Manasseh King of Judah
1Manasseh was 12 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 55 years. 2Manasseh did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He followed the practices of the nations. The Lord hated those practices. The Lord had driven out those nations to make room for the Israelites. 3Manasseh rebuilt the high places. His father Hezekiah had destroyed them. Manasseh also set up altars to the gods that were named Baal. He made poles used to worship the female god named Asherah. He even bowed down to all the stars and worshiped them. 4He built altars in the Lord’s temple. The Lord had said about his temple, “My Name will remain in Jerusalem forever.” 5In the two courtyards of the Lord’s temple Manasseh built altars to honor all the stars in the sky. 6He sacrificed his children in the fire to other gods. He did it in the Valley of Ben Hinnom. He practiced all kinds of evil magic. He took part in worshiping evil powers. He got messages from people who had died. He talked to the spirits of people who have died. He did many things that were evil in the eyes of the Lord. Manasseh made the Lord very angry.
7Manasseh had carved a statue of a god. He put it in God’s temple. God had spoken to David and his son Solomon about the temple. He had said, “My Name will be in this temple and in Jerusalem forever. Out of all the cities in the tribes of Israel I have chosen Jerusalem. 8I gave this land to your people who lived long ago. I will not make the Israelites leave it again. But they must be careful to do everything I commanded them. They must follow all the laws, directions, and rules I gave them through Moses.” 9But Manasseh led Judah and the people of Jerusalem astray. They did more evil things than the nations the Lord had destroyed to make room for the Israelites.
10The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people. But they didn’t pay any attention to him. 11So the Lord brought the army commanders of the king of Assyria against them. They took Manasseh as a prisoner. They put a hook in his nose. They put him in bronze chains. And they took him to Babylon. 12When Manasseh was in trouble, he asked the Lord his God to help him. He made himself very humble in the sight of the God of his people. 13Manasseh prayed to him. When he did, the Lord felt sorry for him. He answered his prayer. The Lord brought Manasseh back to Jerusalem and his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.
14After that, Manasseh rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David. It was west of the Gihon spring in the valley. It reached all the way to the entrance of the Fish Gate. It went around the entire hill of Ophel. Manasseh also made the wall much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the cities in Judah that had high walls around them.
15Manasseh got rid of the false gods. He removed the statue of one of those gods from the Lord’s temple. He also removed all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem. He threw them out of the city. 16Then he made the Lord’s altar look like new again. He sacrificed friendship offerings and thank offerings on it. He told the people of Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. 17The people continued to offer sacrifices at the high places. But they offered them only to the Lord their God.
18The other events of Manasseh’s rule are written down in the official records of the kings of Judah. These records include his prayer to his God. They also include the words the prophets spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 19Everything about Manasseh is written in the records of the prophets. That includes his prayer and the fact that God felt sorry for him. It includes everything he did before he made himself humble in the Lord’s sight. It includes all his sins and the fact that he wasn’t faithful to the Lord. It includes the locations where he built high places. It includes the places where he set up poles used to worship the female god named Asherah. And it includes the places where he set up statues of other gods. 20Manasseh joined the members of his family who had already died. He was buried in his palace. Manasseh’s son Amon became the next king after him.
Amon King of Judah
21Amon was 22 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for two years. 22Amon did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Manasseh had done. Amon worshiped and offered sacrifices to all the statues of gods that Manasseh had made. 23He didn’t make himself humble in the Lord’s sight as his father Manasseh had done. So Amon became even more guilty.
24Amon’s officials made plans against him. They murdered him in his palace. 25Then the people of the land killed all those who had made plans against King Amon. They made his son Josiah king in his place.
猶大王瑪拿西
1瑪拿西十二歲登基，在耶路撒冷執政五十五年。 2他做耶和華視為惡的事，效法耶和華在以色列人面前趕走的外族人的可憎行徑。 3他重建他父親希西迦拆毀的邱壇，為巴力築造祭壇，製造亞舍拉神像，並祭拜和供奉天上的萬象。 4耶和華曾指著祂的殿說：「我的名必永遠在耶路撒冷。」他卻在耶和華的殿內建造異教的祭壇。 5他在耶和華殿的兩個院子裡建造祭拜天上萬象的祭壇。 6他還在欣嫩子谷把自己的兒子燒死，獻作祭物。他行巫術、占卜、觀兆，求問靈媒和巫師。他做了許多耶和華視為惡的事，惹耶和華發怒。 7他雕刻偶像，放在上帝的殿中。關於這殿，上帝曾經對大衛和他兒子所羅門說：「我從以色列眾支派中選擇了這殿和耶路撒冷，我的名要在這裡永遠受尊崇。 8只要以色列人謹遵我藉著摩西頒給他們的一切法度、律例和典章，我就不再把他們從我賜給他們祖先的土地上趕走。」 9瑪拿西誘使猶大人和耶路撒冷的居民作惡，比耶和華在以色列人面前所毀滅的各族更嚴重。
瑪拿西悔改
10耶和華警告瑪拿西和他的百姓，他們卻不肯聽從。 11所以，耶和華就差遣亞述王的將領來攻擊他們，他們捉住瑪拿西，用鉤子鉤著他，用銅鏈鎖著他押往巴比倫。 12在困苦中，瑪拿西祈求他的上帝耶和華的幫助，並且在他祖先的上帝面前極其謙卑。 13耶和華應允他的禱告，垂聽他的懇求，使他返回耶路撒冷繼續做王。瑪拿西這才明白耶和華是上帝。
14這事以後，瑪拿西重建大衛城的外牆，從谷中基訓泉的西邊直到魚門口，環繞俄斐勒，築高城牆。他又派將領駐紮猶大各堅城。 15瑪拿西將偶像和外族人的神像從耶和華的殿中除去，又把他在聖殿山和耶路撒冷築造的一切祭壇全部拆掉，扔在城外。 16他重建耶和華的祭壇，在上面獻平安祭和感恩祭，又吩咐猶大人事奉以色列的上帝耶和華。 17然而，眾人仍然在邱壇獻祭，只是獻給他們的上帝耶和華。
瑪拿西逝世
18瑪拿西其他的事、他向上帝的禱告以及先見奉以色列的上帝耶和華的名對他說的話，都記在以色列的列王史上。 19他的禱告，上帝的答覆，他在謙卑下來之前的罪惡和不忠，他在哪裡修築邱壇以及設立亞舍拉神像和其他偶像的事，都記在《先知書》33·19 《先知書》或譯《何賽的書》。上。 20瑪拿西與祖先同眠後，葬在宮內，他兒子亞們繼位。
亞們做猶大王
21亞們二十二歲登基，在耶路撒冷執政兩年。 22亞們效法他父親瑪拿西，做耶和華視為惡的事。他祭拜和供奉他父親瑪拿西製造的一切偶像。 23可是，亞們沒有像他父親瑪拿西一樣在耶和華面前謙卑下來。相反，他犯的罪日益增加。 24他的臣僕謀反，在王宮裡殺了他。 25民眾殺死那些背叛亞們王的人，立他兒子約西亞為王。
