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2 Kings 17:1-41 — Hoshea Last King of Israel; Israel Exiled

2Kgs.17.1-41

¹In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned for nine years. ²He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, yet not like the kings of Israel who were before him. ³Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against him, and Hoshea became his servant and paid him tribute. ⁴But the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and did not bring tribute to the king of Assyria as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria arrested him and bound him in prison. ⁵Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years. ⁶In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and settled them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. ⁷This happened because the children of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their God, who had brought them up from the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and they had feared other gods, ⁸and walked in the statutes of the nations whom Yahweh had driven out from before the children of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had introduced. ⁹The children of Israel secretly did things that were not right against Yahweh their God. They built high places for themselves in all their cities, from watchtower to fortified city. ¹⁰They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. ¹¹There they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom Yahweh had carried away into exile before them. They did wicked things, provoking Yahweh to anger, ¹²and they served idols, concerning which Yahweh had said to them, 'You shall not do this thing.' ¹³Yet Yahweh warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and every seer, saying, 'Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.' ¹⁴But they would not listen, and they stiffened their neck like the neck of their fathers, who did not believe in Yahweh their God. ¹⁵They rejected his statutes and his covenant that he had made with their fathers, and his warnings that he had given them. They went after worthless idols and became worthless themselves, and followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom Yahweh had commanded them that they should not do like them. ¹⁶They abandoned all the commandments of Yahweh their God, and made for themselves cast images of two calves, and made an Asherah pole, and bowed down to all the host of heaven, and served Baal. ¹⁷They made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and practiced divination and omens, and sold themselves to do what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, provoking him to anger. ¹⁸Therefore Yahweh was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. None was left except the tribe of Judah alone. ¹⁹Even Judah did not keep the commandments of Yahweh their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced. ²⁰So Yahweh rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his presence. ²¹For he tore Israel away from the house of David , and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel away from following Yahweh and caused them to commit a great sin. ²²The children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam that he committed; they did not depart from them, ²³until Yahweh removed Israel from his presence, just as he had spoken through all his servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away into exile from their own land to Assyria, to this day. ²⁴Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the children of Israel. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. ²⁵At the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear Yahweh. Therefore Yahweh sent lions among them, which killed some of them. ²⁶So they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, 'The nations whom you have carried away into exile and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the custom of the God of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them, because they do not know the custom of the God of the land.' ²⁷Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, 'Send there one of the priests whom you carried away from there, and let them go and live there, and let him teach them the custom of the God of the land.' ²⁸So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear Yahweh. ²⁹But every nation still made gods of their own and put them in the shrines of the high places that the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities in which they lived. ³⁰The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, ³¹the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. ³²They also feared Yahweh, and appointed from among themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places. ³³They feared Yahweh, but they also served their own gods, according to the custom of the nations from among whom they had been carried away. ³⁴To this day they do according to the former customs. They do not fear Yahweh, and they do not follow the statutes or the ordinances, or the law or the commandment that Yahweh commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel. ³⁵Yahweh had made a covenant with them and commanded them, saying, 'You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them; ³⁶but Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, him you shall fear, and to him you shall bow down, and to him you shall sacrifice. ³⁷The statutes and the ordinances, and the law and the commandment that he wrote for you, you shall be careful to do forever. You shall not fear other gods. ³⁸You shall not forget the covenant that I have made with you. You shall not fear other gods, ³⁹but you shall fear Yahweh your God, and he will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.' ⁴⁰However, they would not listen, but they did according to their former custom. ⁴¹So these nations feared Yahweh, and also served their carved images. Their children and their grandchildren also do as their fathers did, to this day.

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4/11/2026

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