Manasseh was the oldest son of Hezekiah. He began his reign over Judah at the age of 12 and reigned for 55 years. He did not start as one of the better kings of Judah. His father was known for religious reforms and for returning the southern kingdom to a worship of Yahweh. Manasseh made it his mission in life to undo all of the reforms his father had instituted. He was successful; 2 Kings states that Manasseh led Judah to “do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel” (21:9).
God did send prophets to warn Manasseh that judgment was coming if he continued to rebel against God. However, Manasseh did not listen. Eventually, Assyria invaded the southern kingdom (Judah), and Manasseh was captured and led off in chains to Babylon. However, this is not the end of the story. The book of 2 Chronicles states that Manasseh repented of the evil he had done and called out to God, who heard his prayer. Manasseh was eventually restored as king over Judah and began to reverse his earlier edicts, restoring the worship of Yahweh in the nation.
While several observations could be made about this story, I would like to focus on the fact that God did not give up on Manasseh. God used Manasseh’s fall from the peak of power in Judah to bring about a change of heart. Manasseh undoubtedly experienced pain and ridicule during his imprisonment, and those very things became a source of self-reflection and the impetus for him to finally seek the God of his father. Even though Manasseh ignored the message of the prophets God sent, and eventually became even more evil than the people God drove out of the land before Israel, God still heard his voice when he ultimately did repent. Likewise, God does not give up on us. No matter how far we have gone from God, he will hear us if we call on him. When we stray, forget him, consciously choose to go our own way, etc., if we repent, surely God will hear our cry and give us an opportunity to change the path we are on.