In Jerusalem will I put my name

2 Kings 21:1-26

Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

In Jerusalem will I put my name。

In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name forever:

But the people did not listen. Manasseh led them astray, so that they did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites.

Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am going to bring such disaster on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle. I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line used against Samaria and the plumb line used against the house of Ahab. I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. I will forsake the remnant of my inheritance and give them into the hands of enemies. They will be looted and plundered by all their enemies; they have done evil in my eyes and have aroused my anger from the day their ancestors came out of Egypt until this day.”

Moreover, Manasseh also shed so much innocent blood that he filled Jerusalem from end to end—besides the sin that he had caused Judah to commit, so that they did evil in the eyes of the Lord.

Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as his father Manasseh had done. Amon’s officials conspired against him and assassinated the king in his palace. 

Manasseh is to Judah what King Ahab was to Israel. He reigns 55 years, part of the time as co-regent, and brings Judah to the point of no return; a degradation worse than that of the Canaanite nations the Israelites had destroyed. The prophets declare God's inevitable judgment. Jerusalem will share the fate of Samaria.

Amon is another 'bad king'. After ruling for two years he is assassinated by his own house servants.

Why?

Before the end of Hezekiah, Hezekiah's last 15 years became relied on Babylon instead of trusting in the Lord. So it affected his son Manasseh turned away from the Lord.

God's anger aroused "I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down". This is a very serious consequence for Judah and Jerusalem. So the downfall of Judah is from the leader and affects the whole nation.

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瑪拿西幾乎是猶大在信仰上最惡的王。

在耶和華殿宇中築壇。耶和華曾指著這殿說：我必立我的名在耶路撒冷。

又在殿內立雕刻的亞舍拉像。耶和華曾對大衛和他兒子所羅門說：我在以色列眾支派中所選擇的耶路撒冷和這殿，必立我的名，直到永遠。

聖殿與耶路撒冷是高舉神的名的地方。是立神名的地方。所以人再沒有資格進入聖殿。神在耶路撒冷設立聖殿就是要彰顯神的名，也託付給以色列人彰顯神名的地方。

神的使命要我們在地上，彰顯神的名！不是白佔地土，白享恩典！

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How?

Be aware of our hearts and mind, God is my Lord only, and anything I can do is the grace of the Lord.