# An Evil King Who Repented - The Book of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles

An episode of [Kids Bible in a Year with Julia Jeffress Sadler](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1696638708), 3 Jan 2024, 12 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/f8ddd7fd-69c6-48d0-804f-b4d6010c327c/12147929-a69e-458a-acea-b4d601899e38/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=14e8ed60-20b2-4d5c-a832-b4d6010c3283

Join Julia Jeffress Sadler as she takes us on an incredible adventure in Episode 123. Discover the tale of King Manasseh, who initially led Israel into deep wickedness, provoking God's anger. His dramatic capture by Assyrians and subsequent heartfelt repentance lead to a remarkable transformation, restoring true worship in Judah. However, Manasseh's son, King Amon, follows in his father's earlier evil ways, bringing back idol worship, but his reign is cut short by his own servants. Then, young Josiah ascends the throne, steering the nation back to God's ways. Sign up to receive Kids Bible in a Year devotionals in your inbox every weekday: https://www.kidsbibleinayear.com/ Get ready to experience the Bible designed specifically for children with the official KidsBibleinaYear.com podcast, led by Julia Jeffress Sadler. This captivating audio series presents the age-old wisdom of the Bible in an engaging format that will captivate your kids. Each episode Julia translates biblical teachings into real-life applications, making Bible comprehension a breeze for young minds. And if you want more Christian resources and content, you can download the Pray.com app. Pray.com is the digital destination for faith, offering over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime Bible stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible. For more resources on how to live a successful Christian life, visit Julia Jeffress Sadler's website at https://ptv.org/julia/. This episode is sponsored by Little Passports. Visit LittlePassports.com/blessed and use promo code BLESSED to receive 20% off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but
[0:04] Speaker 1: they didn't listen. 2 Chronicles 33 10 Dear God, thank
[0:10] Speaker 1: you for telling us how we can have joyful lives
[0:13] Speaker 1: with you. Teach us to listen to you when you
[0:16] Speaker 1: speak through the Bible and your Holy Spirit. Help us
[0:20] Speaker 1: to learn from King Manasseh's story today, how important it
[0:25] Speaker 1: is to make good choices and to love you with
[0:28] Speaker 1: our whole lives. We love you so much. In Jesus'
[0:32] Speaker 1: name I pray. Amen.
[0:35] Speaker 2: Thank you for praying with us today. The Kids Bible
[0:38] Speaker 2: in a Year podcast is sponsored by Little Passports, delivering
[0:41] Speaker 2: monthly activity kit subscriptions that help kids explore the world,
[0:45] Speaker 2: cultivate curiosity, and discover new interests with hands-on crafts and
[0:50] Speaker 2: activities in cooking, science, crafts, and more, all with a
[0:54] Speaker 2: unique cultural twist. Visit littlepassports.com slash blessed to learn more.
[0:59] Speaker 2: and save 20% with code BLESSED.
[1:08] Speaker 3: An evil king who repented. In our last story, Hezekiah
[1:14] Speaker 3: was very sick, but God gave him 15 more years,
[1:18] Speaker 3: and Hezekiah was prideful and allowed messengers from Babylon to
[1:22] Speaker 3: see everything, which they would later come to take. In
[1:27] Speaker 3: this story, Manasseh takes over as the king, and does
[1:32] Speaker 3: wicked in the eyes of the Lord, but will change later,
[1:36] Speaker 3: as inspired by 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles.
[1:44] Speaker 1: Hi again, it's Joyce Sadler with the Kids Bible in
[1:47] Speaker 1: a Year podcast. I'm so excited you're here with me.
[1:51] Speaker 1: Today we will hear about a king of Judah named Manasseh.
[1:55] Speaker 1: He made a lot of terrible choices, but when he
[1:58] Speaker 1: started suffering consequences, he prayed a surprising prayer. And you
[2:04] Speaker 1: won't believe what God did. Let's dive in.
[2:10] Speaker 3: When Hezekiah passed away, his son Manasseh took over as king.
[2:15] Speaker 3: Hezekiah was a good and honest king that was one
[2:19] Speaker 3: of the greatest kings that descended from King David. But Manasseh,
[2:23] Speaker 3: his son, was one of the most wicked and evil
[2:27] Speaker 3: kings ever to reign over the nation. Manasseh reigned for
[2:31] Speaker 3: 55 years, turning the people of Israel away from God.
[2:36] Speaker 3: He was known for being far more evil than the
[2:39] Speaker 3: kings that lived in the land before the Israelites took over.
[2:44] Speaker 3: All the bad things that his father Hezekiah removed from
[2:48] Speaker 3: the land Manasseh rebuilt. He even put some of the
[2:52] Speaker 3: evil things inside the temple of God. He continued to
[2:56] Speaker 3: lead the nation away from God. He led them to
[3:00] Speaker 3: do witchcraft and other things. He was so evil that
[3:04] Speaker 3: he even sacrificed his sons to the gods of the land.
[3:09] Speaker 3: God tried to reach out to Manasseh so he could
[3:11] Speaker 3: turn back. God sent prophets to tell Manasseh and the
[3:15] Speaker 3: people he was leading astray of the destruction that was
[3:19] Speaker 3: to come. But they wouldn't listen. Finally, God sent an
[3:25] Speaker 3: army from the city of Assyria to come and take
[3:28] Speaker 3: the king from his throne into captivity. The people of
[3:33] Speaker 3: Assyria put a bronze ring on his nose, like a cow.
[3:37] Speaker 3: They pulled him out of the city using chains, and
[3:40] Speaker 3: he was put away in prison in the city of Babylon.
[3:45] Speaker 3: This was the worst place Manasseh had ever been in.
[3:48] Speaker 3: He was scared, and he realized that he was not
[3:51] Speaker 3: going to be able to get out of this prison
[3:54] Speaker 3: until he turned to God. He cried out, God, oh God,
[4:00] Speaker 3: please forgive me. I turned all the people in the
[4:03] Speaker 3: city against you. I led them to do things that
[4:06] Speaker 3: were not good in your sight. I have not followed
[4:09] Speaker 3: you or listened to your warnings, but now I see
[4:13] Speaker 3: who you are. and I know I was wrong. Please
[4:18] Speaker 3: save me from this place I am in. God heard
[4:21] Speaker 3: his prayer. Now that the evil king humbled himself, God
[4:25] Speaker 3: showed grace towards him. Then, soon, God allowed him to
[4:30] Speaker 3: be released from that prison, and he could rule as
[4:34] Speaker 3: king again. When he got back to the city, he
[4:38] Speaker 3: remembered how gracious God was to him even though he
[4:41] Speaker 3: had done bad things. He was grateful for what God
[4:45] Speaker 3: had done, so he cleansed the city. He once again
[4:48] Speaker 3: destroyed the idols and altars that his father had torn
[4:52] Speaker 3: down before him.
[4:53] Speaker 2: He removed all.
[4:54] Speaker 3: The evil things that he had placed in God's temple.
[4:58] Speaker 3: He cleaned up God's altar and used it to worship
[5:01] Speaker 3: God and give thanks for the second chance he was given. Then,
[5:05] Speaker 3: Manasseh made the walls of the city stronger so that
[5:08] Speaker 3: it would be safe from anyone that would attack. Because
[5:12] Speaker 3: of him, the military became stronger than it ever had been.
[5:16] Speaker 3: The rest of his days as king, he followed God.
[5:21] Speaker 3: When he died, his son named Amon took over. Sadly,
[5:25] Speaker 3: Amon was evil like his father once was. In the
[5:29] Speaker 3: two years that he reigned, he did just as his
[5:32] Speaker 3: father did before and built up evil idols and altars.
[5:37] Speaker 3: But this time, the servants did not like the evil
[5:40] Speaker 3: that the king was bringing into the city. So they
[5:44] Speaker 3: got rid of the king. An angry group of people
[5:48] Speaker 3: from the city liked the king, so they hunted down
[5:52] Speaker 3: those servants that got rid of the king. Now that
[5:55] Speaker 3: the king was gone, his son Josiah, who was very young,
[5:59] Speaker 3: was placed as king of the city. The eight-year-old boy
[6:04] Speaker 3: ruled the city for many years and was a great
[6:08] Speaker 3: king that followed the ways of God.
[6:17] Speaker 1: Oh boy, King Manasseh sure learned an important lesson today,
[6:21] Speaker 1: didn't he? He learned that every choice has consequences. Very often,
[6:27] Speaker 1: good choices have good consequences and bad choices have bad consequences.
[6:33] Speaker 1: That's a lesson we've seen many times in the Bible,
[6:37] Speaker 1: isn't it? Yes, that's because it's not just true in
[6:41] Speaker 1: the Bible. It's true for you and me and everyone
[6:45] Speaker 1: we know. Now before we think about King Manasseh and
[6:48] Speaker 1: his choices, what do we know about his dad, King Hezekiah,
[6:53] Speaker 1: and his choices? Hezekiah was a good king who loved
[6:58] Speaker 1: God and helped many other people love God too. And
[7:03] Speaker 1: because he did, God honored him with 15 more years
[7:07] Speaker 1: of life, even after he got very sick. That was
[7:11] Speaker 1: a good consequence of King Hezekiah's good choices. I'll bet
[7:16] Speaker 1: King Manasseh knew his dad loved God. I bet he
[7:21] Speaker 1: even saw his dad worship God many, many times. But
[7:26] Speaker 1: all of us, you, me, and everyone we know make
[7:29] Speaker 1: our own choices in life, and that's good. God gave
[7:33] Speaker 1: us the freedom to make choices because he loves us.
[7:36] Speaker 1: So maybe you get to choose what you want to
[7:39] Speaker 1: eat or what you want to wear, and someday you'll
[7:42] Speaker 1: decide where you want to work and where. Who do
[7:45] Speaker 1: you want to marry? The most important choice you'll ever
[7:48] Speaker 1: make is to love God and accept Him as your Savior.
[7:53] Speaker 1: You see, loving God isn't something you can get from
[7:56] Speaker 1: your mom or dad, like freckles or curly hair. No,
[8:00] Speaker 1: it's a choice that no one can make for you
[8:04] Speaker 1: but you. And King Manasseh learned that lesson the hard way.
[8:08] Speaker 1: Because even though he knew his dad loved God and
[8:12] Speaker 1: made good choices, Manasseh chose to do the opposite. King
[8:17] Speaker 1: Hezekiah destroyed the places where people worshipped fake gods. King
[8:22] Speaker 1: Manasseh said, build them up again. And that was a
[8:26] Speaker 1: bad choice. King Hezekiah invited all the people to worship
[8:31] Speaker 1: the one true Lord. Manasseh said, everyone's going to worship
[8:36] Speaker 1: idols of the sun, moon, and stars like me. And
[8:40] Speaker 1: that was a very bad choice. King Hezekiah cleansed and
[8:44] Speaker 1: reopened the temple, celebrated the Passover, and praised God through
[8:49] Speaker 1: holy sacrifices. Manasseh filled the temple with worthless idols, practiced
[8:54] Speaker 1: evil magic, and killed a lot of innocent people to
[8:58] Speaker 1: worship his fake gods. Those were terrible, horrible, and awful choices.
[9:04] Speaker 1: And every choice has a consequence. You see, God couldn't
[9:08] Speaker 1: allow Manasseh to keep making such bad choices. So he
[9:12] Speaker 1: let Manasseh experience the consequences of his actions. The king
[9:17] Speaker 1: was taken like a slave to Babylon. Have you ever
[9:21] Speaker 1: made a mess by squeezing all the toothpaste out of
[9:24] Speaker 1: the toothpaste tube or hitting a ball in the house?
[9:28] Speaker 1: Those actions have obvious consequences. You might feel sorry for
[9:33] Speaker 1: squeezing all the toothpaste out of the tube, but you
[9:36] Speaker 1: can't scoop it all back inside no matter how hard
[9:39] Speaker 1: you try. No matter how bad you feel, you can't
[9:43] Speaker 1: glue the pieces of a window back together after you
[9:47] Speaker 1: hit a ball through it. That's what it means to
[9:49] Speaker 1: have a consequence. And when Manasseh was miserable and alone
[9:54] Speaker 1: in Babylon, he realized he was experiencing the consequences of
[9:58] Speaker 1: all his bad choices. In his heart, he was very sorry.
[10:03] Speaker 1: He begged God to forgive him. And even though Manasseh
[10:08] Speaker 1: had made terrible, horrible, awful choices, God did forgive him.
[10:14] Speaker 1: Not because Manasseh deserved forgiveness, but because God is so
[10:19] Speaker 1: good and so kind and so loving. That changed everything
[10:25] Speaker 1: for Manasseh. He started making very good choices, like his
[10:30] Speaker 1: father Hezekiah had done. But some of his earlier choices
[10:34] Speaker 1: had already created bad, bad consequences that the people of
[10:38] Speaker 1: Judah would experience for a long, long time. I'm so
[10:41] Speaker 1: happy you joined me today. Come back next time to
[10:44] Speaker 1: hear about Manasseh's grandson, Josiah. and the very important book
[10:49] Speaker 1: he found. Remember, the Bible is the best story ever told.
[10:54] Speaker 1: It's God's story to you, and it's all true. And
[10:59] Speaker 1: if this podcast brought you joy and seems like a
[11:02] Speaker 1: valuable tool for kids and parents alike, please share it
[11:05] Speaker 1: with someone you care about. Thanks for listening to Pray.com's
[11:09] Speaker 1: Kids Bible New Year. For more inspiring stories and wisdom
[11:13] Speaker 1: to last a lifetime, download the Pray.com app for free today.
[11:27] Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to Kids Bible in a Year. I
[11:29] Speaker 1: want to invite our adult listeners to check out my
[11:32] Speaker 1: other show, Unapologetic, God's Truth on Today's Topics. It's unfiltered, important, inspiring,
[11:40] Speaker 1: and we have awesome conversations and amazing guests such as
[11:45] Speaker 1: Candice Cameron Bray, Vice President Mike Pence, Dr. Robert Jeffress,
[11:49] Speaker 1: Shannon Bream, Maddie Pruitt, and so many others. We are
[11:54] Speaker 1: helping you have conversations that empower you to have bold
[11:59] Speaker 1: faith in a broken world. You'll be excited, inspired, and
[12:03] Speaker 1: encouraged in your faith as you check out Unapologetic. Remember
[12:07] Speaker 1: that you can tune in wherever you get your podcasts
[12:10] Speaker 1: and on pray.com.

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