Difference between revisions of "Manasseh"

<li> The only son and successor of Hezekiah on the throne of Judah. He was twelve years old when he began to reign (&nbsp;2 Kings 21:1 ), and he reigned fifty-five years (B.C. 698-643). Though he reigned so long, yet comparatively little is known of this king. His reign was a continuation of that of Ahaz, both in religion and national polity. He early fell under the influence of the heathen court circle, and his reign was characterized by a sad relapse into idolatry with all its vices, showing that the reformation under his father had been to a large extent only superficial (&nbsp;Isaiah 7:10; &nbsp;2 Kings 21:10-15 ). A systematic and persistent attempt was made, and all too successfully, to banish the worship of Jehovah out of the land. Amid this wide-spread idolatry there were not wanting, however, faithful prophets (Isaiah, Micah) who lifted up their voice in reproof and in warning. But their fidelity only aroused bitter hatred, and a period of cruel persecution against all the friends of the old religion began. "The days of Alva in Holland, of [[Charles]] IX. in France, or of the [[Covenanters]] under Charles II. in Scotland, were anticipated in the Jewish capital. The streets were red with blood." There is an old Jewish tradition that Isaiah was put to death at this time (&nbsp;2 Kings 21:16; &nbsp;24:3,4; &nbsp;Jeremiah 2:30 ), having been sawn asunder in the trunk of a tree. &nbsp;Psalm 497377140,73,77,140 , and 141 seem to express the feelings of the pious amid the fiery trials of this great persecution. Manasseh has been called the "Nero of Palestine." <p> Esarhaddon, Sennacherib's successor on the Assyrian throne, who had his residence in [[Babylon]] for thirteen years (the only Assyrian monarch who ever reigned in Babylon), took Manasseh prisoner (B.C. 681) to Babylon. Such captive kings were usually treated with great cruelty. They were brought before the conqueror with a hook or ring passed through their lips or their jaws, having a cord attached to it, by which they were led. This is referred to in &nbsp;2 Chronicles 33:11 , where the Authorized Version reads that [[Esarhaddon]] "took Manasseh among the thorns;" while the Revised Version renders the words, "took Manasseh in chains;" or literally, as in the margin, "with hooks." (Compare &nbsp;2 Kings 19:28 .) </p> <p> The severity of Manasseh's imprisonment brought him to repentance. God heard his cry, and he was restored to his kingdom (&nbsp;2 Chronicles 33:11-13 ). He abandoned his idolatrous ways, and enjoined the people to worship Jehovah; but there was no thorough reformation. After a lengthened reign extending through fifty-five years, the longest in the history of Judah, he died, and was buried in the garden of Uzza, the "garden of his own house" (&nbsp;2 Kings 21:17,18; &nbsp;2 Chronicles 33:20 ), and not in the city of David, among his ancestors. He was succeeded by his son Amon. </p> <p> In &nbsp;Judges 18:30 the correct reading is "Moses," and not "Manasseh." The name "Manasseh" is supposed to have been introduced by some transcriber to avoid the scandal of naming the grandson of Moses the great lawgiver as the founder of an idolatrous religion. </p> <div> <p> '''Copyright Statement''' These dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by [[Thomas]] Nelson, 1897. Public Domain. </p> <p> '''Bibliography Information''' Easton, Matthew George. Entry for 'Manasseh'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/m/manasseh.html. 1897. </p> </div> </li>

<p> [[Manasseh]] (''Ma-Năs'Seh'' ), ''Forgetting.'' 1. The first-born of Joseph. When he and his brother Ephraim were boys, and Jacob, their grandfather, was about to die, Joseph took them into the patriarch's presence to receive his blessing. &nbsp;Genesis 48:5-20. Nothing further is known of the personal history of Manasseh. The eastern part of the tribe of Manasseh prospered much and spread to Mount Hermon, but they finally mixed with the Canaanites, adopted their idolatry, became scattered as [[Bedouins]] in the desert, and were the first to be carried away into captivity by the kings of Assyria. &nbsp;1 Chronicles 5:25. The western Manasseh, of which only a few glimpses are visible in the later history of Israel, always showed itself on the right side; as, for instance, in the cases of Asa, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 15:9; Hezekiah, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 30:1; &nbsp;2 Chronicles 30:11; &nbsp;2 Chronicles 30:18, and Josiah, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 34:6; &nbsp;2 Chronicles 9:2. Son and successor of Hezekiah, king of Judah, ascended the throne at the age of twelve years, b.c. 696. The earlier part of his reign was distinguished for acts of impiety and cruelty, &nbsp;2 Kings 21:1-26, and he succeeded in drawing his subjects away from the Lord to such an extent that the only kind of worship which was not allowed in Judah was that of Jehovah. &nbsp;2 Kings 21:2-9. Having supported the Babylonian viceroy in his revolt against Assyria, he was at last taken captive by the Assyrian king and ignominiously transported to Babylon. Upon his repentance, however, he was liberated, and returned to his capital, where he died b.c. 641, after having done much to repair the evils of bis former life. &nbsp;2 Chronicles 33:1-20. </p> <p> 3. The territory of Manasseh occupied by a tribe descended from Joseph, and divided into two portions—one east of the Jordan, and the other west of it 1. ''East Of The Jordan.—'' The country of Manasseh east of the Jordan included half of Gilead, the Hauran, Bashan, and Argob. &nbsp;1 Chronicles 5:18-23. The extensive pastures of Gilead and Bashan gave the best scope for the half-nomad and herdsman's life led by this portion of the tribe. &nbsp;Psalms 68:15. The people were powerful and brave, taking a leading part in the wars of Gideon, of Jephthah, and of David. See also Gilead and Bashan. 2. ''West Of The Jordan.—'' The portion of the half-tribe of Manasseh on the west of the Jordan extended from the Mediterranean to the Jordan, and lay between Asher and Issachar on the north and Ephraim on the south. &nbsp;Joshua 17:7-10. They also gained some towns in [[Carmel]] within the bounds of Issachar, probably by capturing them from the ancient Canaanites. &nbsp;Joshua 17:11-18. The dominant position of Ephraim seems to have obscured the power of Manasseh, and this portion of their country is frequently joined with Ephraim in the biblical allusions. </p>

<p> (Heb. Menahssheh', מְנִשֶּׁה '', Who Makes To Forget;'' see &nbsp;Genesis 41:51; Sept., Josephus, and N.T. Μανασσῆς; "Manasses" in &nbsp;Matthew 1:10; &nbsp;Revelation 7:6), the name of four men and of a tribe descended from one of them; also of another man mentioned by Josephus. </p> <p> '''1.''' The elder of the two sons of Joseph, born in Egypt (&nbsp;Genesis 41:51; &nbsp;Genesis 46:20) of Asenath, the priest's daughter of Heliopolis. B.C. 1882. He was afterwards, together with his brother, adopted by Jacob as his own (&nbsp;Genesis 48:1), by which act each became the head of a tribe in Israel. B.C. 1856. (See [[Jacob]]). </p> <p> The act of adoption was, however, accompanied by a clear intimation from Jacob that the descendants of Manasseh, although the elder, would be far less numerous and powerful than those of the younger Ephraim. The result corresponded remarkably with this intimation. (See Ephraim). </p> <p> He married a Syrian concubine, by whom he had several children (&nbsp;1 Chronicles 7:14). (See Machir). The only thing subsequently recorded of him personally is that his grandchildren were "brought up on Joseph's knees" (&nbsp;Genesis 1:23). "The ancient Jewish traditions are, however, less reticent. According to them Manasseh was the steward of Joseph's house, and the interpreter who intervened between Joseph and his brethren at their interview; and the extraordinary strength which he displayed in the struggle with and binding of [[Simeon]] first caused Judah to suspect that the apparent [[Egyptians]] were really his own flesh and blood (see [[Targums]] Jerusalem and Pseudojon. on &nbsp;Genesis 42:23; &nbsp;Genesis 43:15; also the quotations in Weil's ''Bibl. Legends,'' p. 88, note).' </p>