Old Testament God of Love

King Manasseh

Do you like Bible stories? I love to read them and meditate about what significance they have for me, here in Buffalo, Wyoming in the year 2007.

One of my favorite stories is the story of King Manasseh. You can find it in 2 Chronicles 33 and 2 Kings 21. Manasseh became king at the age of 12 after his father, good king Hezekiah died. It is always heartbreaking as a parent when your children decide to reject your faith. As a parent I can relate to this. Although Hezekiah was dead before Manasseh did the evil that he did, it is still amazing that such a good king could have such an evil son.

Here is part of the story as told by the Clear Word paraphrase:

2 Kings 21:1-7 and 16: “Manasseh was born after Hezekiah had been healed. His father appointed him as coruler when he was only twelve years old. He ruled for a total of fifty-five years. His mother was also a good woman, just as his father was.

“Manasseh followed the example of the pagans who had lived in the land before the Lord drove them out. He rebuilt all the pagan shrines that his father had destroyed. He built altars to the god Baal and erected poles to the mother goddess, as Ahab had done in Israel. He even put an altar to the sun, moon, and stars in the Temple.

“He sacrificed his infant son to idols, practiced witchcraft, and consulted spirits, which the Lord had told His people not to do. He also took one of the poles of the mother goddess and set it up in the Temple, even though the Lord had told David and Solomon that Jerusalem and the Temple belonged to Him. . .

”Manasseh was very, very wicked. He killed many innocent people, including the prophets who brought him messages from the Lord. He also persecuted and killed those who listened to the Lord’s prophets, until the streets of Jerusalem were red with blood.”

Tradition has it that Manasseh even had his grandfather, the prophet Isaiah sawed in two.

Finally God allowed the king of Assyria to conquer Judah and Manasseh was taken to Assyria in chins with a hook in his nose. Ouch!

Now you may wonder why I like such an awful story. It definitely isn’t one of the most uplifting in the Bible up to this point. But I like it because it shows me how much God loves His people and how willing He is to forgive us for our sins. Even sins as vile as Manasseh’s. Because this story isn’t over!

2 Chronicles 33:12-16: “Then Manasseh turned to the Lord and begged for forgiveness. The Lord heard Manasseh’s prayer and FORGAVE HIM. Suddenly the king of Assyria released Manasseh and let him go home. These things convinced Manasseh that the Lord was the true God of Israel.

“When Manasseh got back home, he made the walls of Jerusalem higher, made the fortifications stronger, and stationed troops in all the major cities of Judah. He took away the idols, pagan images, and altars from the Temple and threw them out of the city.

“He restored the altar of the Lord and brought thank offerings and peace offerings to be sacrificed on it. He urged the people to stop worshiping idols and to worship only the God of Israel.”

Isn’t that an amazing story! Manasseh gave his heart to God and God released him. God will always release us from the bondage of sin, if we come to Him and ask. Then, just like Manasseh, once we have returned to God we want to do everything we can to build up God’s church (that is His people) and to strengthen their fortifications against the devil.

That’s why I like that story. I don’t understand how people can say that the God of the Old Testament is a harsh, vindictive God. On the contrary, the Old Testament shows us the God of Grace (grace from God gives pardon FROM sin, and power to OVERCOME sin) in the stories.

Anyway, don’t know if you like stories, but I do.

Please know that God is very near to you and that He loves you very much.