Study Desk

The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they refused to listen.

So the Lord brought commanders from the king of Assyria's army to attack Judah. These commanders captured Manasseh and made him their prisoner. They put hooks in him and brass chains on his hands and took him to the country of Babylon.

When these troubles came to him, Manasseh begged for help from the Lord his God. He humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.

Manasseh prayed to God and begged him for help. God heard his begging and felt sorry for him, so he let Manasseh return to Jerusalem and to his throne. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was the true God.

Everything else Manasseh did, his prayer to his God and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of the Lord , the God of Israel, are all written in the book, The Official Records of the Kings of Israel.

Manasseh's prayer and how God listened and felt sorry for him are written in The Book of the Seers. Also all his sins, the wrongs he did before he humbled himself, and the places where he built high places and set up the Asherah poles are written in The Book of the Seers.

So Manasseh died and was buried with his ancestors. The people buried Manasseh in his own palace. Manasseh's son Amon became the new king in his place.

Amon did evil before the Lord , just as his father Manasseh had done. Amon offered sacrifices for all the carved idols and statues that Manasseh his father made. Amon worshiped those idols.

Amon did not humble himself in front of the Lord like Manasseh his father humbled himself. But Amon sinned more and more.

His servants made plans against him. They killed Amon in his own house.

He lived in a way that pleased the Lord , always doing what was right, as his ancestor David had done. Josiah never changed this way of life.

When Josiah was in his eighth year as king, he began to follow the God worshiped by David his ancestor. He was still young when he began to obey God. When he was in his twelfth year as king he began to destroy the high places, the Asherah poles, and idols that were carved and idols that were made from molds from Judah and Jerusalem.

When Josiah was in his 18th year as king of Judah, he sent Shaphan, Maaseiah, and Joah to rebuild and repair the Temple of the Lord his God. Shaphan was the son of Azaliah. Maaseiah was the city leader. Joah, who was the son of Joahaz, wrote about what happened. So Josiah commanded the Temple to be repaired so that he could make Judah and the Temple clean.

When King Josiah heard the words of the law being read, he tore his clothes.

Then the king stood up in his place. He made an agreement with the Lord . He agreed to follow the Lord and to obey his commands, laws, and rules. He agreed to obey with all his heart and soul the words of the agreement written in this book.

He spoke to the Levites who taught the Israelites and who were made holy for service to the Lord . He said to the Levites, "Put the Holy Box in the Temple that Solomon built. Solomon was David's son. David was king of Israel. Don't carry the Holy Box from place to place on your shoulders again. Now serve the Lord your God and his people, the Israelites.

Make yourselves ready for service in the Temple by your tribes. Do the jobs that King David and his son King Solomon gave you to do.

Also Conaniah with Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, and Hashabiah, Jeiel and Jozabad gave 500 sheep and goats and 500 bulls for Passover sacrifices to the Levites. These men were leaders of the Levites.

Then King Josiah was shot by arrows while he was in the battle. He told his servants, "Take me away, I am wounded badly!"

So the servants took Josiah out of his chariot and put him in another chariot he had brought with him to the battle. Then they took Josiah to Jerusalem. He died there and was buried in the tombs where his ancestors were buried. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem were very sad because Josiah was dead.