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2 Kings Chapter
Twenty-one
2 Kings 21
Chapter Contents
Wicked reign of Manasseh. (1-9) The prophetic
denunciations against Judah. (10-18) Wicked reign and death of Amon. (19-26)
Commentary on 2 Kings 21:1-9
(Read 2 Kings 21:1-9)
Young persons generally desire to become their own
masters, and to have early possession of riches and power. But this, for the
most part, ruins their future comfort, and causes mischief to others. It is
much happier when young persons are sheltered under the care of parents or
guardians, till age gives experience and discretion. Though such young persons
are less indulged, they will afterwards be thankful. Manasseh wrought much
wickedness in the sight of the Lord, as if on purpose to provoke him to anger;
he did more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed. Manasseh went on
from bad to worse, till carried captive to Babylon. The people were ready to
comply with his wishes, to obtain his favour and because it suited their
depraved inclinations. In the reformation of large bodies, numbers are mere
time-servers, and in temptation fall away.
Commentary on 2 Kings 21:10-18
(Read 2 Kings 21:10-18)
Here is the doom of Judah and Jerusalem. The words used
represent the city emptied and utterly desolate, yet not destroyed thereby, but
cleansed, and to be kept for the future dwelling of the Jews: forsaken, yet not
finally, and only as to outward privileges, for individual believers were
preserved in that visitation. The Lord will cast off any professing people who
dishonour him by their crimes, but never will desert his cause on earth. In the
book of Chronicles we read of Manasseh's repentance, and acceptance with God;
thus we may learn not to despair of the recovery of the greatest sinners. But
let none dare to persist in sin, presuming that they may repent and reform when
they please. There are a few instances of the conversion of notorious sinners,
that none may despair; and but few, that none may presume.
Commentary on 2 Kings 21:19-26
(Read 2 Kings 21:19-26)
Amon profaned God's house with his idols; and God
suffered his house to be polluted with his blood. How unrighteous soever they
were that did it, God was righteous who suffered it to be done. Now was a happy
change from one of the worst, to one of the best of the kings of Judah. Once
more Judah was tried with a reformation. Whether the Lord bears long with
presumptuous offenders, or speedily cuts them off in their sins, all must
perish who persist in refusing to walk in his ways.
── Matthew Henry《Concise Commentary on 2 Kings》
2 Kings 21
Verse 1
[1] Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign,
and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was
Hephzibah.
Reigned — In which time the years of his imprisonment are
comprehended.
Verse 3
[3] For he built up again the high places which Hezekiah his
father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made a grove, as
did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served
them.
He built, … — Trampling on the dust and
affronting the memory of his worthy father.
All the host of heaven — The sun, moon and
stars.
Verse 6
[6] And he made his son pass through the fire, and observed
times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he
wrought much wickedness in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
Through the fire — Between two fires, by
which he dedicated him to Molock, in contempt of the seal of circumcision by
which he had been dedicated to God.
Times — Lucky, or unlucky days according to the superstitious
practice of the heathens.
Verse 7
[7] And he set a graven image of the grove that he had made
in the house, of which the LORD said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this
house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will
I put my name for ever:
An image — The image of that Baal which was worshipped in the
grove.
Verse 9
[9] But they hearkened not: and Manasseh seduced them to do
more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the children of
Israel.
More evil — Partly, because they were not
contented with those idols which the Canaanites worshipped, but either
invented, or borrowed from other nations many new idols, and partly, because as
their light was far more clear, their obligations to God infinitely higher, and
their helps against idolatry much stronger than the Canaanites had; so their
sins, though the same in kind, were unspeakably worse in respect of these
dreadful aggravations.
Verse 13
[13] And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria,
and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth
a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.
The line — She shall have the same measure, the same judgments
which Samaria had. The line is often put for one's lot or portion, because mens
portions or possessions used to be measured by lines.
A dish — As men do with a dish that hath been used, first
wholly empty it of all that is in it, then throughly cleanse and wipe it; and lastly,
turn it upside down, that nothing may remain in it; so will I deal with
Jerusalem, throughly empty and purge it from all its wicked inhabitants. Yet
the comparison intimates, that this should be in order to the purifying, not
the final destruction of Jerusalem. The dish shall not be broken in pieces, or
wholly cast away, but only wiped.
Verse 15
[15] Because they have done that which was evil in my sight,
and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came forth out of
Egypt, even unto this day.
Since, … — This forejudgment, though it was chiefly inflicted for
the sins of Manasseh and his generation, yet had a respect unto all their
former sins.
Verse 16
[16] Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he
had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made
Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the LORD.
Blood — The blood of those prophets and righteous men who
either reproved his sinful practices, or refused to comply with his wicked
commands.
His sin — His idolatry, which is called sin, by way of eminency.
The tradition of the Jews is, that he caused Isaiah in particular to be sawn
asunder.
Verse 18
[18] And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in
the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza: and Amon his son reigned in
his stead.
Garden — Not in the sepulchre of the kings; probably, by his
own choice and command, as a lasting testimony of his sincere repentance and
abhorrence of himself for his former crime.
Verse 21
[21] And he walked in all the way that his father walked in,
and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped them:
He walked, … — He revived that idolatry which
Manasseh in the latter end of his reign had put down. Those who set bad
examples, if they repent themselves, cannot be sure that they whom their
example has drawn into sin will repent. It is often otherwise.
── John Wesley《Explanatory Notes on 2 Kings》
21 Chapter 21
Verses 1-16
Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign.
Manasseh
The narratives of the Old Testament are not to be read as mere
matters of history, but as records of the providential dispensations of God in
the concerns of mankind, and as fraught with lessons of the most valuable moral
and religious instruction. In this light we are to consider the account handed
down to us of Manasseh. King of Judah. An uninspired historian could only have
informed us of his evil life, his affliction, his repentance, his restoration
to prosperity, and his subsequent good conduct; but the sacred writer exhibits
to us the manner in which the hand of God was visible throughout these events.
It was not a matter of chance that Manasseh fell into adversity; for it was a
scourge expressly sent upon him for his transgressions: nor was it by chance
that he was restored to his kingdom, but by the unseen interposition of the
all-wise Disposer of events, and in consequence of his deep humiliation and humble
prayer. It is thus that the Scriptures teach us maxims of heavenly wisdom, not
only in their direct exhortations and promises, but in the narratives which
they record, all being written so as to display the conduct of God towards His
creatures; His wisdom and righteousness, His justice and His mercy, His anger
against the transgressor, His favour to the humble penitent, His infinite
patience and forbearance towards all. We see embodied in actual facts our own
circumstances, our sins and our mercies; what we have to hope or to fear; what
our Creator requires of us; how He will act towards us. The chief particulars
are the aggravated transgressions of Manasseh; the consequent affliction which
befell him; his repentance in his affliction; his deliverance from it, and his
future obedience to God.
1. The chapter before us details the transgressions of Manasseh. His
sins were of a very heinous character, and were committed under circumstances
which greatly aggravated their enormity. The narrative mentions several
particulars, which show the fearful extent of his offences.
2. To consider the affliction which in consequence befell him. Happy
was it for him that he was not suffered to proceed in his iniquities unchecked.
Sorrow, we are told, springs not out of the ground: it does not occur by
chance, or without meaning. All affliction is the consequence of sin; and it is
well when our troubles in this life are made the instruments of leading us to
God, that we may not suffer that eternal punishment which our iniquities merit
in the world to come. In the case of Manasseh, the hand of God was clearly
visible in His punishment. It is said that the Lord brought upon him and his
people--for both he and his people had sinned--the host of the king of Assyria,
and they took Manasseh, among the thorns; that is, in some thicket to which he
had retreated for safety; and bound him with fetters, and carried him to
Babylon. A greater temporal calamity than this could scarcely befall a man like
Manasseh.
3. Our text notices his repentance in his affliction. His captivity
gave him leisure for serious reflection; and by the blessing of God he was led
to avail himself of it. Multitudes of persons never begin to think of their
sins, or their need of salvation, till the hour of pain or sickness, of
bereavement or death. Thus Manasseh in his prosperity had forgotten his
Creator; but in his adversity he could find no other refuge. His false gods
could not assist him; and therefore, like the prodigal son, his only refuge was
to turn to the merciful Father whom he had forsaken.
4. We are told of his deliverance from his affliction. The Lord, it
is said, heard his supplication, and brought him back again to Jerusalem into
his kingdom. The following verses allude to his future prosperity; for, by the
dispensation under which Manasseh lived, it pleased the Almighty often to
bestow temporal blessings as a mark of his special mercy; and as the
afflictions which first led Manasseh to repentance and prayer had been of a
worldly kind, so, when it pleased God to restore him to his favour, he gave him
also worldly blessings, life and liberty, and a successful issue in the affairs
of his kingdom. But far above all these outward blessings was the forgiveness
of his sins. Worldly prosperity may be either a benefit or a curse to its
possessor; but to be pardoned and justified--this is indeed a blessing of
unspeakable value, and should constrain us with earnest gratitude to devote
ourselves to the service of our God and Saviour. This leads us to remark,
5. The subsequent obedience of Manasseh. The narrative is brief; but
it particularly mentions his future obedience to God, and his zeal for his
glory. His heart being renewed, his course of life changed with it. It is said,
that he now “knew that the Lord He was God.” He had discovered this both in His
power to afflict him and in His power to restore him; and now, knowing Him to
be the only true God, he resolved to worship Him as such. He had repented, and
he brought forth fruits meet for repentance. Much was forgiven him, and he
loved much. First, he turned from his former sins; for “he took away the
strange gods and the idol out of the house of, the Lord”: not only this, but he
began to practise his long neglected duties; he repaired the altar of the Lord,
and sacrificed thereon peace offerings, and thank-offerings, and commanded his
people to serve the Lord God of Israel. As his transgressions had been public,
he wished his contrition for them to be equally so; and as he had led others
astray by his authority and example, he was now urgent to bring them back to
the right path. To follow his example in this respect is the most important
application which we can make. We have not indeed shed blood, or literally
sacrificed to idols, as he did; neither have we had any inducement to do so, or
the opportunity of doing so. But, on the other hand, we have not been exposed
to the temptations which he must have met with, left defenceless at the early
age of twelve years, amidst the seductions of the world, as a sovereign prince,
with every facility for the indulgence of his will and his passions, and
meeting perhaps with few to control, and many to foster his evil propensities.
But shall we therefore say that, according to our circumstances and
temptations, we have not also grievously offended God? Let us then earnestly
seek this inestimable blessing; let us neither slight it on the one hand nor
despair of obtaining it on the other. It is to be obtained, if only we seek it,
and seek it aright, and seek it before the opportunity for procuring it is for
ever lost. (Christian Observer.)
Saints made only of unfavourable material
At a crowded meeting in Edinburgh, one Sunday night, Professor
Drummond stood on the platform with a letter in his hand. That letter, he said,
had come to him from a young man then in the meeting, who, knowing Drummond was
to speak that night, had written his history in the hope that some word of
Christian counsel might be spoken which would give him hope. The letter was
from a medical student who had been piously trained, but had been drawn down to
drunkenness and vice. He feared he had fallen too low ever to rise. Did
Professor Drummond think there was any hope for such a man? For answer the
professor said, “As I walked through the city this morning I noticed a cloud
like a pure white bank of snow resting over the slums. Whence came it? The
great sun had sent down its beams into the city slums, and the beams had gone
among the puddles and drawn out of them what they sought, and had taken it
aloft and purified it; and there it was resting above the city, a cloud as
white as snow. And God can make His saints out of material equally
unfavourable. He can make a white cloud out of a puddle. What Christ did for
Mary Magdalene He could and would do for any one who went to Him for help now.”
Verses 1-16
Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign.
Manasseh
The narratives of the Old Testament are not to be read as mere
matters of history, but as records of the providential dispensations of God in
the concerns of mankind, and as fraught with lessons of the most valuable moral
and religious instruction. In this light we are to consider the account handed
down to us of Manasseh. King of Judah. An uninspired historian could only have
informed us of his evil life, his affliction, his repentance, his restoration
to prosperity, and his subsequent good conduct; but the sacred writer exhibits
to us the manner in which the hand of God was visible throughout these events.
It was not a matter of chance that Manasseh fell into adversity; for it was a
scourge expressly sent upon him for his transgressions: nor was it by chance
that he was restored to his kingdom, but by the unseen interposition of the
all-wise Disposer of events, and in consequence of his deep humiliation and
humble prayer. It is thus that the Scriptures teach us maxims of heavenly
wisdom, not only in their direct exhortations and promises, but in the
narratives which they record, all being written so as to display the conduct of
God towards His creatures; His wisdom and righteousness, His justice and His
mercy, His anger against the transgressor, His favour to the humble penitent,
His infinite patience and forbearance towards all. We see embodied in actual
facts our own circumstances, our sins and our mercies; what we have to hope or
to fear; what our Creator requires of us; how He will act towards us. The chief
particulars are the aggravated transgressions of Manasseh; the consequent
affliction which befell him; his repentance in his affliction; his deliverance
from it, and his future obedience to God.
1. The chapter before us details the transgressions of Manasseh. His
sins were of a very heinous character, and were committed under circumstances
which greatly aggravated their enormity. The narrative mentions several
particulars, which show the fearful extent of his offences.
2. To consider the affliction which in consequence befell him. Happy
was it for him that he was not suffered to proceed in his iniquities unchecked.
Sorrow, we are told, springs not out of the ground: it does not occur by
chance, or without meaning. All affliction is the consequence of sin; and it is
well when our troubles in this life are made the instruments of leading us to
God, that we may not suffer that eternal punishment which our iniquities merit
in the world to come. In the case of Manasseh, the hand of God was clearly
visible in His punishment. It is said that the Lord brought upon him and his
people--for both he and his people had sinned--the host of the king of Assyria,
and they took Manasseh, among the thorns; that is, in some thicket to which he
had retreated for safety; and bound him with fetters, and carried him to
Babylon. A greater temporal calamity than this could scarcely befall a man like
Manasseh.
3. Our text notices his repentance in his affliction. His captivity
gave him leisure for serious reflection; and by the blessing of God he was led
to avail himself of it. Multitudes of persons never begin to think of their
sins, or their need of salvation, till the hour of pain or sickness, of
bereavement or death. Thus Manasseh in his prosperity had forgotten his
Creator; but in his adversity he could find no other refuge. His false gods could
not assist him; and therefore, like the prodigal son, his only refuge was to
turn to the merciful Father whom he had forsaken.
4. We are told of his deliverance from his affliction. The Lord, it
is said, heard his supplication, and brought him back again to Jerusalem into
his kingdom. The following verses allude to his future prosperity; for, by the
dispensation under which Manasseh lived, it pleased the Almighty often to
bestow temporal blessings as a mark of his special mercy; and as the afflictions
which first led Manasseh to repentance and prayer had been of a worldly kind,
so, when it pleased God to restore him to his favour, he gave him also worldly
blessings, life and liberty, and a successful issue in the affairs of his
kingdom. But far above all these outward blessings was the forgiveness of his
sins. Worldly prosperity may be either a benefit or a curse to its possessor;
but to be pardoned and justified--this is indeed a blessing of unspeakable
value, and should constrain us with earnest gratitude to devote ourselves to
the service of our God and Saviour. This leads us to remark,
5. The subsequent obedience of Manasseh. The narrative is brief; but
it particularly mentions his future obedience to God, and his zeal for his
glory. His heart being renewed, his course of life changed with it. It is said,
that he now “knew that the Lord He was God.” He had discovered this both in His
power to afflict him and in His power to restore him; and now, knowing Him to
be the only true God, he resolved to worship Him as such. He had repented, and
he brought forth fruits meet for repentance. Much was forgiven him, and he
loved much. First, he turned from his former sins; for “he took away the
strange gods and the idol out of the house of, the Lord”: not only this, but he
began to practise his long neglected duties; he repaired the altar of the Lord,
and sacrificed thereon peace offerings, and thank-offerings, and commanded his
people to serve the Lord God of Israel. As his transgressions had been public,
he wished his contrition for them to be equally so; and as he had led others
astray by his authority and example, he was now urgent to bring them back to
the right path. To follow his example in this respect is the most important
application which we can make. We have not indeed shed blood, or literally
sacrificed to idols, as he did; neither have we had any inducement to do so, or
the opportunity of doing so. But, on the other hand, we have not been exposed
to the temptations which he must have met with, left defenceless at the early
age of twelve years, amidst the seductions of the world, as a sovereign prince,
with every facility for the indulgence of his will and his passions, and
meeting perhaps with few to control, and many to foster his evil propensities.
But shall we therefore say that, according to our circumstances and
temptations, we have not also grievously offended God? Let us then earnestly
seek this inestimable blessing; let us neither slight it on the one hand nor
despair of obtaining it on the other. It is to be obtained, if only we seek it,
and seek it aright, and seek it before the opportunity for procuring it is for
ever lost. (Christian Observer.)
Saints made only of unfavourable material
At a crowded meeting in Edinburgh, one Sunday night, Professor
Drummond stood on the platform with a letter in his hand. That letter, he said,
had come to him from a young man then in the meeting, who, knowing Drummond was
to speak that night, had written his history in the hope that some word of
Christian counsel might be spoken which would give him hope. The letter was
from a medical student who had been piously trained, but had been drawn down to
drunkenness and vice. He feared he had fallen too low ever to rise. Did
Professor Drummond think there was any hope for such a man? For answer the
professor said, “As I walked through the city this morning I noticed a cloud
like a pure white bank of snow resting over the slums. Whence came it? The
great sun had sent down its beams into the city slums, and the beams had gone
among the puddles and drawn out of them what they sought, and had taken it
aloft and purified it; and there it was resting above the city, a cloud as
white as snow. And God can make His saints out of material equally
unfavourable. He can make a white cloud out of a puddle. What Christ did for
Mary Magdalene He could and would do for any one who went to Him for help now.”
Verses 19-26
Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign.
Amon
The brief reign of Amon is only a sort of unimportant and
miserable annex to that of his father. As he was twenty-two years old when he
began to reign, he must have witnessed the repentance and reforming zeal of his
father, if, in spite of all difficulties, we assume that narrative to be
historical. In that ease, however, the young man was wholly untouched by the
latter phase of Manasseh’s life, and flung himself headlong into the career of
the king’s earlier idolatries. “He walked in all the ways that his father
walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped
them”--which was the more extraordinary if Manasseh’s last acts had been to
dethrone and destroy these strange gods. He even “multiplied trespass,” so that
in his son’s reign we find every form of abomination as triumphant as though
Manasseh had never attempted to check the tide of evil. We know nothing more of
Amon. Apparently he only reigned two years. He is the only Jewish king who
bears the name of a foreign--an Egyptian--deity. For pictures of the state of
things in this reign we may look to the prophets Zephaniah and Jeremiah, and
they are forced to use the darkest colours. (Dexter Farrar.)
Verses 19-26
Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign.
Amon
The brief reign of Amon is only a sort of unimportant and
miserable annex to that of his father. As he was twenty-two years old when he
began to reign, he must have witnessed the repentance and reforming zeal of his
father, if, in spite of all difficulties, we assume that narrative to be
historical. In that ease, however, the young man was wholly untouched by the
latter phase of Manasseh’s life, and flung himself headlong into the career of
the king’s earlier idolatries. “He walked in all the ways that his father
walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped
them”--which was the more extraordinary if Manasseh’s last acts had been to
dethrone and destroy these strange gods. He even “multiplied trespass,” so that
in his son’s reign we find every form of abomination as triumphant as though
Manasseh had never attempted to check the tide of evil. We know nothing more of
Amon. Apparently he only reigned two years. He is the only Jewish king who
bears the name of a foreign--an Egyptian--deity. For pictures of the state of things
in this reign we may look to the prophets Zephaniah and Jeremiah, and they are
forced to use the darkest colours. (Dexter Farrar.)
──《The Biblical Illustrator》