THE SECOND BOOK OF
THE KINGS,
2 Kings 17 ©
Hosea becomes king of Israel, v. 1, etc. Is subjected to the king of Assyria, after that besieged by him, taken prisoner, and with all the people carried captive to Assyria, 3. All this for their sins, 7. The strange nations, wherewith their land was planted, are troubled with lions, 24. For which cause a priest of Israel is sent to them, 27. From which follows a mixture of religion, 29.
IN the 1twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah 2to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, but 3not as the kings of Israel that were before him.
¶Against him came up 4Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him 5presents.
And the king of Assyria 6found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to 7So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in 8prison.
¶Then thea king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.
¶In theb ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in 9Halah and in 10Habor by the 11river of Gozan, and in the cities of the 12Medes.
For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared 13other gods,
And walkedc in the statutes of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, 14which they had made.
And the children of Israel 15did secretly those things that were not right 16against the LORD their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, 17from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
And they set them up 18images and 19groves 20in every high hill, and under every green tree:
And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the LORD carried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger:
For they served 21idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them, Yed shall not do this thing.
Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, 22by all the prophets, and by all the 23seers, saying, Turne ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
Notwithstanding they would not hear, but 24hardenedf their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe 25in the LORD their God.
And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed 26vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them.
And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, andg made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped 27all the host of heaven, and served 28Baal.
And they causedh their sons and their daughters to pass 29through the fire, and 30used divination and 31enchantments, and 32sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removedi them out of 33his sight: there was none left but 34the tribe of Judah only.
Also 35Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walkedj in the statutes of Israel 36which they made.
And the LORD rejected 37all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.
For 38he rentk Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the LORD, and made them sin 39a great sin.
For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam 40which he did; they departed not from them;
Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said 41by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria 42unto this day.
¶And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from 43Cuthah, and from 44Ava, and from 45Hamath, and from 46Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.
And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared 47not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them.
Wherefore they 48spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.
Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one 49of the priests whom ye brought from thence; 50and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.
Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el, and taught them how they should 51fear the LORD.
Howbeit 52every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.
And the men of Babylon made 53Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
And the Avites made 54Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites 55burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
So they feared the LORD, and madel unto themselves 56of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.
Theym feared the LORD, and 57served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away 58from thence.
Unto this day they do 59after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, 60whom hen named Israel;
With whom the LORD had made 61a covenant, and charged them, saying, Yeo shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and 62a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
And the 63statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.
And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.
But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their 64former manner.
So 65these nations 66feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children's children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.