Manasseh was the most evil and godless king to have arisen in Israel or Judah. He took the nation to new depths of spiritual degradation including outright occultism of every kind and even child sacrifice. He killed many godly men during his reign including, tradition tells us, the prophet Isaiah whom he had sawn in two. It is said that the streets of Jerusalem flowed with blood under Manasseh’s reign. Both the writers of Kings and Chronicles record Manasseh’s evil, but there is a significant omission in the book of Kings. The Chronicler records Manasseh’s remarkable turnaround toward the end of his life. The writer of Kings omits this because, to him, the damage was done. The fact that Manasseh himself repented of his evil did not change the effects of his reign. Manasseh may have died a saved man, but he had corrupted his people so deeply that they would soon fall headlong into disaster. God is always ready to forgive us, that is assured. But we should not take the grace of God as an excuse to take sin lightly. Yes, God will receive you back if you fall away from him, but the damage that is done when you are disobeying God will be significant. God will often let these consequences remain so that we take our waywardness seriously. One season away from God can do irreparable damage to you and others. It is something that cannot be risked. Too many Christians tolerate their own seasons of complacency as though it were no matter. It does matter, a lot. You cannot afford a moment without God.
Are you tolerating complacency and waywardness in your life? Submit yourself to God.
Read 2 Kings 21
