Manasseh, KJV of NT Manasses. [Heb. Menashsheh, “making to forget”; Gr. Manasseµs.]

1.   The elder son of Joseph, by Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On (Gen 41:50, 51). Hence he was half Egyptian, unless the priest of On was one of the Semitic Hyksos, as is possible. When before his death Jacob blessed Manasseh and his brother Ephraim, the old patriarch indicated by crossing his arms and placing his left hand upon Manasseh, that Ephraim, though younger, would become superior (ch 48:8-21). This prophecy was later fulfilled when Manasseh's descendants, though forming an influential tribe in Israel, were surpassed in importance by the tribe descended from Ephraim (see Manasseh, 3).

2.   A name appearing in Jgs 18:30, KJV, where, however, Moses should be read. The name Manasseh is the result of a modification in the Hebrew consonantal text by the Jewish Masoretes, who inserted an n above the line in the name of Moses apparently to obscure the fact that one of Moses' descendants had become the head of an idolatrous priesthood. See Jonathan, 1.

3.   The tribe which was descended from Joseph's elder son (Jos 16:4). Although their ancestor was only Jacob's grandchild, he and his brother were adopted by Jacob as his own sons (Gen 48:5), and their descendants were always treated by the Israelites as 2 separate tribes, equal to those which descended from Jacob's other sons. The tribe of Manasseh consisted of 7 tribal families: one was founded by Machir, and the other 6 sprang from Manasseh's grandson Gilead (Gen 50:23; Num 26:28-34; Jos 17:1, 2). Half of the tribe received part of the Transjordan territory conquered under Moses' leadership from the Amorite kings of Heshbon and Bashan. The Manassites were not allowed to occupy it, however, until after they had assisted the other tribes in the conquest of the territories west of the Jordan (ch 32:20-42). The territory allotted to the half tribe of Manasseh in Transjordan covered the northern part of Gilead and all of Bashan (Deut 3:13-15; Jos 13:29-33), an area consisting partly of forest and partly of fertile grain-producing land. The other half tribe had a large territory in Canaan, which was bounded on the south by Ephraim, and on the north by Issachar, Zebulun, and Asher; its southern boundary ran from the Jordan to Taanath-shiloh, near Shechem, and then followed the “brook Kanah” (WaÆdéÆ QaÆnah), ending at the Mediterranean (Jos 17:5-10). The fluidity of this boundary is, however, evident from the fact that the tribe of Ephraim possessed cities within the territory of Manasseh (ch 16:9), while at the same time, Manasseh possessed several cities in the territories of Issachar and Asher (Jos 17:11; cf. 1 Chr 7:29). Like the other tribes, the Manassites were not immediately able to expel the Canaanites from many of the fortress cities, but in the course of time made the Canaanites tributary (Jos 17:12, 13; Jgs 1:27, 28). Two Manassite cities in Bashan were assigned to the Levites (Jos 20:8; 21:27; 1 Chr 6:71). The eastern Manassites extended their territory by waging war against the Hagrites and others (1 Chr 5:18-22). The most famous Manassite of Biblical history was Gideon, the hero and judge who delivered Israel from the Midianites (Jgs 6:15). Some members of the tribe of Manasseh joined David at Ziklag (1 Chr 12:19, 20), and 18,000 offered him their service while he was king of Judah in Hebron (1 Chr 12:31; cf. v 37). Manasseh became part of the northern kingdom after the breakup of Solomon's empire, but some Manassites came to Asa of Judah when they saw that the Lord was with him (2 Chr 15:9). Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria carried the bulk of the population into captivity in the 8th cent. b.c. (1 Chr 5:23-26), but some remnants were left in the country, for some members of that tribe attended the Passover of King Hezekiah (2 Chr 30:1, 10, 11, 18), and as the result of the religious revival returned to their territory and destroyed the cult places of their land dedicated to pagan gods (ch 31:1). They also took part in the reform of King Josiah (ch 34:6, 9). The tribe of Manasseh is mentioned in the visions of Ezekiel (ch 48:4) and John (Rev 7:6).

4.   The 14th ruler of the kingdom of Judah; he reigned for 55 years (c. 697 c. 642 b.c.), during part of which he was apparently coregent with his father Hezekiah. An ancient Hebrew seal, published in 1963, bears the inscription “Belonging to Manasseh, son of the king.” On paleographic grounds the seal can be dated to either the 8th or the 7th cent. b.c. It is therefore possible that this seal belonged to Manasseh, King Hezekiah's son, before he ascended the throne, though it may have belonged to another royal prince of the same name who lived somewhat earlier or later than King Manasseh (N. Avigad, IEJ 13 [1963], 133-136). He did not follow his father's good example, but was more wicked than any of his predecessors. He re-established the high places, erected an altar to Baal, and made a cult object to Asherah. He worshiped many other gods in the Temple courts, and sacrificed one of his sons by fire. He ignored the prophets' warnings of the consequences of his evildoings and persecuted many followers of the true God, as the statement that he shed much innocent blood obviously indicates (2 Ki 21:1-16; 2 Chr 33:1-10). As a punishment for his wicked deeds God delivered him into the hands of the Assyrian kings. Both Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal mention Manasseh as having paid tribute to them (ANET 291, 294), one king spelling his name Menasi and the other Minsie. Yet he seems to have been a disloyal vassal, for on one occasion he was taken captive to Babylon—which was at that time part of the Assyrian Empire—by either Esarhaddon or Ashurbanipal. However, he was allowed to return when the Assyrian king apparently became convinced that Manasseh would henceforth be loyal. Although a non-Biblical record of Manasseh's captivity has not yet been found in cuneiform sources, the experience is not without parallels. For example, the Egyptian ruler Necho (I), king of Saïs, was made vassal king of Egypt by Esarhaddon. After Esarhaddon's death Necho rebelled against Assyria, and was taken to Mesopotamia as a prisoner. While there he succeeded in gaining the confidence of Ashurbanipal, who pardoned him and restored him to his throne in Saïs. While captive in Babylon, Manasseh repented, and after his return to Jerusalem he tried to undo his former wickedness by removing idolatry from his kingdom and from the Temple. Yet he did not abolish the high places, although he allowed worship only of the true God in them. The chronicler records that he engaged in extensive building activity in Jerusalem and that he strengthened the army (2 Chr 33:11-17). After a reign of more years than that of any other Hebrew king, Manasseh died, leaving the throne to his son Amon. He was buried in the garden of his own house (2 Ki 21:18; 2 Chr 33:20).

5.   A Jew married to a foreign wife in Ezra's time (Ezr 10:30).

6.   Another Jew married to a foreign wife in Ezra's time (Ezr 10:33).

Horn, Siegfried H., Seventh-day Adventist Bible Dictionary, (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association) 1979.