This short prayer, attributed to King Manasseh of Judah, is often considered one of the finest works in the entire English Apocrypha (a set of ancient texts not included in the Hebrew Bible but accepted by some Christian groups). During the Reformation, Protestants deeply appreciated its expression of piety. However, it is not considered Scripture by Protestants, Roman Catholics, or the Eastern Orthodox Church.
The older title, The Prayer of Manasses King of Judah When He was Held Captive in Babylon, is better than the modern title and the Latin title, Oratio Manassae. The older title says this prayer is linked to King Manasseh, who reigned from 696 to 642 BC. Manasseh was taken captive to Babylon, where "he finally came to his senses and humbly cried out to God for help. The Lord listened and answered his plea by returning him to Jerusalem and his kingdom!" (2 Chronicles 33:12–13; on the historicity of this account, see Manasseh #3).
The writer of 2 Chronicles said this prayer came from the national archives and another source (2 Chronicles 33:18–19). An anonymous author composed the prayer, but the date of composition is uncertain. Based on internal evidence, scholars have dated it between 250 BC and AD 50. The oldest surviving Greek biblical manuscript with this prayer is the Codex Alexandrinus. It is from the fifth century AD. The earliest evidence for its existence is in a Syriac manual of church procedures called the Didascalia, from the third century AD. This manual was later revised in the Apostolic Constitutions in AD 380.
Most scholars believe the prayer was originally written in Greek. However, it is hard to find the original language of a text so short—about 400 words in English. The Prayer of Manasseh exists in:
Greek
Syriac
Two Latin versions
Ethiopic
Armenian
Old Slavonic
Its popularity among Jews and Christians in the first three centuries of the Christian era is clear.
The Prayer of Manasseh is a prayer by a sinner who admits his wrongs and appeals to a merciful God.
The Revised Standard Version and New English Bible divide the prayer into 15 verses. The King James Version and English Revised Version do not indicate verse numbers, and a less common system divides the prayer into 19 verses.
The prayer draws from descriptions of God found in the Old Testament. It identifies God as:
"Lord Almighty" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:1; compare 2 Corinthians 6:18)
"God of our fathers" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:1; see also 2 Chronicles 20:6; 33:12)
The Creator—glorious, powerful, wrathful, yet merciful (Prayer of Manasseh 1:2–7a)
He "made heaven and earth" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:2; see also Exodus 20:11; Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 146:6)
"In their manifold array" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:2)
He "shackled the sea" and "confined the deep" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:3; see also Job 38:8–11)
No one can endure his glorious majesty (Prayer of Manasseh 1:5a; compare 2 Peter 1:16–17)
His power makes every creature "shudder and tremble" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:4)
His goodness is shown in mercy and salvation (Prayer of Manasseh 1:7, 14; see also Isaiah 63:7 and Romans 2:4)
He is compassionate, patient (forbearing), and very merciful (Prayer of Manasseh 1:7; see also Psalm 86:5, 15)
He is "the Lord Most High" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:7; see also Psalm 7:17; 47:2)
Manasseh also says that:
"No one can withstand your [God's] threatening wrath against sinners" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:5b)
His idolatry has always been evil in God's eyes, even though he has only recently realized that he has been "piling sin upon sin" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:10)
He is in chains and rejected by God because his idolatry has angered God (Prayer of Manasseh 1:10; see also 2 Chronicles 33:6 and Psalm 107:10)
Manasseh says that God's mercy is his only hope. God's mercy is:
Immeasurable and beyond understanding (Prayer of Manasseh 1:6)
Boundless (Prayer of Manasseh 1:7)
Great (Prayer of Manasseh 1:14)
God's mercy is available because the Lord himself has "appointed repentance for sinners, that they may be saved" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:7; see also Acts 5:31), including Manasseh himself (Prayer of Manasseh 1:8).
The heart of the prayer (Prayer of Manasseh 1:9–13a) includes Manasseh's confession of sin and his appeal for forgiveness. It has three memorable lines:
"My transgressions abound, O Lord, my transgressions abound." … Forgive me, O Lord, forgive me!"
"And now I bend the knee of my heart, beseeching thee for thy kindness." Despite his unworthiness (Prayer of Manasseh 1:9, 14), he begs God not to destroy him, nor to remain angry with him forever, nor to condemn him to the grave, because the Lord is "the God of those who repent" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:13).
Manasseh becomes confident that God, in his goodness and mercy, will save him (Prayer of Manasseh 1:14). He then shows the proper response of a forgiven sinner when he says, "I will praise thee continually all the days of my life" (Prayer of Manasseh 1:15).
The prayer ends with a short doxology praising God's eternal glory.
Although this prayer has many admirable qualities, it differs from Christian teaching in one important way. The author mistakenly assumes there are two types of people. They are the righteous, who are good, and sinners, who are bad. The prayer portrays Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as righteous men who did not sin and did not need to repent. It is not accurate. But, it reflects Jewish thought before Christianity (see Matthew 9:13). The Apostle Paul said that no one is righteous on their own. Everyone has sinned (Romans 3:10–12, 21–26). Abraham's righteousness was not inherent. It came through faith (Romans 4:3; compare Philippians 3:8–9).