2 Kings 17:1-9

1In the twelfth year of the reign of Ahaz over Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria nine years. 2And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.

3Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. 4But the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea had conspired to send envoys to King So1 of Egypt, and that he had not paid tribute to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore the king of Assyria arrested Hoshea and put him in prison.

5Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years.

6In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and carried away the Israelites to Assyria, where he settled them in Halah, in Gozan by the Habor River, and in the cities of the Medes.

7All this happened because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They had worshiped other gods 8and walked in the customs of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites, as well as in the practices introduced by the kings of Israel.

9The Israelites secretly did things against the LORD their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city, they built high places in all their cities.