Study Desk

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.

Then he set up the Lord 's altar and offered fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it. He gave a command for all the people of Judah to serve the Lord , the God of Israel.

The people continued to offer sacrifices at the high places, but their sacrifices were only to the Lord their 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.

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.

Huldah said to them, "This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: Tell King Josiah that

"Go back to King Josiah of Judah, who sent you to ask what the Lord wants. Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says about the words you heard being read:

Then Josiah made all the people in Jerusalem and Benjamin promise to accept the agreement. The people of Jerusalem obeyed the agreement of God, the God their ancestors obeyed.

The Israelites had idols from many different countries, but Josiah destroyed all the terrible idols. He made all the people in Israel serve the Lord their God. And as long as Josiah was alive, the people continued to serve the Lord , the God of their ancestors.

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.

But Neco sent messengers to Josiah. They said, "King Josiah, this war is not your problem. I didn't come to fight against you. I came to fight my enemies. God told me to hurry. He is on my side, so don't bother me. If you fight against me, God will destroy you!"

But Josiah did not go away. He put on different clothes to hide who he was and went to fight the battle. Josiah refused to listen to the warning Neco had received from God and went to fight on the plain of Megiddo.

Everything else Josiah did while he was king, from the beginning to the end of his rule, is written in the book, The History of the Kings of Israel and Judah. The book tells about the way he served God faithfully by obeying the law of the Lord .

Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became the new king of Judah. He was king in Jerusalem for eleven years. Jehoiakim did not obey God. He did what the Lord his God considered evil.

Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king of Judah. He was king in Jerusalem for three months and ten days. He did not obey God. He did what the Lord considered evil.

Zedekiah did what the Lord his God considered evil. Jeremiah the prophet told him messages from the Lord . But Zedekiah did not humble himself and obey what Jeremiah said.

Zedekiah turned against King Nebuchadnezzar. In the past Nebuchadnezzar forced Zedekiah to make a promise to be faithful to him. Zedekiah used God's name and promised to be faithful to Nebuchadnezzar. But Zedekiah was stubborn and would not change his life. He refused to obey the Lord , the God of Israel.