1Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem; 2But did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD, following the detestable practices of the pagans that the LORD had driven out before the children of Israel. 3He rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah, his father, had torn down, and he raised up altars for Baalim, made and worshipped idols, and served all the host of heaven. 4He also built altars for all the host of heaven in the Temple of the LORD, of which the LORD had said, “In Jerusalem shall My name be forever.” 5He built altars in the two courts of the Temple of the LORD. 6And he sacrificed his children by fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom; and he used enchantments, practiced sorcery, dealt with a medium, and wizards; he did much evil in the eyes of the LORD, provoking Him to anger. 7And he set a carved image, an idol he had made, in the Temple of God, where God had said to David and Solomon, his son, “In this Temple, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen before all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever: 8I will no more remove Israel from the land which I have appointed for your fathers; if only they will be careful to do all that I have commanded them, abiding by the whole law, statutes and ordinances given through Moses.” 9So Manasseh encouraged Judah and those in Jerusalem to sin, and to do worse than the nations that the LORD had destroyed before the children of Israel.

10The LORD spoke to Manasseh, and to His people; but they paid no attention. 11Therefore, the LORD brought the commanders of the army of Assyria, who put Manasseh in chains, bound with fetters, and carried him to Babylon. 12But when he was in affliction, he sought the favor of LORD, his God, and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his fathers, 13And prayed to Him; and God heard his supplication, and restored him to his kingdom in Jerusalem. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is indeed God.

14After this, Manasseh built an outer wall of the city of David, from west of Gihon Spring, in the valley, to the Fish Gate entrance, encircling the hill of Ophel, and made it higher, and stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities of Judah. 15He also removed the foreign gods, and the idol from the Temple of the LORD, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the Temple of the LORD, and in Jerusalem, and threw them out of the city. 16And he restored the altar of the LORD, and sacrificed peace offerings and thank offerings on it, and commanded Judah to serve the LORD God of Israel. 17But the people still sacrificed in the high places, but now only to the LORD, their God.

18Now 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 the LORD God of Israel, are written in the book of the kings of Israel. 19His prayer also, and how God was moved by his entreaty, as well as all his sin, and trespasses, and the sites where he built high places, and set up idols and carved images, before he was humbled; all these are written in the records of the seers. 20So Manasseh died, and they buried him in his own house; and Amon, his son, reigned in his stead.

21Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and reigned two years in Jerusalem. 22But he did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD, as Manasseh, his father had done: Amon sacrificed to and served all the carved images which Manasseh, his father, had made. 23And Amon failed to humble himself before the LORD, as Manasseh, his father, had done; but added to his guilt more and more. 24Then Amon’s servants conspired against him, and assassinated him in his own house. 25Then the people of the land killed all those who had conspired against and killed Amon; and they made Josiah, his son, king in his stead.