ISAIAH'S LEGACY - Mesu Andrews - One Free Book

Welcome back, Mesu. Congratulations on your new novel, Isaiah’s Legacy! Can you give us a quick overview of the book?

Isaiah’s Legacy continues the story of Judah’s Queen Hephzibah (Zibah), who was the prophet Isaiah’s daughter according to Jewish tradition. Isaiah’s Legacy is a sequel to my first book in the Prophets and Kings Series, Isaiah’s Daughter, but it can also be read as a stand-alone since its focus is the life and loves of Queen Zibah’s son, Manasseh.

Described as Judah’s most wicked king, Manasseh knew from his earliest memory that his father, King Hezekiah, would die—according to his grandfather Isaiah’s prophecy. Manasseh witnesses his abba’s death and is thrust onto Judah’s throne where his infatuation with a girl named Shulle transforms her from a poor maiden to his queen. Under the influence of her wicked uncle, Shebna, Shulle introduces palace intrigues and stirs ancient vendettas that pit pagan advisors against faithful Yahwists. Darkness marches forward, gaining momentum and threatening to snuff out the last flicker of Yahweh’s spark in Judah. But in a sudden twist of fate, Manasseh faces a darker path than his pagan gods can travel and finds only Yahweh waiting at the end of himself. It’s there—in a deep, dark pit—that I found Manasseh’s story to be the most phenomenal prodigal tale in Scripture. His redemption still gives me chills!

From sorcery to child sacrifice, this book really brings to life the reality of pagan worship during biblical times. What did you learn about some of these practices while writing the book?

Isaiah’s Legacy is the tenth book I’ve researched. The nations and generations in those books’ research spans Egypt, Canaan, Phoenicia, Assyria to Babylon (and many nations in between) and the people I’ve learned about range in time from Jacob in 2005 BC to Daniel in 530 BC—almost 1500 years.

In all that research, I’ve discovered so many similarities among the foreign gods, pagan rituals, and sorcery/divining between the nations and regions. But, interestingly enough, I’ve also discovered that gods and rituals differ from generation to generation even within the same nation.

A single god from the same nation may change in name and form from one generation to the next, but the same basic god may be shared by another nation with a similar legend and corresponding divine “family.” Nearly every culture includes a ritual of divining from animal innards. All nations, tribes, and tongues were fascinated by the various lights in the sky— sun, moon, and stars—and made them gods with differing names.

Some may find it disturbing when they discover ancient religions (some dating before Judaism and our Bible stories) that include stories very similar to Noah’s Ark and Creation. But I find it exciting! Many religions originated in Ancient Mesopotamia—where Abraham (in the Land of Ur) heard the One God call him to a different Land. Yahweh made Abraham’s descendants covenant bearers—Isaac, Jacob (renamed Israel), and Israel’s twelve tribes—and promised to bless all nations through them (Gen. 22:18). They kept the record of God’s redemptive work on earth with the Scriptures we hold in our hands today.

In every pagan ritual, every story of foreign gods, every method of divining, there’s a longing for connection with the Divine. Some want it for selfish reasons or to use it for evil. Others are looking to fill an emptiness that the Spirit has revealed—and He’ll lead them to discover the Truth. It’s been this way for ages, and I believe it will continue until we see Jesus with our own eyes.

You give one of the main characters, Manasseh, a set of unique characteristics that suggests he is on the autism spectrum. Can you tell us more about that and why you chose to give him those qualities?

I knew very little about autism until a couple of years ago, when one of my grandkids was slow in learning to talk. He would become frustrated in his attempts to communicate and begin screaming and lashing out. Concerned, I called one of my author buddies (Pepper Basham), who had also worked as a speech-language pathologist with specialty in social communication disorders for twenty years. Stated simply: she had twenty years’ experience of speech therapy with autistic teens.

After plying her with questions, I was pretty certain my grandson wasn’t on the spectrum, but her answers made me wonder about the character I was researching at the time: the twelve-year-old boy king, Manasseh. Ultra-intelligent, Manasseh could recite Leviticus fifty-five different ways (Sanh. 103b). (I can’t even recite all Ten Commandments.)

I wrote the first twelve chapters, concentrating on Manasseh’s childhood and early adolescence, and sent it to Pepper and five moms who had adolescent boys on the spectrum. I asked for their feedback on whether I’d represented this ancient Judean king correctly—if he had indeed lived with the characteristics of Asperger’s. One mom, who homeschools all five kids—four of whom are “Aspies”—went through the entire book, giving feedback on Manasseh’s emotions, thoughts, and actions.

To ensure no one would mistakenly believe autism caused Manasseh’s sinful choices, I also added a “foil” character—someone who is the antithesis of a character to accentuate certain qualities. A second character shows the same “quirky” characteristics but is faithful to Yahweh, affectionate, gentle, and kind. My hope is to raise autism awareness and dispel some of the false fears. I hope Isaiah’s Legacy can be a novel those in the autistic community can be proud to share with others.

I'm glad you included the Asperger's characteristics. I have a good friend who has twin boys with Asperger's. I've enjoyed seeong them grow and develop into teenagers. Which character in Isaiah’s Legacy do you most identify with?

My current self identifies with Zibah—older, wiser, struggling to stay relevant with the ever-increasing younger population. As I grow older, there are more-and-more younger ones who think differently than me and less-and-less my age who are willing to patiently teach them.

My younger self identifies with Shulle—confused about the real God and which adult’s theology to believe. I grew up as a spiritual mutt. Dad was Quaker. Mom, Charismatic. Grandparents, Pilgrim Holiness turned Nazarene turned Wesleyan. Sheesh! Each family member picked out a few Bible verses to prove their respective doctrines, and I didn’t know what to believe! So I didn’t believe. Praise Jesus that He doesn’t give up on prodigals!

What can you tell us about what you’re working on next?

The project sticks with my brand of a well-known Old Testament male character with a lesser-known female. Not sure yet if it will be two or three books on…drum roll…Joseph! I LOVE Joseph, and I’d love to explore some of the women in his life: his sister-mothers: Rachel and Leah; his only sister, Dinah; Potiphar’s Wife, Zelicha; and Joseph’s Egyptian wife, Asenath. I hope to announce the official future projects in January!

Mesu, the next project sounds as interesting to me as this one. Be sure to let me know when it will release. And thank you for sharing Isaiah’s Legacy with us today.

Readers, here are links to the book.

Isaiah's Legacy - Christianbook.com
Isaiah's Legacy: A Novel of Prophets and Kings - Amazon Paperback
Isaiah's Legacy: A Novel of Prophets and Kings - Kindle
Isaiah's Legacy: A Novel of Prophets and Kings - Audio Book

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