II Chronicles 33:2 · Bible study
2 Chronicles 33:2 Commentary: Manasseh’s Evil
Hebrew · 6 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why does the Chronicler compare Manasseh's sin to the Canaanite abominations that led to their dispossession? A study of II Chronicles 33:2.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Manasseh’s reign began with a direct imitation of the pagan practices for which God had driven out the Canaanites.
- Key words: ‘Evil’ (הָרַע, definite, ‘the evil’); ‘abominations’ (תּוֹעֲבוֹת, practices that defile the land and provoke divine judgment).
- Main debate: Whether the Chronicler’s version is merely a copy of Kings or contains intentional theological intensification for a post-exilic audience.
- Theological theme: Covenant faithfulness is tied to the land; sin imitates the nations and invites the same judgment they experienced.
- Best use: A sobering introduction to the ‘bad half’ of Manasseh’s story, leading to the hope of repentance and restoration in the same chapter.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
And he did evil in the sight of the LORD by following the abominations of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites.
WEB World English Bible 2000
He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, after the abominations of the nations whom Yahweh cast out before the children of Israel.
KJV King James Version 1769
But did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, like unto the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, after the abominations of the nations whom Jehovah cast out before the children of Israel.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and he doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, like the abominations of the nations that Jehovah dispossessed from the presence of the sons of Israel,
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And he did evil in the sight of Jehovah, like the abominations of the nations that Jehovah had dispossessed from before the children of Israel.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And he did evil before the Lord, according to all the abominations of the nations, which the Lord cast out before the children of Israel:
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Mas hizo lo malo en ojos de Jehová, conforme á las abominaciones de las gentes que había echado Jehová delante de los hijos de Israel:
Mas fez o que era mau em olhos do SENHOR, conforme as abominações das nações que havia lançado o SENHOR diante dos filhos de Israel:
Il fit ce qui est mal aux yeux de l’ Éternel, selon les abominations des nations que l’ Éternel avait chassées devant les enfants d’ Israël.
und tat, was dem HERR übel gefiel, nach den Greueln der Heiden, die der HERR vor den Kindern Israel vertrieben hatte,
En hij deed dat kwaad was in de ogen des HEEREN, naar de gruwelen der heidenen, die de HEERE voor het aangezicht der kinderen Israels uit de bezitting verdreven had.
Egli fece ciò ch’è male agli occhi dell’Eterno, seguendo le abominazioni delle nazioni che l’Eterno avea cacciate d’innanzi ai figliuoli d’Israele.
Ten czynił złe przed oczyma Pańskiemi według obrzydłości onych narodów, które wygnał Pan przed obliczem synów Izraelskich.
и делал он неугодное в очах Господних, подражая мерзостям народов, которых прогнал Господь от лица сынов Израилевых,
他行 耶和華 眼中 看為惡的事，效法耶和華 在以色列 人 面前 趕出 的外邦人 那 可憎的事，
He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, copying the disgusting ways of the nations whom the Lord had sent out of the land before the children of Israel.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · II Chronicles 33:2
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that this verse is not a vague moral label. It names a specific pattern: Manasseh’s evil mirrors the very practices for which Yahweh dispossessed the Canaanite nations. Keil and Delitzsch point out that the Chronicler’s account closely follows 2 Kings 21:1-9, with rhetorical intensifications. The Cambridge Bible notes that the Hebrew wording between Chronicles and Kings is nearly identical. Matthew Henry calls the repetition ‘the same almost word for word’ and grieves the retrogression from Hezekiah’s reforms. The word ‘abominations’ (תּוֹעֵבַה) refers to idolatrous acts that defile the land, a term used consistently in Leviticus 18 and Deuteronomy 12 for the practices that brought judgment on Canaan. The consensus is clear: Manasseh’s sin is not merely personal failure; it is a covenant breach that aligns Israel with nations God had already condemned.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: All Christians agree that Manasseh’s actions were evil in God’s sight and that he deliberately copied the practices of the nations God had judged, making the verse a clear warning about covenant infidelity.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Relationship to 2 Kings 21 | The verse is verbally very similar to the parallel in 2 Kings 21:2; both record the same historical judgment. | Some commentators see the Chronicler as merely reproducing the source, while others (like Keil & Delitzsch) note rhetorical intensifications (plurals, added details) that serve a post-exilic theological purpose. |
| Meaning of 'abominations' | The term refers to idolatrous and immoral practices that God detests and that defile the land. | The emphasis may be more on ritual defilement (unclean worship) or ethical corruption (child sacrifice, sorcery), depending on how one reads the surrounding catalogue in verses 3-7. |
| Application to contemporary Israel | The verse functioned as a warning for the Chronicler's audience to avoid repeating the sins that led to exile. | Some read it as a direct statement about national judgment (God deals with nations corporately), while others focus on individual accountability within the covenant community. |
| Hope after judgment | All traditions affirm that the chapter describes Manasseh's genuine repentance and God's willingness to restore. | The extent to which his repentance reversed the national consequences is debated: some see full restoration, others note that later kings still faced judgment for his sins. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The Chronicler wrote after the Babylonian exile, addressing a community that had experienced displacement. His account of Manasseh’s reign is a tragic mirror: just as the Canaanites were cast out for their abominations, Israel now risked the same fate. Verse 2 builds on a long thread in the Law. Leviticus 18:24-30 warns that the land vomits out those who defile it with such practices. Deuteronomy 12:31 names child sacrifice as something God hates. Deuteronomy 18:9-14 forbids learning the abominations of the nations. The Canaanites were judged not for ethnic reasons but for their covenant-defying actions, and Israel’s covenant with Yahweh made them more accountable, not less.
The verse also highlights the collapse of Hezekiah’s spiritual renewal. Hezekiah had torn down the high places and restored true worship. Manasseh reversed that, rebuilding altars for Baals, making Asherah poles, and worshiping the stars (v.3-5). The Chronicler’s language is deliberately sharp: ‘he did evil’ is framed by the definite article, ‘the evil’, as if Manasseh’s wickedness is a known category, the exact opposite of what God commanded. The verb הוֹרִישׁ (dispossess) echoes the conquest language, reminding readers that the land is a gift, not a right.
Textual Notes
The supplied commentaries note no significant textual variants for 2 Chronicles 33:2. The Cambridge Bible observes that the Hebrew of this verse corresponds exactly in the books of Chronicles and 2 Kings. The Geneva Bible and KJV follow the same manuscript tradition. Keil and Delitzsch mention minor deviations in later verses (such as the use of plurals in v.3 and the specific term for the image in v.7), but verse 2 itself is stable across witnesses.
Reception History
In early Jewish and Christian interpretation, this verse was often used to illustrate the danger of apostasy and the seriousness of covenant unfaithfulness. The church fathers read it as a warning that God judges his own people when they adopt the practices of the surrounding world. During the Reformation, commentators like Matthew Henry emphasized the contrast between Hezekiah’s reforms and Manasseh’s regression, urging believers to guard against the slow erosion of faithfulness. In more recent preaching, the verse has been used to address the tendency of Christians to conform to cultural values that contradict Scripture. The larger arc of Manasseh’s story, from great evil to great repentance, has also made this chapter a touchstone for teaching about the breadth of God’s mercy.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The shape of sin: doing what God expelled, Manasseh’s evil is not innovation; it is imitation. He copies the nations God drove out.
- The theology of dispossession, The land is not a permanent possession; it belongs to God and is held by covenant faithfulness.
- From warning to hope, The rest of the chapter shows Manasseh’s repentance and restoration. Sin is serious, but it is not the last word.
Five-point outline
- Evil defined by God’s eyes, not human opinion
- Abominations: practices that defile and destroy
- History as a lesson: the Canaanites as a warning
- Leadership’s power to lead astray
- God’s mercy even in judgment
Illustration hooks
- Someone inheriting a well-kept garden and letting weeds overtake it, the neglect turns a gift into a mess.
- A student who knows the rules but copies the mistakes of the ones who got expelled.
- A community that forgets why certain boundaries exist (e.g., health codes or safety laws) and then suffers the consequences.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Does God punish people the same way today? What does the New Testament say about national judgment?
- How do I know if I am imitating the world’s ‘abominations’ without realizing it?
- If God forgave Manasseh after all that, is there hope for someone who has walked far from God?
Leading a Discussion
Manasseh’s story is one of the darkest in the Old Testament, and also one of the most hopeful. This verse sets the stage by naming what he did as a direct copy of the nations that had occupied the land before Israel. As you discuss, keep in mind that the Chronicler is not just recording history; he is warning his own generation after the exile. What does it mean to take God’s warnings seriously?
Discussion questions
- What does the phrase ‘after the abominations of the nations’ tell you about the nature of Manasseh’s sin? (Read verse 2 aloud in several translations.)
- What specific practices are called ‘abominations’ in Leviticus 18 and Deuteronomy 12? How are they similar to what Manasseh did (vv.3-7)?
- Why do you think the Chronicler repeats nearly verbatim the account from 2 Kings 21? What might he want his readers, especially post-exile, to learn?
- In what ways can believers today ‘do evil in the sight of the Lord’ by imitating the values of surrounding culture? Give an example that is not about obvious sins.
- The chapter continues with Manasseh’s exile and repentance (vv.10-13). How does the possibility of repentance affect the way you read verse 2?
- If the land was God’s gift, what responsibilities come with it? How would you explain this to someone who thinks of blessings as entitlements?
- How does this passage shape your understanding of God’s patience and judgment? What does it mean to ‘humble yourself greatly’ before God?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Leviticus 18:24 | “‘Don’t defile yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations which I am casting out before you were defiled. |
| Leviticus 18:30 | Therefore you shall keep my requirements, that you do not practice any of these abominable customs which were practiced before you, and that you do not defile yourselves with them. I am Yahweh your God.’” |
| Leviticus 20:22 | “‘You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you out. |
| Leviticus 20:23 | You shall not walk in the customs of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. |
| Deuteronomy 12:31 | You shall not do so to Yahweh your God; for every abomination to Yahweh, which he hates, they have done to their gods; for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods. |
| Deuteronomy 18:9 | When you have come into the land which Yahweh your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the abominations of those nations. |
| Deuteronomy 18:14 | For these nations that you shall dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery and to diviners; but as for you, Yahweh your God has not allowed you so to do. |
| II Kings 17:11 | and there they burned incense in all the high places, as the nations whom Yahweh carried away before them did; and they did wicked things to provoke Yahweh to anger; |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
6 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible notes that the Revised Version corrects the older wording "But did … like unto" to "And he did … after" and "had cast out" to "cast out," matching 2 Kings. The underlying Hebrew in both passages is identical.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights the striking parallel: this king copied the wicked practices of the very nations God had driven out of the land. His sin was not just personal failure but a conscious return to the paganism God had already judged and removed.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch note that the Chronicler intensifies the account of Manasseh's reign beyond Kings by using plural forms for idols and adding sorcery, the Valley of Hinnom, and piled-up terms for the law. The most significant change is substituting "graven image of the idol" for "graven image of Asherah," possibly drawing from Ezekiel.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange defends the historical credibility of Manasseh's captivity and conversion, using Assyrian inscriptions to show that deportation to Babylon under Ashurbanipal was plausible. He argues that Manasseh's reform after his return was incomplete and temporary, which explains why later passages still speak of the sins of Manasseh.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry observes that the account of Manasseh's wickedness is a melancholy repetition of the same story told in Kings. He finds no delight in describing such evil, noting it is a grievous subject not meant for pleasure.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley treats honoring the useful dead as a solemn debt, not an option. Their death removes any risk of flattery, since they are beyond reach of praise or gain, and we have seen the full pattern of their life to honestly commend.