Should This Matter?

I don't know…but here is my 2 cents!

Ezekiel 4: My Theory on the Meaning of 40 Years

Ezekiel 4 presents a mystery to us. As Jeremiah is acting out a prophecy as God instructed him to do, God provides two numbers that represent the number of years of iniquity for both the kingdom of Israel and the kingdom of Judah. These numbers are 390 and 40 respectively. These numbers are very specific, so it naturally leads us to determine where these numbers come from, but God does not say. The source of 390 is relatively easy to determine, but 40 is much more elusive.

First, please allow me to provide a recap of this chapter. Ezekiel is giving a prophecy to his fellow captives in Babylon. With this particular prophecy, God commands that Ezekiel act it out. This enactment would provide a visual representation to the people of what is to come.

Ezekiel is told to take a clay tablet and draw Jerusalem on it. Then, he is to besiege it. Finally, he is told to take a baking utensil and place it between himself and Jerusalem as a type of wall. The set up here is relatively clear when we look at all of the prophecies against Israel at this time. Jerusalem is going to be attacked. She is going to endure a great siege by Babylon. Of course, we know that Babylon did indeed besiege Jerusalem again which lasted 3 years before Jerusalem finally fell to Babylon after which it was was destroyed and many died and were taken captive. Other prophecies have told us this was to occur and that this destruction was a result of Israel and Judah’s unrepentant sin and idolatry.

Next, God tells Ezekiel to lay down on his left side for 390 days to “lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity” (vs 4). Similarly, Ezekiel is told to then lay down on his right side for 40 days to “bear the iniquity of the house of Judah” (vs 6). Verse 6 tells us that each day represents a year. So, God tells us exactly what the days represent: the years of iniquity for the house of Israel and Judah. However, God doesn’t explain how He came to these particular numbers.

I couldn’t help but want to understand how Israel and Judah’s sin adds up to 390 and 40 years. I love a good mystery and I began to do some investigating. Surprisingly, I found that a lot of “scholars” and people out in internet land also did not have a sure answer. There were a lot of guesses and it seemed to me that the 390 days had a pretty good guess that made sense to me, but I could not find a good guess for the 40 days.

First let me present the possibilities I came across regarding the 390 and 40 days.

1. 390 + 40 = 430 years. Exodus 12:41 tells us this is exactly how long the Israelites were in Egypt.

2. It just so happens that 40 is a significant number in the Bible. During the great flood, it rained 40 days and 40 nights. Moses stayed on Mount Sinai 40 days to receive God’s law. The 12 spies searched out the promised land 40 days. The Israelites wander 40 years in the wilderness. The law demands that a wicked man found worthy of a beating cannot receive more than 40 lashes (Deuteronomy 25:3). Many of the judges as well as David and Solomon judged/reigned 40 years. Jonah preached that Nineveh would be overthrown in 40 days unless they repented. Jesus was tempted 40 days in the wilderness. After His death and resurrection, Jesus appeared to believers for 40 days before He ascended. There are other instances of 40, but these are some of the major ones. I tried to think of the common denominator among all of these incidents. Sanctification seems to be related to each event. Sanctification is the act of becoming holy. It is a process of being set apart. Judgment and purification are also words that one could apply to many of these passages. Of course, judgement and purification are means of accomplishing sanctification. At times, God must purge out the wicked from the believers or God needs to punish His children to bring them to Him.

3. The time between Malachi (last book of the Old Testament) and Zacharias’ prophecies in the New Testament was around 430 years.

4. 390 seems to correspond to the time of Israel’s apostasy which began with Jeroboam in 929/28 BC. The Jewish return from exile was in 539 BC. So, 929 – 539 = 390. The dates are available to us, so the correlation between Jeroboam and Israel’s continued sin seems like an obvious fit. From my research, it seems that most commentators agree that the 390 years correspond to the time between Jeroboam’s reign and the return from exile.

I personally found #4 to be compelling since the dates fit perfectly to the 390 years. Also, this argument seems to account for the sin of Israel pretty well. Of course, as is often in the Bible, patterns repeat as a symbolic reminder to us. So the other arguments may also be valid at the SAME TIME.

If we first analyze Jeroboam’s reign and Israel’s sin, perhaps we could apply that to something in Judah’s history. The two numbers are clearly linked by years of iniquity between the two kingdoms.

The 390 Years and the Northern Kingdom of Israel: Jeroboam

Israel was united during the reign of king David and Solomon, but sadly, the kingdom splits into two soon after Solomon dies. Solomon, while a wise king, married many women from the surrounding nations who Solomon allowed and helped to worship their own gods. God promised to take the kingdom from him and give it to his servant, but due to David’s righteousness, God would not do so until after Solomon dies (1 Kings 11:1-13). Jeroboam, a servant of Solomon, was visited by a prophet who tells him that God will give 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel to him (1 Kings 11:26-37). God also tells Jeroboam that if he will follow God, God would build Jeroboam’s kingdom. So, Solomon desired to kill Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:38-40).

Once Solomon died, his son, Rehoboam became king. Jeroboam and others came before Rehoboam asking for their tributes to be lighter. If he would comply, they would happily serve Rehoboam. However, Rehoboam listened to inexperienced counsel and chose to lay upon them heavier tributes and taxes. For this reason, Israel rebelled against Rehoboam who fled to Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:1-24, 2 Chronicles 10). From that point on, there were 2 kingdoms: Israel, the northern kingdom which contained 10 of the 12 tribes, and Judah, the southern kingdom, which contained 2 of the 12 tribes and the city of Jerusalem. Jeroboam reigned over Israel and Rehoboam over Judah.

Now, remember, Jeroboam was warned by God to follow God’s law in order to have his kingdom built up like David’s kingdom was. However, Jeroboam does not listen to God. Although God had promised Jeroboam the kingdom that he had received, Jeroboam feared that the people would return to the house of David (Rehoboam) when they return to Jerusalem to complete the required sacrifices. In order to thwart this possibility, Jeroboam decided to institute his own temple and sacrificial system. He made two golden calves placing one in Bethel and the other in Dan. He told the people to worship these gods which he even attributed to delivering Israel from Egypt! He set up priests that were not of the tribe of Levi and were “the lowest of the people” (1 Kings 12:31, 2 Chronicles 11:13-15 & 13:9) as well as feasts, high places, and sacrifices that were not ordained of God (1 Kings 12:-25-33). Jeroboam’s evil ways became a sin to his house so much so that God promised to cut off the house of Jeroboam.

1 Kings 13:34

And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.

In addition to this promise, God issues another prophecy of Jeroboam and Israel’s demise through the prophet Ahijah. God promises to not only cut off the house of Jeroboam (which comes to be at the hands of Baasha, see 1 Kings 15:27-30) but also to destroy Israel and scatter her people through another king that God would rise up (this turns out to be the king of Assyria). God does this because of the sin and idolatry of Israel which was facilitated by Jeroboam.

1 Kings 14:15-16

For the Lord shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the Lord to anger. And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.

As we can see, God directly links Israel’s demise to Jeroboam’s reign. He does so on several occasions as well:

Successors of Jeroboam to the throne of Israel are always described as evil in continuing in Jeroboam’s sins:

    1. Baasha: 1 Kings 15:34
    2. Elah/Zimri/Omri: 1 Kings 16:7, 13, 19, 26
    3. Ahab: 1 Kings 21:22
    4. Ahaziah: 1 Kings 22:52
    5. Jehoram: 2 Kings 3:3
    6. Jehu: 2 Kings 10:29, 31
    7. Jehoahaz: 2 Kings 13:2,6
    8. Jehoash (Joash): 2 Kings 13:11
    9. Jeroboam II: 2 Kings 14:24
    10. Zachariah/Shallum/Menahem: 2 Kings 15:9, 18
    11. Pekahiah/Pekah/Hoshea: 2 Kings 15:24, 28

It was during the reign of Hoshea that Assyria defeated Samaria (the capital city of the Northern Kingdom, Israel) and carried away the people into captivity. 2 Kings 17 tells us very clearly that this defeat was the result of Israel’s sin and idolatry. God specifically links it to Jeroboam claiming that Israel NEVER turned from the sin that Jeroboam started.

2 Kings‬ ‭17:21-23‬

For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the Lord, and made them sin a great sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; Until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.

‭‭The Northern Kingdom’s demise is very clearly linked to the reign of Jeroboam. Jeroboam introduced idolatry and sin into Israel, and Israel never recovered from it. Not one king following the reign of Jeroboam is listed as righteous.

The 40 Years and Judah: Manasseh

It is difficult to determine how 40 years are linked to the history of Judah’s sin since there are no dates that easily equate to 40 years. The dates correspond so easily with 390 years of Israel’s sin after Jeroboam. However, the two time periods of 390 and 40 are clearly linked here in this prophecy, so perhaps the answer is to see if Judah has a similar situation to that of Jeroboam.

The difference between Israel and Judah is pretty remarkable. When Israel split into the Northern Kingdom under Jeroboam (Israel) and the Southern Kingdom under Rehoboam (Judah), Israel remained in sin until she was destroyed by Assyria. There were no good kings! Judah, however, had several good kings. In fact, if you add up the years of rule of each king, we find that there were 263 years of good kings ruling and 124 years of evil kings ruling.

Here is a list of the kings of Judah and the length of the reigns:

    1. Rehoboam (evil) – 17 years (1 Kings 14:21-22, 2 Chronicles 12:13-14). ** 3 years good (2 Chronicles 11:17)
    2. Abijah (evil) – 3 years (1 Kings 15:2-3, 2 Chronicles 13:1-2)
    3. Asa (good) – 41 years (1 Kings 15:10-11, 2 Chronicles 14:1-2)
    4. Jehoshaphat (good) – 25 years (1 Kings 22:41-44, 2 Chronicles 17:1-4 & 20:31-31)
    5. Jehoram (evil) – 8 years (2 Kings 8:16-19, 2 Chronicles 21:5-6)
    6. Ahaziah (evil) – 1 year (2 Kings 8:25-27)
    7. Jehoash (good) – 40 years (2 Kings 12:1-2)
    8. Amaziah(good) – 29 years (2 Kings 14:1-3)
    9. Uzziah (good) – 52 years (2 Kings 15:1-3)
    10. Jotham (good) – 16 years (2 Kings 15:32-34)
    11. Ahaz (evil) – 16 years (2 Kings 16:1-4)
    12. Hezekiah (good) – 29 years (2 Kings 18:1-3)
    13. Manasseh (evil) – 55 years (2 Kings 21:1-3) **Repents during his reign
    14. Amon (evil) – 2 years (2 Kings 21:19-20)
    15. Josiah (good) – 31 years (2 Kings 22:1-2)
    16. Jehoahaz (evil) – 3 months (2 Kings 23:31-32)
    17. Jehoiakim (evil) – 11 years (2 Kings 23:36-37)
    18. Jehoiachin (evil) – 3 months (2 Kings 24:8-9)
    19. Zedekiah (evil) – 11 years (2 Kings 24:18-19)

  • Now, it is easy to see why Judah has less years of iniquity to bear than Israel: Judah had some good kings and moments of repentance while Israel did not. But we still need to determine where 40 comes from. I think a very likely place to start is to see if Judah has a king that compares to Jeroboam. This would be king who committed gross idolatry and essentially caused the whole nation to follow in that sin. He would stand out as a king who ended God’s long suffering for Judah. Perhaps then, we can see if 40 fits at all within that context.

    Judah does have a king that seems to fit the bill. This king stands out in several ways like Jeroboam did. He too is mentioned by name is the cause of the final demise of Jerusalem and the exile. This king is Manasseh.

    Why Manasseh? David’s Sake

    In addition to the presence of good kings, Judah differs from Israel in that their kings were of the lineage of David. The Bible is clear that the relation to David extended Judah’s kingdom despite the presence of several evil kings. In fact, God says specifically during Abijah and Jehoram’s reigns that even though they were evil kings, God would not destroy Judah for David’s sake (1 Kings 15:4-5, 2 Kings 8:19, 2 Chronicles 21:7). This is a beautiful picture of children and others receiving blessings from the godly parents or people around them. However, while God is long suffering, He is just and He will have to punish iniquity.

    The last time that “David’s sake” is invoked by God is during the reign of Hezekiah. Hezekiah was sick and about to die. Hezekiah prayed to God. God promised Hezekiah 15 more years. God does this for God’s sake, and David’s sake.

    2 Kings‬ ‭20:5-6‬ ‭‬

    Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the Lord. And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.

    Despite this righteous reign, Hezekiah’s pride got the best of him. He showed the treasures of Judah to the ambassadors from Babylon after he was healed. God tells Hezekiah that in time Babylon will take away all of the treasures and his sons will be eunuchs for the king of Babylon (2 Kings 20:12-21, 2 Chronicles 32:27-33).

    The next king who rules Judah is Manasseh. Although God offered a lighter punishment to future kings if they were to obey Him and extending the kingdom slightly for the righteous king Josiah, God never revokes judgment after Manasseh’s reign.

    Josiah’s righteous reign postponed the punishment planned by God as is indicated in 2 Kings 23:24-27. Josiah is described as “like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might…neither after him arose there any like him.” Despite this, however, verse 26 – 27 describes God’s fierce anger against Judah because of Manasseh and how God will punish Judah anyway.

    Huldah’s prophecy, recorded in 2 Kings 22:11-20, tells us that due to his righteousness, God would allow Josiah to die in peace before the judgement of Judah. But, Huldah was also clear that the judgement of Judah was already set to happen. If Josiah hadn’t been righteous, it is likely that the judgement would have begun during his lifetime, but it was delayed.

    2 Kings 22:16-17

    Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof…because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands..

    Why Manasseh? His Evil Reign and Idolatry

    As the list of kings of Judah above indicates, Manasseh was the son of Hezekiah who was considered a particularly righteous king. In 2 Chronicles 33 and 2 Kings 21, we see that Manasseh was a very evil king despite the fact that his father, Hezekiah, was righteous. Some of the major sins of Manasseh were:

    • Built back the “high places” and “groves” that Hezekiah had torn down (high places are idolatrous alters generally found in mountains and groves were idolatrous alters in forests or trees) as well as worshipped the sun, moon, and stars (2 Kgs 21:3, 2 Chron 33:3)
    • Built alters in the temple (to worship the sun, moon, and stars) (2 Kgs 21: 5, 2 Chron 33:4-5)
    • Practiced child sacrifice in the Valley of Hinnom (see my other articles on abortion for additional information on the practice of child sacrifice in Jerusalem) (2 Kgs 21:6, 2 Chron 33:6)
    • Dealt with the occult and witches/wizards and the like (2 Kgs 21:6, 2 Chron 33:6)
    • Set up an idol in the temple (2 Kgs 21:7, 2 Chron 33:7)
    • Shed a lot of innocent blood (2 Kgs 21:16)
    • Caused all of Judah to sin even worse than the nations surrounding them (2 Kgs 21:16, 2 Chron 33:9)
  • Like Jeroboam, Manasseh is considered particularly evil because he caused all of Judah to sin. 2 Chronicles 33:9 tell us, “So Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to err, and to do worse than the heathen whom the Lord had destroyed before the children of Israel” and 2 Kings 21:16 says, “Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another…“. The murderous description of Manasseh’s reign was unique to all of the evil kings of Judah. Who were the innocents mentioned here? Perhaps it was the righteous people or the prophets. It may also be the innocent children sacrificed. Regardless, 2 Kings 24:2-4 declares that God would not pardon the murder that Manasseh committed against the innocent.
  • In addition to murder and encouraging others to sin, Manasseh’s idolatry was particularly noticeable. The description of his idolatry is longer and more detailed than the other kings of Judah. It is also mentioned that he built idols INSIDE the temple! In fact, I found it interesting that in the vision Ezekiel has in chapter 8 verse 5, the Hebrew word “cemel” used for “image” in the phrase “image of jealousy” was only found in two other passages in the Bible: Deuteronomy 4:16 and 2 Chronicles 33:7 & 14. Ezekiel 8 – 11 details the presence of God leaving the temple in Jerusalem and why this occurs. One of the reasons listed that God’s presence departs the temple is found in Ezekiel 8:5-6 where Ezekiel sees (via vision) at the north gate of the temple an “image of jealousy”. I believe that this image may be the idol that Manasseh placed in the temple and it is most likely a grove (tree/pillar). I speak to this in my blog post Image of Jealousy. Either way, God hated this idol’s presence in His temple so much, that it was one of the major reason’s for God’s presence leaving the temple.
  • Why Manasseh? God Wouldn’t Pardon His Bloodshed
  • God was very clear that there was no option for pardon for Manasseh’s bloody reign. He spilled so much innocent blood that God would not forgive it. Now, judgement is set.

    • 2 Kings 24:4

    And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord would not pardon.

    Although there was righteous king after Manasseh, Josiah, the judgment was merely delayed not stopped. God had to punish Jerusalem for their violent and bloody behavior. 2 Kings 24:4 leaves no question as to the reason for judgement.

    Why Manasseh? The Bible Says So
  • The Scripture is actually quite clear that Manasseh linked to the cause of the judgement to befall Judah.

    • 2 Kings 23:26-27

    Notwithstanding the Lord turned not front he fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal. And the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, my name shall be there.

    2 Kings 24:2-4

    And the Lord sent against him bands of the Chaldees…against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by his servants the prophets. Surely at the commandment of the Lord came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did; and also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord would not pardon.

    Jeremiah 15:4

    And I will cause them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.

    Why Manasseh? Judgement Comes Quickly After Manasseh and Josiah

    But why Manasseh and not some other king? There were evil kings after Manasseh, but there was a good one too: Josiah.

    Amon was the son of Manasseh and he did have a short evil reign (2 years) before he was killed by his own servants. The Bible tells us that he worshipped the gods that Manasseh had made and trespassed like his father did. His evil reign was simply a result of Manasseh’s evil reign.

    The judgement of Judah happens very quickly after Josiah’s death even beginning with the very next king.

    • Jehoahaz: He reigns only 3 months. He was put on the throne in the place of his evil older brother Jehoiachim. However, he was taken to Egypt by Necho II and placed Jehoiachim on the throne instead.
    • Jehoiachim: He reigns 11 years. He was an evil king who was violent, selfish, and covetous. He participated in murder, stealing, and oppression (Jeremiah 22:10-20). Initially, he paid tribute to Egypt, but Babylon invades Judah after Egypt is defeated in 605 BC. Many nobles and craftmen were taken captive. He then allies with Egypt which causes Babylon to invade again and leads to his death in 598 BC before the siege ended. His son Jehoiachin takes the throne.
    • Jehoiachin: He reigns only 3 months, basically until the end of the siege. He is taken captive by Babylon along with nobles, princes, and craftsmen/. He is in prison for 37 years later and then released and treated well by the new king of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, placed Zedekiah (Jehoiachin’s uncle) on the throne when Jehoiachin was taken captive.
    • Zedekiah: He reigns 11 years. He was also an evil king. Although he was placed on the throne by the king of Babylon and despite Jeremiah’s warnings not to, Zedekiah rebels against Babylon prompting Babylon to besiege Jerusalem. It is this 3 year siege that causes the famine, pestilence and death promised by God. He is killed when Jerusalem finally fell to Babylon as he and his sons tried to escape the city on horseback. He is forced to watch his sons die and then he is blinded by Nebuchadnezzar and taken to Babylon where he dies.
  • So, we can see that right after Josiah’s death, the downward spiral of Judah begins and ends with the final destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon with many Jews scattered in Babylon most of the others killed by the sword, famine, or pestilence.
  • Manasseh’s Repentance
  • Another aspect of Manasseh’s reign that is unique, even to Jeroboam, is that he repented. This event is recorded in 2 Chronicles 33:11-17. God punished Manasseh by allowing him to be taken captive by Assyria. At that time, Manasseh called on God who returned him to Jerusalem. It was at that point that Manasseh “knew that the Lord he was God” (2 Chron 33:13) and put away the idols and alters and idolatry. Manasseh’s son Amon reigned after Manasseh’s death but he did as Manasseh had done originally, he was evil.
  • 40 Years
  • Now that we can see that Manasseh is to Judah’s sin as Jeroboam is to Israel’s sin, it is time to see if the number 40 fits at all in relation to Manasseh. In the case of Israel, remember, the 390 most likely stands for the years of sin between the reign of Jeroboam and the return from exile. However, this same exact scenario cannot be true of Judah. Manasseh reigned for 55 years which, despite his evil ways, was longer than any other in Judah. His reign began around 697 BC at 12 years of age. He was likely co-regent with his father for about 10 years so that his sole reign would begin at 687 BC.
  • When I try to correlate the numbers in the same manner as Israel, it doesn’t fit since 697 (Manasseh’s reign) – 539 (the return from exile) = 158. However, we have to remember that Judah was different than Israel. While Israel had all evil kings, Judah had many years of good kings. I tried to play around with the length of the reigns of good kings versus bad kings, but I could never come to the number 40. But I think the key to this mystery is Manasseh as he is spoken of so very similarly to Jeroboam.
  • After Manasseh, there evil kings reigned a total of 22 1/2 years. If we add Manasseh and Amon into it, we get to 79 1/2 years. None of this works.
  • I have come up with two possibilities. The problem is that we do not know the date of Manasseh’s repentance. Because of this, we cannot iron out a 40 year period. However, with these two possibilities, I can get really close!
  • Possibility 1: Manasseh’s Reign Before Repentance
  • Manasseh reigned for 55 years. However, he repented at some point. Unfortunately, we do not know the exact date of Manasseh’s repentance. But, 2 Chronicles 33 does tell us he was taken captive by Assyria. Sadly, we don’t know exactly when Assyria invaded and took Manasseh, nonetheless, we can make some pretty good guesses.
  • Assyrian records list Manasseh as one of the kings who provided building materials to them while Esarhaddon was king of Assyria. This would indicate that Manasseh was still king at this point. Also, during the reign of his son, Ashurbanipal, Manasseh is listed as a vassal king who helped in the invasion of Egypt. Again, Manasseh was still king at this point. Esarhaddon died and was succeeded by Ashurbanipal in 669 BC (Wikipedia – Manasseh). In 667 BC, Ashurbanipal invades Egypt (Wikipedia – Ashurbanipal). So it is reasonable to assume that Manasseh’s captivity would be after 667 BC.

    • In 652 BC, Babylonia revolts against Assyria along with other nations. The Assyrians besiege Babylon in 648 BC and win. In addition to their siege of Babylon, Assyria also attacked nations that helped Babylon in their rebellion (Wikipedia – Ashurbanipal). Is it possible that Judah was included? Is this why Manasseh was taken captive? Well, the numbers seem to add up:

    Manasseh began his reign as co-regent with his father, Hezekiah, who was righteous. So, it would make sense that any evil part of his reign would be begin after Hezekiah died and Manasseh began his sole reign.

  • Possibility 2: Evil Kings from Manasseh Until Destruction
  • Another way that gets close to 40 is when we take all of the lengths of the evil kings rule from Manasseh until Jerusalem falls. This adds up to 79 (55+2+11+11 – see the list above for the kings). I leave out Josiah’s 31 year reign, because he was righteous.
  • 79 – 31 = 48
  • Now, we are 8 years off. Could the 8 year difference be the years he had repented? He died around 642 BC. If he was taken captive in 648 BC, as we postulated above, this would mean his repentance was around 6 years long. Of course, that means there is a two year difference, but our date of 648 BC as his repentance isn’t ironclad.

  • Conclusion

  • Of course, my argument here is just a theory. Sometimes, the Bible does not provide all of the answers, and we have to be ok with that. God does want us to “seek” Him after all. I enjoy seeing if I can come up with answers to the mysteries of the Bible. If any one out in internet land can see where I am wrong, please comment below. Or, if you can find additional evidence for my theory, please comment as well! I love discourse even if it proves me wrong. We will all gain some knowledge and edification in the process.
  • The bottom line is that judgement is coming. In some cases, it is delayed, maybe even more than 390 years or 40 years, but judgement is set. There is a day coming where we will all stand before God and give an account. It may seem like it is taking a long time, but it will come. Judah didn’t think that their day of reckoning would come but it did. Ours is coming too.

    • “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night…”

    2 Peter 3:8-10