10Yahweh spoke to Manasseh, and to his people; but they didn’t listen.11Therefore Yahweh brought on them the captains of the army of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh in chains, bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.
12When he was in distress, he begged Yahweh his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.13He prayed to him; and he was entreated by him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that Yahweh was God.
10 Yahweh spoke to Manasseh, and to his people; but they didn’t listen.
11 Therefore Yahweh brought on them the captains of the army of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh in chains, bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.
12 When he was in distress, he begged Yahweh his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
13 He prayed to him; and he was entreated by him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that Yahweh was God.
KJVKing James Version
10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.
11 Wherefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.
12 And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,
13 And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD he was God.
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JPSJPS Tanakh (1917)
10 And the LORD spoke to Manasseh, and to his people; but they gave no heed.
11 Wherefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hooks, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.
12 And when he was in distress, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
13 And he prayed unto Him; and He was entreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD He was God.
Exodus 10:3(v12)Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, “This is what Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to…
2 Chronicles 32:26(v12)Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that Yahweh’s wrath…
Psalms 50:15(v12)Call on me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”
1 Chronicles 5:20(v13)They were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them; for they cried to God in the…
Deuteronomy 28:36(v11)Yahweh will bring you, and your king whom you will set over yourselves, to a nation that you have not known, you nor your fathers. There…
Show all 61 cross-references
Ezra 8:23(v13)So we fasted and begged our God for this: and he granted our request.
Jeremiah 29:12-13(v13)You shall call on me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You shall seek me, and find me, when you search for me…
Daniel 4:25(v13)that you shall be driven from men, and your dwelling shall be with the animals of the field. You shall be made to eat grass as oxen, and…
Matthew 6:33(v13)But seek first God’s Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 7:7-8(v13)“Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks…
Luke 18:14-15(v12)I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who…
Deuteronomy 4:30-31(v12)When you are in oppression, and all these things have come on you, in the latter days you shall return to Yahweh your God and listen to his…
Jeremiah 24:7(v13)I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh. They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with…
Hosea 5:15(v12)I will go and return to my place, until they acknowledge their offense, and seek my face. In their affliction they will seek me earnestly.”
Acts 9:11(v12)The Lord said to him, “Arise, and go to the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judah for one named Saul, a man of…
James 4:10(v12)Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.
1 Peter 5:5-6(v12)Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another;…
Leviticus 26:39-42(v12)Those of you who are left will pine away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers they shall…
2 Chronicles 28:5(v12)Therefore Yahweh his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria. They struck him, and carried away from him a great multitude of…
2 Chronicles 28:22(v12)In the time of his distress, he trespassed yet more against Yahweh, this same king Ahaz.
2 Chronicles 33:23(v12)He didn’t humble himself before Yahweh, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself; but this same Amon trespassed more and more.
2 Chronicles 36:6(v11)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against him, and bound him in fetters to carry him to Babylon.
Psalms 86:5(v13)For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you.
Proverbs 21:1(v13)The king’s heart is in Yahweh’s hand like the watercourses. He turns it wherever he desires.
Isaiah 55:6-9(v13)Seek Yahweh while he may be found. Call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let…
Jeremiah 31:18-20(v12)“I have surely heard Ephraim grieving thus, ‘You have chastised me, and I was chastised, as an untrained calf. Turn me, and I will be…
Daniel 4:34-35(v13)At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me, and I blessed the Most High,…
Micah 6:9(v12)Yahweh’s voice calls to the city, and wisdom sees your name: “Listen to the rod, and he who appointed it.
Luke 15:16-18(v12)He wanted to fill his belly with the husks that the pigs ate, but no one gave him any. But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many hired…
Deuteronomy 29:6(v13)You have not eaten bread, neither have you drunk wine or strong drink, that you may know that I am Yahweh your God.
1 Samuel 13:6(v11)When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were distressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, in…
2 Kings 23:33(v11)Pharaoh Necoh put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of one…
2 Kings 25:6(v11)Then they captured the king, and carried him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they passed judgment on him.
2 Chronicles 33:18-19(v12)Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and his prayer to his God, and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of Yahweh, the God…
2 Chronicles 36:15-16(v10)Yahweh, the God of their fathers, sent to them by his messengers, rising up early and sending, because he had compassion on his people, and…
Ezra 7:27(v13)Blessed be Yahweh, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify Yahweh’s house which is in…
Nehemiah 9:29-30(v10)and testified against them, that you might bring them again to your law. Yet they were arrogant, and didn’t listen to your commandments,…
Nehemiah 9:32(v11)Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and loving kindness, don’t let all the travail seem…
Nehemiah 9:37(v11)It yields much increase to the kings whom you have set over us because of our sins. Also they have power over our bodies and over our…
Job 22:23(v13)If you return to the Almighty, you will be built up, if you put away unrighteousness far from your tents.
Job 22:27(v13)You will make your prayer to him, and he will hear you. You will pay your vows.
Job 33:16-30(v13)Then he opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction, that he may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man. He keeps…
Job 36:8-11(v11)If they are bound in fetters, and are taken in the cords of afflictions, then he shows them their work, and their transgressions, that they…
Psalms 9:16(v13)Yahweh has made himself known. He has executed judgment. The wicked is snared by the work of his own hands.
Psalms 32:3-5(v13)When I kept silence, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me. My strength was…
Psalms 46:10(v13)“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalms 107:10-14(v11)Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron, because they rebelled against the words of God, and…
Proverbs 16:7(v13)When a man’s ways please Yahweh, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
Isaiah 5:26-30(v11)He will lift up a banner to the nations from far away, and he will whistle for them from the end of the earth. Behold, they will come…
Isaiah 7:18-20(v11)It will happen in that day that Yahweh will whistle for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that…
Isaiah 10:8(v11)For he says, “Aren’t all of my princes kings?
Isaiah 36:9(v11)How then can you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and for…
Jeremiah 25:4-7(v10)Yahweh has sent to you all his servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them (but you have not listened or inclined your ear to…
Jeremiah 44:4-5(v10)However I sent to you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, “Oh, don’t do this abominable thing that I…
Lamentations 3:7(v11)He has walled me about, so that I can’t go out. He has made my chain heavy.
Zechariah 1:4(v10)Don’t you be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying: Yahweh of Armies says, ‘Return now from your evil ways, and…
Luke 23:42-43(v13)He said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” Jesus said to him, “Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me…
John 4:10(v13)Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would…
John 17:3(v13)This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
Acts 7:51-52(v10)“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit! As your fathers did, so you do. Which of the…
Hebrews 8:11(v13)They will not teach every man his fellow citizen, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all will know me, from their…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (19 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn vv10, 13Meaning by his Prophets, but their hearts were not…
Meaning by his Prophets, but their hearts were not touched to believe and repent, without the which the preaching of the word taketh no place.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv10–132Ch 33:10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and…
2Ch 33:10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.
Ver. 10. And the Lord spake to Manasseh,] sc., By his prophets, Isaiah, Joel, Micah, Habakkuk, and others; sed surdo fabulam; they lost their sweet words.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv11, 13Among the thorns; in some thicket where he thought…
Among the thorns; in some thicket where he thought to hide himself from the Assyrians till he could make an escape, as the Israelites formerly used to do, 1Sa 13:6. Or, with hooks; a metaphorical expression. Or, in his forts, i.e. in one of them.
Carried him to Babylon; either therefore Esar-haddon, Sennacherib’s successor, had recovered Babylon from Merodach-baladan; or rather, the king of Babylon is here called
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the king of Assyria, because at this time he had added Assyria to his empire; who having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah’s treasures at Jerusalem, which he was desirous to enjoy; and withal, being assured of Manasseh’s degeneracy from the piety and virtue of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh’s kingdom; which he did with success.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry1710 · Public DomainOn v11We have seen Manasseh by his wickedness undoing the…
We have seen Manasseh by his wickedness undoing the good that his father had done; here we have him by repentance undoing the evil that he himself had done. It is strange that this was not so much as mentioned in the book of Kings, nor does any thing appear there to the contrary but that he persisted and perished in his son. But perhaps the reason was because the design of that history was to show the wickedness of the nation which brought destruction upon them; and this repentance of Manasseh and the benefit of it, being personal only and not national, is overlooked there; yet here it is fully related, and a memorable instance it is of the riches of God's pardoning mercy and the power of his renewing grace. Here is,
I. The occasion of Manasseh's repentance, and that was his affliction. In his distress he did not (like king Ahaz) trespass yet more against God, but humbled himself and returned to God. Sanctified afflictions often prove happy means of conversion. What his distress was we are told, Ch2 33:11. God brought a foreign enemy upon him; the king of Babylon, that courted his father who faithfully served God, invaded him now that he had treacherously departed from God. He is here called king of Assyria, because he had made himself master of Assyria, which he would the more easily do for the defeat of Sennacherib's army, and its destruction before Jerusalem. He aimed at the treasures which the ambassadors had seen, and all those precious things; but God sent him to chastise a sinful people, and subdue a straying prince. The captain took Manasseh among the thorns, in some bush or other, perhaps in his garden, where he had hid himself. Or it is spoken figuratively: he was perplexed in his counsels and embarrassed in his affairs. He was, as we say, in the briers, and knew not which way to extricate himself, and so became an easy prey to the Assyrian captains, who no doubt plundered his house and took away what they pleased, as Isaiah had foretold, Kg2 20:17, Kg2 20:18. What was Hezekiah's pride was their prey. They bound Manasseh, who had been held before with the cords of his own iniquity, and carried him prisoner to Babylon. About what time of his reign this was we are not told; the Jews say it was in his twenty-second year.
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II. The expressions of his repentance (Ch2 33:12, Ch2 33:13): When he was in affliction he had time to bethink himself and reason enough too. He saw what he had brought himself to by his sin. He found the gods he had served unable to help him. He knew that repentance was the only way of restoring his affairs; and therefore to him he returned from whom he had revolted. 1. He was convinced the Jehovah is the only living and true God: Then he knew (that is, he believed and considered) that the Lord he was God. He might have known it at a less expense if he would have given due attention and credit to the word written and preached: but it was better to pay thus dearly for the knowledge of God than to perish in ignorance and unbelief. Had he been a prince in the palace of Babylon, it is probable he would have been confirmed in his idolatry; but, being a captive in the prisons of Babylon, he was convinced of it and reclaimed from it. 2. He applied to him as his God now, renouncing all others, and resolving to cleave to him only, the God of his fathers, and a God on covenant with him. 3. He humbled himself greatly before him, was truly sorry for his sins, ashamed of them, and afraid of the wrath of God. It becomes sinners to humble themselves before the face of that God whom they have offended. It becomes sufferers to humble themselves under the hand of that God who corrects them, and to accept the punishment of their iniquity. Our hearts should be humbled under humbling providences; then we accommodate ourselves to them, and answer God's end in them. 4. He prayed to him for the pardon of sin and the return of his favour. Prayer is the relief of penitents, the relief of the afflicted. That is a good prayer, and very pertinent in this case, which we find among the apocryphal books, entitled, The prayer of Manasses, king of Judah, when he was holden captive in Babylon. Whether it was his or no is uncertain; if it was, in it he gives glory to God as the God of their fathers and their righteous seed, as the Creator of the world, a God whose anger is insupportable, and yet his merciful promise unmeasurable. He pleads that God has promised repentance and forgiveness to those that have sinned, and has appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be saved, not unto the just, as to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but to me (says he) that am a sinner; for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea: so he confesses his sin largely, and aggravates it. He prays, Forgive me, O Lord! forgive me, and destroy me not; he pleads, Thou art the God of those that repent, etc., and concludes, Therefore I will praise thee for ever, etc.
III. God's gracious acceptance of his repentance: God was entreated of him, and heard his supplication. Though affliction drive us to God, he will not therefore reject us if in sincerity we seek him, for afflictions are sent on purpose to bring us to him. As a token of God's favour to him, he made a way for his escape. Afflictions are continued no longer than till they have done their work. When Manasseh is brought back to his God and to his duty he shall soon be brought back to his kingdom. See how ready God is to accept and welcome returning sinners, and how swift to show mercy. Let not great sinners despair, when Manasseh himself, upon his repentance, found favour with God; in him God showed forth a pattern of long-suffering, as Ti1 1:16; Isa 1:18.
IV. The fruits meet for repentance which he brought forth after his return to his own land, Ch2 33:15, Ch2 33:16. 1. He turned from his sins. He took away the strange gods, the images of them, and that idol (whatever it was) which he had set up with so much solemnity in the house of the Lord, as if it had been master of that house. He cast out all the idolatrous altars that were in the mount of the house and in Jerusalem, as detestable things. Now (we hope) he loathed them as much as ever he had loved them, and said to them, Get you hence, Isa 30:22. "What have I to do any more with idols? I have had enough of them." 2. He returned to his duty; for he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had either been abused and broken down by some of the idolatrous priests, or, at least, neglected and gone out of repair. He sacrificed thereon peace-offerings to implore God's favour, and thank-offerings to praise him for his deliverance. Nay, he now used his power to reform his people, as before he had abused it to corrupt them: He commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel. Note, Those that truly repent of their sins will not only return to God themselves, but will do all they can to recover those that have by their example been seduced and drawn away from God; else they do not thoroughly (as they ought) undo what they have done amiss, nor make the plaster as wide as the wound. We find that he prevailed to bring them off from their false gods, but not from their high places, Ch2 33:17. They still sacrificed in them, yet to the Lord their God only; Manasseh could not carry the reformation so far as he had carried the corruption. It is an easy thing to debauch men's manners, but not so easy to reform them again.
V. His prosperity, in some measure, after his repentance. He might plainly see it was sin that ruined him; for, when he returned to God in a way of duty, God returned to him in a way of mercy: and then he built a wall about the city of David (Ch2 33:14), for by sin he had unwalled it and exposed it to the enemy. He also put captains of war in the fenced cities for the security of his country. Josephus says that all the rest of his time he was so changed for the better that he was looked upon as a very happy man.
Lastly, Here is the conclusion of his history. The heads of those things for a full narrative of which we are referred to the other writings that were then extant are more than of any of the kings, Ch2 33:18, Ch2 33:19. A particular account, it seems, was kept, 1. Of all his sin, and his trespass, the high places he built, the groves and images he set up, before he was humbled. Probably this was taken from his own confession which he made of his sin when God gave him repentance, and which he left upon record, in a book entitled, The words of the seers. To those seers that spoke to him (Ch2 33:18) to reprove him for his sin he sent his confession when he repented, to be inserted in their memoirs, as a token of his gratitude to them for their kindness in reproving him. Thus it becomes penitents to take shame to themselves, to give thanks to their reprovers, and warning to others. 2. Of the words of the seers that spoke to him in the name of the Lord (Ch2 33:10, Ch2 33:18), the reproofs they gave him for his sin and their exhortations to repentance. Note, Sinners ought to consider, that, how little notice soever they take of them, an account is kept of the words of the seers that speak to them from God to admonish them of their sins, warn them of their danger, and call them to their duty, which will be produced against them in the great day. 3. Of his prayer to God (this is twice mentioned as a remarkable thing) and how God was entreated of him. This was written for the generations to come, that the people that should be created might praise the Lord for his readiness to receive returning prodigals. Notice is taken of the place of his burial, not in the sepulchres of the kings, but in his own house; he was buried privately, and nothing of that honour was done him at his death that was done to his father. Penitents may recover their comfort sooner than their credit.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv10–13Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of…
Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria,.... Who was Esarhaddon, the son and successor of Sennacherib; this, according to the Jewish chronology (f), was in the twenty second year of Manasseh's reign:
which took Manasseh among the thorns; in a thicket of briers and thorns, where, upon his defeat, he had hid himself; a fit emblem of the afflictions and troubles his sins brought him into:
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and bound him with fetters; hands and feet; with chains of brass, as the Targum, such as Zedekiah was bound with, Kg2 25:7, not chains of gold, with which Mark Antony bound a king of Armenia, for the sake of honour (g):
and carried him to Babylon; for now the king of Assyria was become master of that city, and added it to his monarchy, and made it the seat of his residence; at least some times that and sometimes Nineveh, Merodachbaladan being dead, or conquered; though, according to Suidas (h), it was he that took Manasseh; and by an Arabic writer (i), he is said to be carried to Nineveh.
(f) Seder Olam Rabba, c. 24. p. 67. (g) Vell. Patercul. Hist. Roman. l. 2. (h) In voce (i) Abulpharag. Hist. Dynast. Dyn. 3. p. 67. So Suidas, ib.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn vv11–12To Babylon - The king of Babylon is here…
To Babylon - The king of Babylon is here called the king of Assyria, because he had added Assyria to his empire, who having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah's treasures at Jerusalem, and being assured of Manasseh's degeneracy from the piety of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh's kingdom. The Jews say, in the twenty second year of his reign.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv12–13Verse 12. And when he was in affliction] Here…
Verse 12. And when he was in affliction] Here is a very large addition in the Chaldee: "For the Chaldeans made a brazen mule, pierced full of small holes, and put him within it, and kindled fires all around it; and when he was in this misery, he sought help of all the idols which he had made, but obtained none, for their were of no use. He therefore repented, and prayed before the Lord his God, and was greatly humbled in the sight of the Lord God of his fathers."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn vv11–132Ch 33:11. The Lord brought upon them the captains…
2Ch 33:11. The Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria — Some suppose that Esar-haddon, the successor of Sennacherib, king of Assyria, is here meant, and that, in consequence of the royal family failing in Babylon, he found means to bring that kingdom under his yoke again; or that, by force of arms, or some other means, he recovered it from Merodach-Baladan. They say that he held it thirteen years, and that it was during this time that Manasseh was taken and carried captive to Babylon. Others think it more probable that the king of Babylon is here called the king of Assyria, because he had added Assyria to his empire, and that having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah’s treasures at Jerusalem, and being assured of Manasseh’s degeneracy from the piety of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh’s kingdom, which the Jews say he did, in the twenty- second year of his reign. Which took Manasseh among the thorns — In some thicket where he thought to have hid himself from the Assyrians till he could make an escape: or, as the Hebrew בחוחים, bachochim, may be rendered, with hooks, metaphorically speaking; or, in his forts, that is, in one of them.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn v11The Assyrian monuments contain no record of this expedition;…
The Assyrian monuments contain no record of this expedition; but there can be little doubt that it fell into the reign of Esarhaddon (2Ki 19:37 note), who reigned at least thirteen years. Esarhaddon mentions Manasseh among his tributaries; and he was the only king of Assyria who, from time to time, held his court at Babylon.
Among the thorns - Translate - “ with rings;” and see 2Ki 19:28 note.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary1859 · Public DomainOn vv10–12Spoke, by his prophets, 4 K.
Spoke, by his prophets, 4 K.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown1871 · Public DomainOn vv11–12HE IS CARRIED UNTO BABYLON, WHERE HE HUMBLES HIMSELF…
HE IS CARRIED UNTO BABYLON, WHERE HE HUMBLES HIMSELF BEFORE GOD, AND IS RESTORED TO HIS KINGDOM. (Ch2 33:11-19)
the captains of the host of the king of Assyria--This king was Esar-haddon. After having devoted the first years of his reign to the consolidation of his government at home, he turned his attention to repair the loss of the tributary provinces west of the Euphrates, which, on the disaster and death of Sennacherib, had taken the opportunity of shaking off the Assyrian yoke. Having overrun Palestine and removed the remnant that were left in the kingdom of Israel, he despatched his generals, the chief of whom was Tartan (Isa 20:1), with a portion of his army for the reduction of Judah also. In a successful attack upon Jerusalem, they took multitudes of captives, and got a great prize, including the king himself, among the prisoners.
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took Manasseh among the thorns--This may mean, as is commonly supposed, that he had hid himself among a thicket of briers and brambles. We know that the Hebrews sometimes took refuge from their enemies in thickets (Sa1 13:6). But, instead of the Hebrew, Bacochim, "among the thorns", some versions read Bechayim, "among the living", and so the passage would be "took him alive."
bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon--The Hebrew word rendered "fetters" denotes properly two chains of brass. The humiliating state in which Manasseh appeared before the Assyrian monarch may be judged of by a picture on a tablet in the Khorsabad palace, representing prisoners led bound into the king's presence. "The captives represented appear to be inhabitants of Palestine. Behind the prisoners stand four persons with inscriptions on the lower part of their tunics; the first two are bearded, and seem to be accusers; the remaining two are nearly defaced; but behind the last appears the eunuch, whose office it seems to be to usher into the presence of the king those who are permitted to appear before him. He is followed by another person of the same race as those under punishment; his hands are manacled, and on his ankles are strong rings fastened together by a heavy bar" [Nineveh and Its Palaces]. No name is given, and, therefore, no conclusion can be drawn that the figure represents Manasseh. But the people appear to be Hebrews, and this pictorial scene will enable us to imagine the manner in which the royal captive from Judah was received in the court of Babylon. Esar-haddon had established his residence there; for though from the many revolts that followed the death of his father, he succeeded at first only to the throne of Assyria, yet having some time previous to his conquest of Judah, recovered possession of Babylon, this enterprising king had united under his sway the two empires of Babylon and Chaldea and transferred the seat of his government to Babylon.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn vv11, 1311. The captains of the host of the king…
11. The captains of the host of the king of Assyria — This king of Assyria was Esar-haddon, the son and successor of Sennacherib. This we learn from the statement that they carried him to Babylon, for Esar-haddon was the only Assyrian monarch, so far as we can find, who had a palace and held his court at Babylon. Also, in an inscription now in the British Museum, Esar-haddon says: “I transported into Assyria men and women innumerable. I counted among the vassals of my realm twelve kings of Syria, beyond the mountains, Balou, king of Tyre, Minasi, king of Judah,” etc. The king himself seems not to have been present in person at the capture of Manasseh, but left it to the management of the captains of his host.
Took Manasseh among the thorns — Rather, took him with hooks; an ignominious and humiliating mode of dealing with a distinguished and offensive captive, which prevailed among the Assyrians. See 2Ki_19:28, note.
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Bound him with fetters — Hebrew, with double brass. See note on Jdg_16:21. It was this bitter treatment that speedily led the captive king to humble himself before God, and repent of his sins.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv10–1210. the Lord spake] i.e. by prophets; cp. 2Ki_21:10-15.
10. the Lord spake] i.e. by prophets; cp. 2Ki_21:10-15.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv10–13(10) And the Lord spake to Manasseh.—“By the hand…
(10) And the Lord spake to Manasseh.—“By the hand of his servants the prophets.” See
2Ki_21:10-15, where the substance of the prophetic message is given; and it is added (2Ch_33:16) that Manasseh also shed very much innocent blood, “till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to the other.” The reaction against the reforms of Hezekiah ended in a bloody struggle, in which the party of reform was fiercely suppressed.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv10, 11, 13(See parallel, vers. 11-15.)
(See parallel, vers. 11-15.)
Vers. 10-17.
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The penitent.
In these words we have
I THE LAST AND WORST SYMPTOM OF DEPARTURE FROM GOD OBDURACY. "The Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken" (ver. 10). Sin reaches its extremity when it deliberately and determinately closes its ear against the recognized voice of God. A defiant refusal to listen when God is speaking to us is surely the ne plus ultra of iniquity; guilt can go no further. (see Pro_2:2-4)
II THE DESCENT OF THE DIVINE PENALTY. When other means of instruction and of influence have been tried and failed, God visits in severe discipline. To Manasseh this came in defeat, humiliation (he was bound in fetters), and captivity; he had to leave the city of David and the land of his fathers, and become a show in the distant land of the enemy. To us the Divine discipline comes in various ways, of which the most common are bodily affliction, the vision of death, substantial loss, the estrangement of those who had been near and dear to us, some form of bitter humiliation, bereavement and consequent loneliness.
III THE RISE OF TRUE PENITENCE IN THE HUMAN HEART. At length Manasseh had his eyes opened, and he saw his folly and his sin; at length he learnt that he had not only forsaken the good way of his father Hezekiah, but had grievously and guiltily departed from the living God. We can never tell what will humble the heart of a man; one is affected and subdued by one affliction, another by another. But at length the blow falls, and the edge of the sword enters in, and the heart bleeds, and it is wounded not unto death, but unto life.
1. Then comes recognition of the truth. Then God is recognized his nearness, his claims, his displeasure, his fatherly purpose. Then guilt also is discerned its greatness, its heinousness.
2. Then comes acknowledgment and appeal. The heart humbles itself before God, even as Manasseh now "humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers" (ver. 12); and the soul prays for mercy, asks that its guilt may be forgiven, and itself restored.
3. And then comes self-surrender; for if there be not a willingness, a readiness to yield ourselves unto God, an exhibition of penitence is only an affectation; it is unreal and untrue. If it is genuine, it must be accompanied by a pure desire and a firm resolve to return unto him whom we have guiltily forsaken.
IV THE BESTOWAL OF DIVINE MERCY. Manasseh soon found how immeasurable had been his mistake in his great apostasy. For the God of his fathers proved to be a God full of compassion and of great mercy, and he heard the humbled suppliant and restored him, and brought him back to his kingdom. So God now hears and pardons and restores; he forgives us our sin, and he takes us back to his Divine favour, and he restores to us our peace, our hope, our joy, our life in him and with him. For there is one invariable and inseparable sequence, viz.
V NEWNESS OF LIFE ON THE PART OF THE FORGIVEN. Manasseh goes back to Jerusalem, takes away the strange gods and the altars he had built, and casts them out of the city; and he repairs the altar of the Lord, and re-establishes the worship of Jehovah (vers. 15, 16). We return unto God, and at the same time to all purity, to all temperance, to all uprightness, to all reverence both in spirit and in action, to all piety of thought and of behaviour. This is precious indeed, beyond all price, this restoration to God and to our true self; yet is there
VI ONE SERIOUS DRAWBACK. Manasseh could not altogether undo what he had done. Nevertheless the people did sacrifice," etc. (ver. 17). He could not, by one enactment or by a number of them, bring back the situation he had so completely broken up. It takes a long time to restore a people to the habits they have forsaken. Nor could Manasseh recall to life the brave and faithful men whom he had "done to death" with his cruelties. (2Ki_21:16) There are some things which the most genuine repentance will not effect. It will not recall the wasted years; nor undo the malign and death-bearing influences which have been at work in human hearts and lives; nor compensate the wronged for the injuries they have suffered in body or in spirit. Therefore let all remember that, while repentance and restoration are blessed, a life of holy service from the beginning is far more blessed still. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn vv10, 12And bound him with fetters.
2Ch_33:10-11
And bound him with fetters.
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Divine discipline
The proper way for a sinner to be brought to God is for God to speak to him, and for him to hear. Manasseh would not come that way, so God fetched him back by a rougher road.
I. The Lord often allows temporal trials to take men captive.
1. Business disasters.
2. Want of employment.
3. Extraordinary troubles.
4. Bodily affliction.
5. The loss of dear friends.
II. The lord sometimes allows men to be bound by mental trials; bound with fetters. Such as--
1. When sin ceases to afford pleasure. The very things that once made him all aglow with delight do not affect him now, nor cast a single ray of light on his path.
2. The daily avocation becomes distasteful.
3. There is great inability in prayer.
4. Your old sins come out of their hiding-places.
5. A great want of power to grasp the promises.
6. A fear of death and dread of judgment.
Conclusion: In order to your comfort and peace--
1. Know that the Lord is God.
2. Humble yourself before Him.
3. Begin to pray.
4. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann1924 · Public DomainOn v11Manasseh’s Punishment and Repentance
Manasseh’s Punishment and Repentance
v. 11. Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, according to Assyrian monuments, King Assurbanipal (or Esar-haddon), which took Manasseh among the thorns, that is, in fetters, and bound him with fetters, with double brass chains, and carried him to Babylon, which at that time was under the jurisdiction of the king of Assyria, the capital of one of the tributary countries.
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v. 12. And when he was in affliction, in this shameful captivity, he besought the Lord, his God, in true sorrow over his apostasy, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,
v. 13. and prayed unto Him, confessing his great sins and asking for mercy; and He was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. In restoring Manasseh to his kingdom, as a tributary monarch, the Assyrian king undoubtedly was influenced by political motives, principally that of making Judah a buffer state against Egypt, Assyria’s rival for supremacy. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord, He was God; he acknowledged Him as his Lord and Ruler, and followed His word.
v. 14. Now, after this he built a wall without the City of David, probably the one on which Hezekiah had done some work, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even to the entering in of the Fish Gate, this outer wall thus running from the northeast corner of Zion in a northerly direction and then crossing over the valley to make a junction with the main wall near the upper fort, in the place where the Temple might be most easily attacked, and compassed about Ophel, on the southern slope of the Temple mount, and raised it up a very great height, and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah, veteran commanders.
v. 15. And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem, v. 4-5:7, and cast them out of the city, he removed the worst abominations, though by no means all.
v. 16. And he repaired the altar of the Lord, the altar of burnt offerings, and sacrificed thereon peace-offerings and thank offerings, in order to renew the covenant relation, and commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel.
v. 17. Nevertheless, the people did sacrifice still in the high places, the sanctuaries on the hills, yet unto the Lord, their God, only. This act did not always imply idolatry, but often led to the practice of it.
v. 18. Now, the rest of the acts of Manasseh and his prayer unto his God, made at the time of his conversion while in captivity, and the words of the seers that spake to him in the name of the Lord God of Israel, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel, from which the inspired writer culled the information here offered.
v. 19. His prayer also, and how God was intreated of him, and all his sins, and his trespass, and the places wherein he built high places, and set up groves, Asherah-pillars, and graven images, before he was humbled, behold, they are written among the sayings of the seers, in the history of Hosai. In the latter part of his reign, Manasseh is an example of a person who turns to the Lord in true repentance and is accepted by the Lord. At the same time, his history contains a warning not to deny the faith and risk eternal rejection, for we do not know when God’s period of grace will be at an end.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv10, 12brought on them
brought on them
Yahweh sent the army to attack Jerusalem. AT: "brought about an attack on them by" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria
The commanders were accompanied by their soldiers. AT: "the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria and their soldiers" (See: Synecdoche)
took Manasseh in chains, bound him with fetters, and took him off to Babylon
Here Manasseh being taken as a prisoner is represented by him being bound by chains and fetters. Fetters were chains placed around the feet. AT: "seized Manasseh, bound him in chains, and took him as a prisoner to Babylon" (See: Metonymy)
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv10, 13 Meaning by his Prophets, but their hearts were not…
Meaning by his Prophets, but their hearts were not touched to believe and repent, without the which the preaching of the word taketh no place.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv10–13 2Ch 33:10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and…
2Ch 33:10 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken.
Ver. 10. And the Lord spake to Manasseh,] sc., By his prophets, Isaiah, Joel, Micah, Habakkuk, and others; sed surdo fabulam; they lost their sweet words.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv11, 13 Among the thorns; in some thicket where he thought…
Among the thorns; in some thicket where he thought to hide himself from the Assyrians till he could make an escape, as the Israelites formerly used to do, 1Sa 13:6. Or, with hooks; a metaphorical expression. Or, in his forts, i.e. in one of them.
Carried him to Babylon; either therefore Esar-haddon, Sennacherib’s successor, had recovered Babylon from Merodach-baladan; or rather, the king of Babylon is here called
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the king of Assyria, because at this time he had added Assyria to his empire; who having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah’s treasures at Jerusalem, which he was desirous to enjoy; and withal, being assured of Manasseh’s degeneracy from the piety and virtue of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh’s kingdom; which he did with success.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v11 We have seen Manasseh by his wickedness undoing the…
We have seen Manasseh by his wickedness undoing the good that his father had done; here we have him by repentance undoing the evil that he himself had done. It is strange that this was not so much as mentioned in the book of Kings, nor does any thing appear there to the contrary but that he persisted and perished in his son. But perhaps the reason was because the design of that history was to show the wickedness of the nation which brought destruction upon them; and this repentance of Manasseh and the benefit of it, being personal only and not national, is overlooked there; yet here it is fully related, and a memorable instance it is of the riches of God's pardoning mercy and the power of his renewing grace. Here is,
I. The occasion of Manasseh's repentance, and that was his affliction. In his distress he did not (like king Ahaz) trespass yet more against God, but humbled himself and returned to God. Sanctified afflictions often prove happy means of conversion. What his distress was we are told, Ch2 33:11. God brought a foreign enemy upon him; the king of Babylon, that courted his father who faithfully served God, invaded him now that he had treacherously departed from God. He is here called king of Assyria, because he had made himself master of Assyria, which he would the more easily do for the defeat of Sennacherib's army, and its destruction before Jerusalem. He aimed at the treasures which the ambassadors had seen, and all those precious things; but God sent him to chastise a sinful people, and subdue a straying prince. The captain took Manasseh among the thorns, in some bush or other, perhaps in his garden, where he had hid himself. Or it is spoken figuratively: he was perplexed in his counsels and embarrassed in his affairs. He was, as we say, in the briers, and knew not which way to extricate himself, and so became an easy prey to the Assyrian captains, who no doubt plundered his house and took away what they pleased, as Isaiah had foretold, Kg2 20:17, Kg2 20:18. What was Hezekiah's pride was their prey. They bound Manasseh, who had been held before with the cords of his own iniquity, and carried him prisoner to Babylon. About what time of his reign this was we are not told; the Jews say it was in his twenty-second year.
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II. The expressions of his repentance (Ch2 33:12, Ch2 33:13): When he was in affliction he had time to bethink himself and reason enough too. He saw what he had brought himself to by his sin. He found the gods he had served unable to help him. He knew that repentance was the only way of restoring his affairs; and therefore to him he returned from whom he had revolted. 1. He was convinced the Jehovah is the only living and true God: Then he knew (that is, he believed and considered) that the Lord he was God. He might have known it at a less expense if he would have given due attention and credit to the word written and preached: but it was better to pay thus dearly for the knowledge of God than to perish in ignorance and unbelief. Had he been a prince in the palace of Babylon, it is probable he would have been confirmed in his idolatry; but, being a captive in the prisons of Babylon, he was convinced of it and reclaimed from it. 2. He applied to him as his God now, renouncing all others, and resolving to cleave to him only, the God of his fathers, and a God on covenant with him. 3. He humbled himself greatly before him, was truly sorry for his sins, ashamed of them, and afraid of the wrath of God. It becomes sinners to humble themselves before the face of that God whom they have offended. It becomes sufferers to humble themselves under the hand of that God who corrects them, and to accept the punishment of their iniquity. Our hearts should be humbled under humbling providences; then we accommodate ourselves to them, and answer God's end in them. 4. He prayed to him for the pardon of sin and the return of his favour. Prayer is the relief of penitents, the relief of the afflicted. That is a good prayer, and very pertinent in this case, which we find among the apocryphal books, entitled, The prayer of Manasses, king of Judah, when he was holden captive in Babylon. Whether it was his or no is uncertain; if it was, in it he gives glory to God as the God of their fathers and their righteous seed, as the Creator of the world, a God whose anger is insupportable, and yet his merciful promise unmeasurable. He pleads that God has promised repentance and forgiveness to those that have sinned, and has appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be saved, not unto the just, as to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but to me (says he) that am a sinner; for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea: so he confesses his sin largely, and aggravates it. He prays, Forgive me, O Lord! forgive me, and destroy me not; he pleads, Thou art the God of those that repent, etc., and concludes, Therefore I will praise thee for ever, etc.
III. God's gracious acceptance of his repentance: God was entreated of him, and heard his supplication. Though affliction drive us to God, he will not therefore reject us if in sincerity we seek him, for afflictions are sent on purpose to bring us to him. As a token of God's favour to him, he made a way for his escape. Afflictions are continued no longer than till they have done their work. When Manasseh is brought back to his God and to his duty he shall soon be brought back to his kingdom. See how ready God is to accept and welcome returning sinners, and how swift to show mercy. Let not great sinners despair, when Manasseh himself, upon his repentance, found favour with God; in him God showed forth a pattern of long-suffering, as Ti1 1:16; Isa 1:18.
IV. The fruits meet for repentance which he brought forth after his return to his own land, Ch2 33:15, Ch2 33:16. 1. He turned from his sins. He took away the strange gods, the images of them, and that idol (whatever it was) which he had set up with so much solemnity in the house of the Lord, as if it had been master of that house. He cast out all the idolatrous altars that were in the mount of the house and in Jerusalem, as detestable things. Now (we hope) he loathed them as much as ever he had loved them, and said to them, Get you hence, Isa 30:22. "What have I to do any more with idols? I have had enough of them." 2. He returned to his duty; for he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had either been abused and broken down by some of the idolatrous priests, or, at least, neglected and gone out of repair. He sacrificed thereon peace-offerings to implore God's favour, and thank-offerings to praise him for his deliverance. Nay, he now used his power to reform his people, as before he had abused it to corrupt them: He commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel. Note, Those that truly repent of their sins will not only return to God themselves, but will do all they can to recover those that have by their example been seduced and drawn away from God; else they do not thoroughly (as they ought) undo what they have done amiss, nor make the plaster as wide as the wound. We find that he prevailed to bring them off from their false gods, but not from their high places, Ch2 33:17. They still sacrificed in them, yet to the Lord their God only; Manasseh could not carry the reformation so far as he had carried the corruption. It is an easy thing to debauch men's manners, but not so easy to reform them again.
V. His prosperity, in some measure, after his repentance. He might plainly see it was sin that ruined him; for, when he returned to God in a way of duty, God returned to him in a way of mercy: and then he built a wall about the city of David (Ch2 33:14), for by sin he had unwalled it and exposed it to the enemy. He also put captains of war in the fenced cities for the security of his country. Josephus says that all the rest of his time he was so changed for the better that he was looked upon as a very happy man.
Lastly, Here is the conclusion of his history. The heads of those things for a full narrative of which we are referred to the other writings that were then extant are more than of any of the kings, Ch2 33:18, Ch2 33:19. A particular account, it seems, was kept, 1. Of all his sin, and his trespass, the high places he built, the groves and images he set up, before he was humbled. Probably this was taken from his own confession which he made of his sin when God gave him repentance, and which he left upon record, in a book entitled, The words of the seers. To those seers that spoke to him (Ch2 33:18) to reprove him for his sin he sent his confession when he repented, to be inserted in their memoirs, as a token of his gratitude to them for their kindness in reproving him. Thus it becomes penitents to take shame to themselves, to give thanks to their reprovers, and warning to others. 2. Of the words of the seers that spoke to him in the name of the Lord (Ch2 33:10, Ch2 33:18), the reproofs they gave him for his sin and their exhortations to repentance. Note, Sinners ought to consider, that, how little notice soever they take of them, an account is kept of the words of the seers that speak to them from God to admonish them of their sins, warn them of their danger, and call them to their duty, which will be produced against them in the great day. 3. Of his prayer to God (this is twice mentioned as a remarkable thing) and how God was entreated of him. This was written for the generations to come, that the people that should be created might praise the Lord for his readiness to receive returning prodigals. Notice is taken of the place of his burial, not in the sepulchres of the kings, but in his own house; he was buried privately, and nothing of that honour was done him at his death that was done to his father. Penitents may recover their comfort sooner than their credit.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv10–13 Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of…
Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria,.... Who was Esarhaddon, the son and successor of Sennacherib; this, according to the Jewish chronology (f), was in the twenty second year of Manasseh's reign:
which took Manasseh among the thorns; in a thicket of briers and thorns, where, upon his defeat, he had hid himself; a fit emblem of the afflictions and troubles his sins brought him into:
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and bound him with fetters; hands and feet; with chains of brass, as the Targum, such as Zedekiah was bound with, Kg2 25:7, not chains of gold, with which Mark Antony bound a king of Armenia, for the sake of honour (g):
and carried him to Babylon; for now the king of Assyria was become master of that city, and added it to his monarchy, and made it the seat of his residence; at least some times that and sometimes Nineveh, Merodachbaladan being dead, or conquered; though, according to Suidas (h), it was he that took Manasseh; and by an Arabic writer (i), he is said to be carried to Nineveh.
(f) Seder Olam Rabba, c. 24. p. 67. (g) Vell. Patercul. Hist. Roman. l. 2. (h) In voce (i) Abulpharag. Hist. Dynast. Dyn. 3. p. 67. So Suidas, ib.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv11–12 To Babylon - The king of Babylon is here…
To Babylon - The king of Babylon is here called the king of Assyria, because he had added Assyria to his empire, who having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah's treasures at Jerusalem, and being assured of Manasseh's degeneracy from the piety of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh's kingdom. The Jews say, in the twenty second year of his reign.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv12–13 Verse 12. And when he was in affliction] Here…
Verse 12. And when he was in affliction] Here is a very large addition in the Chaldee: "For the Chaldeans made a brazen mule, pierced full of small holes, and put him within it, and kindled fires all around it; and when he was in this misery, he sought help of all the idols which he had made, but obtained none, for their were of no use. He therefore repented, and prayed before the Lord his God, and was greatly humbled in the sight of the Lord God of his fathers."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv11–13 2Ch 33:11. The Lord brought upon them the captains…
2Ch 33:11. The Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria — Some suppose that Esar-haddon, the successor of Sennacherib, king of Assyria, is here meant, and that, in consequence of the royal family failing in Babylon, he found means to bring that kingdom under his yoke again; or that, by force of arms, or some other means, he recovered it from Merodach-Baladan. They say that he held it thirteen years, and that it was during this time that Manasseh was taken and carried captive to Babylon. Others think it more probable that the king of Babylon is here called the king of Assyria, because he had added Assyria to his empire, and that having been informed by his ambassadors of the great riches which were in Hezekiah’s treasures at Jerusalem, and being assured of Manasseh’s degeneracy from the piety of his father, and from that God whose power alone made Hezekiah formidable, he thought this a fit season to invade Manasseh’s kingdom, which the Jews say he did, in the twenty- second year of his reign. Which took Manasseh among the thorns — In some thicket where he thought to have hid himself from the Assyrians till he could make an escape: or, as the Hebrew בחוחים, bachochim, may be rendered, with hooks, metaphorically speaking; or, in his forts, that is, in one of them.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On v11 The Assyrian monuments contain no record of this expedition;…
The Assyrian monuments contain no record of this expedition; but there can be little doubt that it fell into the reign of Esarhaddon (2Ki 19:37 note), who reigned at least thirteen years. Esarhaddon mentions Manasseh among his tributaries; and he was the only king of Assyria who, from time to time, held his court at Babylon.
Among the thorns - Translate - “ with rings;” and see 2Ki 19:28 note.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv10–12 Spoke, by his prophets, 4 K.
Spoke, by his prophets, 4 K.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv11–12 HE IS CARRIED UNTO BABYLON, WHERE HE HUMBLES HIMSELF…
HE IS CARRIED UNTO BABYLON, WHERE HE HUMBLES HIMSELF BEFORE GOD, AND IS RESTORED TO HIS KINGDOM. (Ch2 33:11-19)
the captains of the host of the king of Assyria--This king was Esar-haddon. After having devoted the first years of his reign to the consolidation of his government at home, he turned his attention to repair the loss of the tributary provinces west of the Euphrates, which, on the disaster and death of Sennacherib, had taken the opportunity of shaking off the Assyrian yoke. Having overrun Palestine and removed the remnant that were left in the kingdom of Israel, he despatched his generals, the chief of whom was Tartan (Isa 20:1), with a portion of his army for the reduction of Judah also. In a successful attack upon Jerusalem, they took multitudes of captives, and got a great prize, including the king himself, among the prisoners.
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took Manasseh among the thorns--This may mean, as is commonly supposed, that he had hid himself among a thicket of briers and brambles. We know that the Hebrews sometimes took refuge from their enemies in thickets (Sa1 13:6). But, instead of the Hebrew, Bacochim, "among the thorns", some versions read Bechayim, "among the living", and so the passage would be "took him alive."
bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon--The Hebrew word rendered "fetters" denotes properly two chains of brass. The humiliating state in which Manasseh appeared before the Assyrian monarch may be judged of by a picture on a tablet in the Khorsabad palace, representing prisoners led bound into the king's presence. "The captives represented appear to be inhabitants of Palestine. Behind the prisoners stand four persons with inscriptions on the lower part of their tunics; the first two are bearded, and seem to be accusers; the remaining two are nearly defaced; but behind the last appears the eunuch, whose office it seems to be to usher into the presence of the king those who are permitted to appear before him. He is followed by another person of the same race as those under punishment; his hands are manacled, and on his ankles are strong rings fastened together by a heavy bar" [Nineveh and Its Palaces]. No name is given, and, therefore, no conclusion can be drawn that the figure represents Manasseh. But the people appear to be Hebrews, and this pictorial scene will enable us to imagine the manner in which the royal captive from Judah was received in the court of Babylon. Esar-haddon had established his residence there; for though from the many revolts that followed the death of his father, he succeeded at first only to the throne of Assyria, yet having some time previous to his conquest of Judah, recovered possession of Babylon, this enterprising king had united under his sway the two empires of Babylon and Chaldea and transferred the seat of his government to Babylon.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv11, 13 11. The captains of the host of the king…
11. The captains of the host of the king of Assyria — This king of Assyria was Esar-haddon, the son and successor of Sennacherib. This we learn from the statement that they carried him to Babylon, for Esar-haddon was the only Assyrian monarch, so far as we can find, who had a palace and held his court at Babylon. Also, in an inscription now in the British Museum, Esar-haddon says: “I transported into Assyria men and women innumerable. I counted among the vassals of my realm twelve kings of Syria, beyond the mountains, Balou, king of Tyre, Minasi, king of Judah,” etc. The king himself seems not to have been present in person at the capture of Manasseh, but left it to the management of the captains of his host.
Took Manasseh among the thorns — Rather, took him with hooks; an ignominious and humiliating mode of dealing with a distinguished and offensive captive, which prevailed among the Assyrians. See 2Ki_19:28, note.
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Bound him with fetters — Hebrew, with double brass. See note on Jdg_16:21. It was this bitter treatment that speedily led the captive king to humble himself before God, and repent of his sins.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv10–12 10. the Lord spake] i.e. by prophets; cp. 2Ki_21:10-15.
10. the Lord spake] i.e. by prophets; cp. 2Ki_21:10-15.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv10–13 (10) And the Lord spake to Manasseh.—“By the hand…
(10) And the Lord spake to Manasseh.—“By the hand of his servants the prophets.” See
2Ki_21:10-15, where the substance of the prophetic message is given; and it is added (2Ch_33:16) that Manasseh also shed very much innocent blood, “till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to the other.” The reaction against the reforms of Hezekiah ended in a bloody struggle, in which the party of reform was fiercely suppressed.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv10, 11, 13 (See parallel, vers. 11-15.)
(See parallel, vers. 11-15.)
Vers. 10-17.
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The penitent.
In these words we have
I THE LAST AND WORST SYMPTOM OF DEPARTURE FROM GOD OBDURACY. "The Lord spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken" (ver. 10). Sin reaches its extremity when it deliberately and determinately closes its ear against the recognized voice of God. A defiant refusal to listen when God is speaking to us is surely the ne plus ultra of iniquity; guilt can go no further. (see Pro_2:2-4)
II THE DESCENT OF THE DIVINE PENALTY. When other means of instruction and of influence have been tried and failed, God visits in severe discipline. To Manasseh this came in defeat, humiliation (he was bound in fetters), and captivity; he had to leave the city of David and the land of his fathers, and become a show in the distant land of the enemy. To us the Divine discipline comes in various ways, of which the most common are bodily affliction, the vision of death, substantial loss, the estrangement of those who had been near and dear to us, some form of bitter humiliation, bereavement and consequent loneliness.
III THE RISE OF TRUE PENITENCE IN THE HUMAN HEART. At length Manasseh had his eyes opened, and he saw his folly and his sin; at length he learnt that he had not only forsaken the good way of his father Hezekiah, but had grievously and guiltily departed from the living God. We can never tell what will humble the heart of a man; one is affected and subdued by one affliction, another by another. But at length the blow falls, and the edge of the sword enters in, and the heart bleeds, and it is wounded not unto death, but unto life.
1. Then comes recognition of the truth. Then God is recognized his nearness, his claims, his displeasure, his fatherly purpose. Then guilt also is discerned its greatness, its heinousness.
2. Then comes acknowledgment and appeal. The heart humbles itself before God, even as Manasseh now "humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers" (ver. 12); and the soul prays for mercy, asks that its guilt may be forgiven, and itself restored.
3. And then comes self-surrender; for if there be not a willingness, a readiness to yield ourselves unto God, an exhibition of penitence is only an affectation; it is unreal and untrue. If it is genuine, it must be accompanied by a pure desire and a firm resolve to return unto him whom we have guiltily forsaken.
IV THE BESTOWAL OF DIVINE MERCY. Manasseh soon found how immeasurable had been his mistake in his great apostasy. For the God of his fathers proved to be a God full of compassion and of great mercy, and he heard the humbled suppliant and restored him, and brought him back to his kingdom. So God now hears and pardons and restores; he forgives us our sin, and he takes us back to his Divine favour, and he restores to us our peace, our hope, our joy, our life in him and with him. For there is one invariable and inseparable sequence, viz.
V NEWNESS OF LIFE ON THE PART OF THE FORGIVEN. Manasseh goes back to Jerusalem, takes away the strange gods and the altars he had built, and casts them out of the city; and he repairs the altar of the Lord, and re-establishes the worship of Jehovah (vers. 15, 16). We return unto God, and at the same time to all purity, to all temperance, to all uprightness, to all reverence both in spirit and in action, to all piety of thought and of behaviour. This is precious indeed, beyond all price, this restoration to God and to our true self; yet is there
VI ONE SERIOUS DRAWBACK. Manasseh could not altogether undo what he had done. Nevertheless the people did sacrifice," etc. (ver. 17). He could not, by one enactment or by a number of them, bring back the situation he had so completely broken up. It takes a long time to restore a people to the habits they have forsaken. Nor could Manasseh recall to life the brave and faithful men whom he had "done to death" with his cruelties. (2Ki_21:16) There are some things which the most genuine repentance will not effect. It will not recall the wasted years; nor undo the malign and death-bearing influences which have been at work in human hearts and lives; nor compensate the wronged for the injuries they have suffered in body or in spirit. Therefore let all remember that, while repentance and restoration are blessed, a life of holy service from the beginning is far more blessed still. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv10, 12 And bound him with fetters.
2Ch_33:10-11
And bound him with fetters.
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Divine discipline
The proper way for a sinner to be brought to God is for God to speak to him, and for him to hear. Manasseh would not come that way, so God fetched him back by a rougher road.
I. The Lord often allows temporal trials to take men captive.
1. Business disasters.
2. Want of employment.
3. Extraordinary troubles.
4. Bodily affliction.
5. The loss of dear friends.
II. The lord sometimes allows men to be bound by mental trials; bound with fetters. Such as--
1. When sin ceases to afford pleasure. The very things that once made him all aglow with delight do not affect him now, nor cast a single ray of light on his path.
2. The daily avocation becomes distasteful.
3. There is great inability in prayer.
4. Your old sins come out of their hiding-places.
5. A great want of power to grasp the promises.
6. A fear of death and dread of judgment.
Conclusion: In order to your comfort and peace--
1. Know that the Lord is God.
2. Humble yourself before Him.
3. Begin to pray.
4. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v11 Manasseh’s Punishment and Repentance
Manasseh’s Punishment and Repentance
v. 11. Wherefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, according to Assyrian monuments, King Assurbanipal (or Esar-haddon), which took Manasseh among the thorns, that is, in fetters, and bound him with fetters, with double brass chains, and carried him to Babylon, which at that time was under the jurisdiction of the king of Assyria, the capital of one of the tributary countries.
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v. 12. And when he was in affliction, in this shameful captivity, he besought the Lord, his God, in true sorrow over his apostasy, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers,
v. 13. and prayed unto Him, confessing his great sins and asking for mercy; and He was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. In restoring Manasseh to his kingdom, as a tributary monarch, the Assyrian king undoubtedly was influenced by political motives, principally that of making Judah a buffer state against Egypt, Assyria’s rival for supremacy. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord, He was God; he acknowledged Him as his Lord and Ruler, and followed His word.
v. 14. Now, after this he built a wall without the City of David, probably the one on which Hezekiah had done some work, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even to the entering in of the Fish Gate, this outer wall thus running from the northeast corner of Zion in a northerly direction and then crossing over the valley to make a junction with the main wall near the upper fort, in the place where the Temple might be most easily attacked, and compassed about Ophel, on the southern slope of the Temple mount, and raised it up a very great height, and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah, veteran commanders.
v. 15. And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem, v. 4-5:7, and cast them out of the city, he removed the worst abominations, though by no means all.
v. 16. And he repaired the altar of the Lord, the altar of burnt offerings, and sacrificed thereon peace-offerings and thank offerings, in order to renew the covenant relation, and commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel.
v. 17. Nevertheless, the people did sacrifice still in the high places, the sanctuaries on the hills, yet unto the Lord, their God, only. This act did not always imply idolatry, but often led to the practice of it.
v. 18. Now, the rest of the acts of Manasseh and his prayer unto his God, made at the time of his conversion while in captivity, and the words of the seers that spake to him in the name of the Lord God of Israel, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel, from which the inspired writer culled the information here offered.
v. 19. His prayer also, and how God was intreated of him, and all his sins, and his trespass, and the places wherein he built high places, and set up groves, Asherah-pillars, and graven images, before he was humbled, behold, they are written among the sayings of the seers, in the history of Hosai. In the latter part of his reign, Manasseh is an example of a person who turns to the Lord in true repentance and is accepted by the Lord. At the same time, his history contains a warning not to deny the faith and risk eternal rejection, for we do not know when God’s period of grace will be at an end.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv10, 12 brought on them
brought on them
Yahweh sent the army to attack Jerusalem. AT: "brought about an attack on them by" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria
The commanders were accompanied by their soldiers. AT: "the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria and their soldiers" (See: Synecdoche)
took Manasseh in chains, bound him with fetters, and took him off to Babylon
Here Manasseh being taken as a prisoner is represented by him being bound by chains and fetters. Fetters were chains placed around the feet. AT: "seized Manasseh, bound him in chains, and took him as a prisoner to Babylon" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
Yahweh
commander
king
Assyria
Babylon
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv11–13 33:11 A nose ring caused not only pain but…
33:11 A nose ring caused not only pain but complete humiliation. Assyrian records portray such treatment of their prisoners.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.