Read 2 Kings 21.
Just because a
father is a godly man and pleases the LORD does not guarantee that his children
will be. Even with the best upbringing
each person must come to faith in God as an individual. We see that graphically played out here. Hezekiah was the best king of
Manasseh's evil amounts to a long list of paganism and satanically inspired behaviors meant to destroy the nation's faith in the LORD. In verse 2, the scripture calls them "despicable practices".
-worshiped in
the high places, instead of the
-erected altars
to Baal for sacrifices to appease this man-made god
-made an
Asherah, a carved pole to worship a cult goddess, and set it up in the
-worshiped and
served the "host of heaven"-literally a multitude in the
heavens. Often this refers to angelic
beings, but this was astral worship of the stars and their movements as if they
had some magical power or control over life.
Today, this is called astrology.
-he built
altars for sacrifice to the "host of heaven" in the Temple courts
-he sacrificed
his own son in an altar fire
-he used
fortune-telling
-he depended on
omens
-he dealt with
mediums
-he turned to
wizards
-shed innocent blood
throughout
The next king, Amon, Manasseh's son, continued all these sinful practices.
These things
are not forms of harmless entertainment or fanciful practices to be
tolerated. Repeatedly they are called
"evil" and stirred the anger of the LORD. God affirmed the prophecy of Isaiah, spoken
in chapter 20, that He will bring "disaster" upon
This is an
unmistakable warning to anyone involved in these false attempts at
spiritualism. Disaster will come. No, we do not all worship the same God. The one true and living God, maker of heaven
and earth, who invites us to have a personal relationship with Him through
faith in Jesus.
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