Manasseh

Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, ruled over Judah for 55 years. He was the longest reigning king in the nation’s history. Unlike his father, who honored the Lord, Manasseh was perhaps the worst of Judah’s kings. He actively pursued practices forbidden by God, and even built altars to false gods inside the temple. Manasseh burned his sons as child sacrifices, and practiced fortune-telling and sorcery. Unlike other evil kings, however, when Manasseh faced the judgment of the Lord for his actions, he repented. When he was taken as a captive to Babylon, he “entreated the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers” (33:12). God heard Manasseh’s prayer, and restored him to his kingdom. (2 Chronicles 33:9–14)