the Bible; Some Lesser-Known How Shall one Make Use of Christ as the Life, when Wrestling with an Angry God Because of Sin?
That we may give some satisfaction to this question, we shall, 1. Shew what are the ingredients in this case, or what useth to concur in this distemper. 2. Shew some reasons why the Lord is pleased to dispense thus with his people. 3. Shew how Christ is life to the soul in this case. 4. Shew the believer's duty for a recovery; and, 5. Add a word or two of caution. As to the first, There may be those parts of, or ingredients in this distemper: 1. God presenting their sins unto their view, so as …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life Josiah, a Pattern for the Ignorant.
"Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before Me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place."--2 Kings …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII Covenanting According to the Purposes of God.
Since every revealed purpose of God, implying that obedience to his law will be given, is a demand of that obedience, the announcement of his Covenant, as in his sovereignty decreed, claims, not less effectively than an explicit law, the fulfilment of its duties. A representation of a system of things pre-determined in order that the obligations of the Covenant might be discharged; various exhibitions of the Covenant as ordained; and a description of the children of the Covenant as predestinated …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly
DO not mistake me, I do not say that of their own nature the worst things are good, for they are a fruit of the curse; but though they are naturally evil, yet the wise overruling hand of God disposing and sanctifying them, they are morally good. As the elements, though of contrary qualities, yet God has so tempered them, that they all work in a harmonious manner for the good of the universe. Or as in a watch, the wheels seem to move contrary one to another, but all carry on the motions of the watch: …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial The Girdle of the City. Nehemiah 3
The beginning of the circumference was from 'the sheep-gate.' That, we suppose, was seated on the south part, yet but little removed from that corner, which looks south-east. Within was the pool of Bethesda, famous for healings. Going forward, on the south part, was the tower Meah: and beyond that, "the tower of Hananeel": in the Chaldee paraphrast it is, 'The tower Piccus,' Zechariah 14:10; Piccus, Jeremiah 31:38.--I should suspect that to be, the Hippic tower, were not that placed on the north …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica The Power of Assyria at Its Zenith; Esarhaddon and Assur-Bani-Pal
The Medes and Cimmerians: Lydia--The conquest of Egypt, of Arabia, and of Elam. As we have already seen, Sennacherib reigned for eight years after his triumph; eight years of tranquillity at home, and of peace with all his neighbours abroad. If we examine the contemporary monuments or the documents of a later period, and attempt to glean from them some details concerning the close of his career, we find that there is a complete absence of any record of national movement on the part of either Elam, …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8 Beginning at Jerusalem
The whole verse runs thus: "And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." The words were spoken by Christ, after he rose from the dead, and they are here rehearsed after an historical manner, but do contain in them a formal commission, with a special clause therein. The commission is, as you see, for the preaching of the gospel, and is very distinctly inserted in the holy record by Matthew and Mark. "Go teach all nations," …
John Bunyan—Jerusalem Sinner Saved The Jerusalem Sinner Saved;
OR, GOOD NEWS FOR THE VILEST OF MEN; BEING A HELP FOR DESPAIRING SOULS, SHOWING THAT JESUS CHRIST WOULD HAVE MERCY IN THE FIRST PLACE OFFERED TO THE BIGGEST SINNERS. THE THIRD EDITION, IN WHICH IS ADDED, AN ANSWER TO THOSE GRAND OBJECTIONS THAT LIE IN THE WAY OF THE THEM THAT WOULD BELIEVE: FOR THE COMFORT OF THEM THAT FEAR THEY HAVE SINNED AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. BY JOHN BUNYAN, OF BEDFORD. London: Printed for Elizabeth Smith, at the Hand and Bible, on London Bridge, 1691. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Chronicles
The comparative indifference with which Chronicles is regarded in modern times by all but professional scholars seems to have been shared by the ancient Jewish church. Though written by the same hand as wrote Ezra-Nehemiah, and forming, together with these books, a continuous history of Judah, it is placed after them in the Hebrew Bible, of which it forms the concluding book; and this no doubt points to the fact that it attained canonical distinction later than they. Nor is this unnatural. The book …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links 2 Chronicles 33:4 NIV2 Chronicles 33:4 NLT2 Chronicles 33:4 ESV2 Chronicles 33:4 NASB2 Chronicles 33:4 KJV
2 Chronicles 33:4 Commentaries
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