Manasseh Series

MANASSEH

Manasseh was the king of southern Judea. He was known for his idol worship and lack of faith in Yahweh.

Manasseh was the fourteenth king of the Kingdom of Judah. He was the oldest of the sons of Hezekiah and his mother, Hephzibah. He became king at the age of 12 and reigned for 55 years. The biblical account of Manasseh is found in 2 Kings 21:1–18 and 2 Chronicles 32:33–33:20.?

Born:?709 BC,?Jerusalem

Died:?643 BC,?Jerusalem

Spouse:?Meshullemeth?(m. ?–644 BC)

House:?House of David

Children:?Amon of Judah

Parents:?Hezekiah,?Hephzibah

Grandchild:?Josiah

Manasseh, one of the?Twelve Tribes of Israel, constituted?Israel's people.

After the?Exodus?from Egypt and the death of?Moses, the Israelites entered the Promised Land under the leadership of?Joshua, who assigned territory to each of the 12 tribes. The tribe of Manasseh settled in central?Palestine—some to the east, some to the west of the?Jordan River. When the independent kingdom of Israel, established by the ten northern tribes after the death of King?Solomon?(10th century?BCE), was conquered by the Assyrians in the late 8th century?BCE, many Israelites were carried off into slavery. In time the tribe of Manasseh was?assimilated?by other peoples and thus became known in?legend?as one of the?Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.

Manasseh

MANASSEH?m? nas' ?;?one who causes to forget). KJV MANASSES (Matt 1:10).

1. The older of two sons born to Joseph and Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera the Egyp. Priest of On (Heliopolis;?Gen 41:50,?51;?46:20). Biblical etymology derives the name "to forget" and means, "He who causes one to forget." Joseph interprets the name by stating, "God has made me forget all my hardship and my father's house" (41:51). When Joseph brought his sons Ephraim and Manasseh to his father for his blessing, Jacob adopted them as his own, placing them on an equality with his sons as progenitors[A] of separate tribes. In blessing the two boys Jacob subordinated Manasseh, the elder, to Ephraim, the younger, who thus inherited the position of privilege, the firstborn's blessing (Gen 48). Notwithstanding his subordination, in the inheritance, Manasseh was to be blessed by "the angel who has redeemed" Jacob "from all evil" and was to become a great people (Gen 48:16,?19). Jacob's statement, "By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, 'God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh'" (48:20), is the basis of the benediction Jewish parents pronounce upon their sons on the Sabbath and holy days. Manasseh's Aramean concubine was the mother of Machir, whose descendants became the tribe of Manasseh (1 Chron 7:14). The Targums Jerusalem and pseudo-Jonathan in?Genesis 42?are responsible for the Jewish tradition that Manasseh was a steward in the house of Joseph and that he acted as the interpreter for Joseph in his conversation with his brothers (Gen 42:23). The same tradition records that Manasseh possessed unusual physical strength demonstrated when he retained Simeon (42:24).

A. definition of progenitor

a: progenitor:?an ancestor in the direct line:?FOREFATHER

b:?a biologically ancestral forerunner

2. One of the twelve tribes of Israel descending from Manasseh, the grandson of Jacob through Joseph, Manasseh was one of the two Joseph tribes; Ephraim was the other. At the Exodus Manasseh numbered 32,200 (Num 1:35;?2:21), while Ephraim had 40,500 (Num 1:32,?33;?2:19). At the time of Israel's conquest of Canaan, forty years later, Manasseh had increased to 52,700 (26:34), while Ephraim had fallen to 32,500 (26:37). At the time of the entrance into Canaan, Manasseh was sixth in the numerical strength of the twelve tribes, being surpassed by Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, and Asher. During the journey through the wilderness, the position of Manasseh was on the western side of the Tabernacle with Ephraim and Benjamin (2:18-24). The head of the tribe was Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur (1:10;?7:54). The Jerusalem and pseudo-Jonathan Targums say that the standard of the Rachel tribes, Manasseh, Ephraim, and Benjamin, carried the figure of a boy with the statement, "The cloud of the Lord rested on them until they went forth out of the camp." The Talmud says that Manasseh's tribal banner was a black flag carrying the embroidered figure of a unicorn. The tribe of Manasseh was represented by Gaddi, son of Susi, when Moses sent the twelve spies to survey the land of Canaan (13:11).

Manasseh took an essential part in the victories of Israel over her enemies. The Biblical account describes how the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, took Gilead and conquered the Amorites (32:39). Jair the Manassite took the whole region of Bashan and called the villages Havvoth-jair after his name (32:41;?Deut 3:14;?1 Chron 5:18-22). Nobah "went and took Kenath and its villages, and called it Nobah, after his own name" (Num 32:42). Troops of the tribe of Manasseh crossed to the West bank of the Jordan and contributed effectively to the victories of the conquest under the leadership of Joshua (Josh 22:1,?7). After the fighting, the tribe of Manasseh coöperated with the Reubenites and the Gadites in building an altar by the Jordan, which nearly led to civil war in Israel because it was misinterpreted by the other tribes (Josh 22:10-34). Other prominent leaders from Manasseh included judge Gideon, who defeated the Midianites with a small army (Judg 6:15). Gideon's son Abimelech maintained himself at the head of a short-lived kingdom in the territory of Manasseh (ch. 9). Also from Manasseh was the judge Jephthah who defeated the Ammonites (ch. 11).