ESOCS Devotional 22 October 2025 – Result of Unrighteous Leadership and Followership
MEMORY VERSE: “I will judge Jerusalem by the same standard I used for Samaria and the same measure I used for the family of Ahab. I will wipe away the people of Jerusalem as one wipes a dish and turns it upside down.” 2 Kings 21:13NLT
TEXT: 2 KINGS 21:1-15
TManasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah. 2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. 3 For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; he raised up altars for Baal, and made a wooden image, as Ahab king of Israel had done; and he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. 4 He also built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name.” 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 Also he made his son pass through the fire, practiced soothsaying, used witchcraft, and consulted spiritists and mediums. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. 7 He even set a carved image of Asherah that he had made, in the house of which the Lord had said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever; 8 and I will not make the feet of Israel wander anymore from the land which I gave their fathers—only if they are careful to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that My servant Moses commanded them.” 9 But they paid no attention, and Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel.
10 And the Lord spoke by His servants the prophets, saying, 11 “Because Manasseh king of Judah has done these abominations (he has acted more wickedly than all the Amorites who were before him, and has also made Judah sin with his idols), 12 therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am bringing such calamity upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whoever hears of it, both his ears will tingle. 13 And I will stretch over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria and the plummet of the house of Ahab; I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. 14 So I will forsake the remnant of My inheritance and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become victims of plunder to all their enemies, 15 because they have done evil in My sight, and have provoked Me to anger since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day.’ ”
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2 Kings 21 serves as a sobering reminder that leadership has consequences and the choices made by those in power can lead nations astray. It underscores the importance of righteous leadership and the severe consequences of idolatry.
Manasseh became king at the age of 12, following the death of his father, King Hezekiah. However, as he grew in power, he turned away from the worship of the Lord and instead embraced idolatry, abandoning the faith of his forefathers. Manasseh led Judah into a period of great moral and spiritual decline, filled with abominable practices that included child sacrifice, sorcery, and the worship of false gods. This verse specifically references the Amorites, a group of people known for their sinful and idolatrous behaviour, and it emphasizes that Manasseh’s wickedness exceeded even that of the Amorites.
Because of these abominations, God speaks through His prophets, warning that Judah will face a calamity for their transgressions and that Jerusalem will be wiped clean. The Lord promises to abandon the remnant of His inheritance due to their wickedness. Manasseh spills innocent blood in great amounts, further provoking God’s anger. He dies and is buried in the palace garden.
What we learn from Manasseh is that the prevailing culture has terrible power to blind people to the nature of what they are doing and the inevitable consequences of their choices. Why else does Manasseh imitate all the bad kings who have gone before him and none of the good, even though God’s blessing attended the good kings and his judgment fell upon the bad?
This is not the history of somebody else; this is the history of the Church of God. Apostle Paul in Romans 15 says “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” He also reminds us in a famous statement that “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” This narrative about Manasseh is for us!
CHALLENGES
- Have you been a reckless leader in that position you are placed in the church or society?
PRAYER POINT
- God, please give me an obedient heart to do your will, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
FURTHER READING: 2 Kings 20:13-21; Ephesians 3:13-21; 4:1-16
ESOCS Devotional 22 October 2025
