1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for fifty-five years. His mother’s name was Hephzibah.
2 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.
3 He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he also erected altars to Baal and made an Asherah pole, as Ahab king of Israel had done. He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshipped them.
4 He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, ‘In Jerusalem I will put my Name.’
5 In the two courts of the temple of the Lord, he built altars to all the starry hosts.
6 He sacrificed his own son in the fire, practised divination, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.