Remember Manasseh

The Bible gives many examples of God’s incomprehensible and superabundant mercy. King Manasseh ranks toward the top of the list. Maybe even at the very top. You’ll find his story in Second Kings and Second Chronicles. Both delineate his monstrous and murderous sins against his nation and against God. Even if you are familiar with his story, please carefully read the following text. Otherwise the point I hope to make at the end of this essay will not have as great an impact as I hope it will. “[Manasseh] erected altars for the Baals and made Asherim, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. He built altars in the house of the Lord . . . He made his sons pass through the fire in the valley of Ben-hinnom; and he practiced witchcraft, used divination, practiced sorcery and dealt with mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger. Then he put the carved image of the idol which he had made in the house of God . . . Thus Manasseh misled Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the sons of Israel.” “The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention. Therefore the Lord brought the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria against them, and they captured Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze chains and took him to Babylon. When he was in distress, he entreated the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. When he prayed to Him, [God] was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication and brought him again to Jerusalem to his kingdom. . ..” (2 Chronicles 33:1-13) I hope you caught that phrase toward the end of the last paragraph: “When he prayed to [God].” When God restored him to his throne in Jerusalem, Manasseh demonstrated evidence of his conversion. The king did his best to right the terrible wrongs he’d done. I’ve linked here to the entire vignette for your convenience. (2 Chronicles 33:1-18 Manasseh’s prayer is not found in our Bibles, but a bit of internet research quickly locates it. His prayer is only 15 verses, but O! It is hard to miss the soul-wrenching remorse of the man: The Prayer of Manasseh (NRSV Apocrypha) “O Lord Almighty, God of our ancestors, of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and of their righteous offspring; you who made heaven and earth with all their order; who shackled the sea by your word of command, who confined the deep and sealed it with your terrible and glorious name; At whom all things shudder, and tremble before your power, for your glorious splendor cannot be borne, and the wrath of your threat to sinners is unendurable; Yet immeasurable and unsearchable is your promised mercy, for you are the Lord Most High, of great compassion, long-suffering, and very merciful, and you relent at human suffering.” “O Lord, according to your great goodness you have promised repentance and forgiveness to those who have sinned against you, and in the multitude of your mercies you have appointed repentance for sinners, so that they may be saved. Therefore you, O Lord, God of the righteous, have not appointed repentance for the righteous, for Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, who did not sin against you, but you have appointed repentance for me, who am a sinner.” “For the sins I have committed are more in number than the sand of the sea; my transgressions are multiplied, O Lord, they are multiplied! I am not worthy to look up and see the height of heaven because of the multitude of my iniquities. I am weighted down with many an iron fetter, so that I am rejected because of my sins, and I have no relief; For I have provoked your wrath and have done what is evil in your sight, setting up abominations and multiplying offences.” “And now I bend the knee of my heart, imploring you for your kindness. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I acknowledge my transgressions. I earnestly implore you, forgive me, O Lord, forgive me!” “Do not destroy me with my transgressions! Do not be angry with me forever or store up evil for me; Do not condemn me to the depths of the earth. For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent, and in me you will manifest your goodness; For, unworthy as I am, you will save me according to your great mercy, and I will praise you continually all the days of my life. For all the host of heaven sings your praise, and yours is the glory forever. Amen.” Now my point: What is in your past that has convinced you that you are beyond God’s mercy? What have you done that causes you to believe there is no longer room at the foot of the cross for someone such as you? Remember Manasseh. God forgave him of everything – everything – he had done: The murders of his own children, the heinous idolatries and the sexual immoralities associated with them, the egregious blasphemies, the ruination of his nation, and who-knows-what-else the king committed against God and his people. But when Manasseh fell on his face in humility, remorse, and deep repentance – God wiped away all of his sins. All of them. All of them. So, what is YOUR story? I’ll ask it again: Do you still fear that you are beyond the reach of the blood of Jesus? Do you still listen to the demonic lies that seduce you to think Jesus’ blood cannot cleanse every last stain of your sins, regardless of the depth, breadth, and stench of those sins? Don’t believe everything you think. Remember God’s promise of utter and complete forgiveness to the penitent: “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.” (Psalm 103:11-14) Remember God's promise: “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  (1 John 1:8-9) And – Remember Manasseh.