And he set a carved image, the idol which he had made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen before all the tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever:

2 CHRONICLES 33:7KJV
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2 Chronicles 33:7 (KJV)

What does 2 Chronicles 33:7 mean?

2 Chronicles 33:7 describes how King Manasseh placed a carved idol that he had made inside the temple of God, even though God had told David and Solomon that this temple in Jerusalem was the chosen place for His name forever. The verse highlights a direct act of disrespect toward God’s specific instructions about the temple’s holiness.

The setting is during the reign of Manasseh, king of Judah, who is known for leading the people into idolatry. The verse points out the seriousness of Manasseh’s actions by reminding readers that God had made a special promise to David and Solomon about the temple’s unique status. This act of placing an idol in the temple was not just a personal sin but a violation of a sacred trust and a turning away from God’s covenant with Israel.

The Hebrew behind 2 Chronicles 33:7

  • "carved image" (פֶּסֶל, pesel): This word refers to a physical idol, usually made by carving wood or stone. Its use here emphasizes that Manasseh’s sin was not just spiritual but involved a concrete, visible object placed in God’s temple.
  • "idol" (סֵמֶל, semel): This word often means a statue or figure set up for worship. The verse uses both "pesel" and "semel" to stress the seriousness and deliberate nature of the idolatry.
  • "house" (בַּיִת, bayit): This is the common word for "house," but in this context, it refers specifically to the temple, the central place of worship that God had chosen for His name.
  • "put my name" (שִׂים שֵׁם, sim shem): This phrase means God’s presence and reputation were to dwell in the temple. Manasseh’s actions directly challenged this idea by introducing another object of worship into that space.

Why 2 Chronicles 33:7 matters

  • The verse clarifies that Manasseh’s sin was not just personal idolatry but a public act that defiled the very place God had chosen as His own, making the offense especially grave.
  • It highlights the contrast between God’s promise to David and Solomon and the actions of later kings, showing how far the nation had strayed from its original calling.
  • This verse helps explain why later judgments came upon Judah, as it shows the depth of their leaders’ rebellion against God’s clear instructions.

Where else these words appear

“idol” Hebrew H5566 · used in 5 verses

  • Deuteronomy 4:16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
  • 2 Chronicles 33:15 And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the LORD, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the LORD, and in Jerusalem, and cast them out of the city.
  • Ezekiel 8:3 And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.

“image” Hebrew H6459 · used in 31 verses

  • Exodus 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
  • Judges 18:17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither, and took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image: and the priest stood in the entering of the gate with the six hundred men that were appointed with weapons of war.
  • Isaiah 44:9 They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.