2 Kings 17:8

2 Kings 17:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
• New International Version (NIV)and followed the practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before them, as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced.
• English Standard Version (ESV)and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced.
• New King James Version (NKJV)and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the Lord had cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.

Context of 2 Kings 17:8

6In Hoshea’s ninth year as king of Israel, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the Israelites to Assyria as captives. He settled them in Halah, along the Habor River in Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. 7The Israelites sinned against the Lord their God, who brought them out of Egypt ⌞and rescued them⌟ from the power of Pharaoh (the king of Egypt). They worshiped other gods and lived by the customs of the nations that the Lord had forced out of the Israelites’ way. They also did what their kings wanted them to do. 9The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God that weren’t right: They built for themselves illegal places of worship in all of their cities, from the ⌞smallest⌟ watchtower to the ⌞largest⌟ fortified city. 10They set up sacred stones and poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah on every high hill and under every large tree.

2 Kings 17:8 word by word

וַיֵּֽלְכוּ֙ בְּחֻקּ֣וֹת הַגּוֹיִ֔ם אֲשֶׁר֙ הוֹרִ֣ישׁ יְהוָ֔ה מִפְּנֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וּמַלְכֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשֽׂוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And walkedיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• in the statutesחֻקָּהchûqqâh · statuteH2708
• of the heathenגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• whom the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• cast outיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
• from beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• and of the kingsמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• which they had madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213

Cross-references for 2 Kings 17:8

• 2 Kings 16:3He followed the example of the kings of Israel and even sacrificed his son by burning him alive. Sacrificing ⌞children⌟ was one of the disgusting things done by the nations that the Lord had forced out of the Israelites’ way.
• 2 Kings 21:2He did what the Lord considered evil by copying the disgusting things done by the nations that the Lord had forced out of the Israelites’ way.
• Leviticus 18:3You used to live in Egypt. Don’t live the way the Egyptians do. I am bringing you to Canaan. Don’t live the way the Canaanites do. Never live by their standards.
• Deuteronomy 12:30After they’ve been destroyed, be careful you aren’t tempted to follow their customs. Don’t even ask about their gods and say, “How did these people worship their gods? We want to do what they did.”
• Deuteronomy 18:9When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, never learn the disgusting practices of those nations.
• 1 Kings 12:28After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said, “You’ve been worshiping in Jerusalem long enough. Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt.”
• 1 Kings 16:31It wasn’t enough that he committed the same sins as Jeroboam (Nebat’s son). He also married Jezebel, daughter of King Ethbaal of Sidon. Ahab then served and worshiped Baal.
• 1 Kings 21:26He did many disgusting things as a result of worshiping idols as the Amorites had done. (The Lord confiscated their land for Israel.)
• Psalms 106:35Instead, they intermarried with other nations. They learned to do what other nations did,
• Jeremiah 10:2This is what the Lord says: Don’t learn the practices of the nations. Don’t be frightened by the signs in the sky because the nations are frightened by them.
• Hosea 5:11Ephraim is oppressed—crushed by punishment, because its people are determined to chase idols.
• Micah 6:16You have kept Omri’s laws and all the practices of the descendants of Ahab, and you have followed their advice. That is why I will ruin you. Your people will be ridiculed. You will bear the disgrace of my people.”

Commentaries on 2 Kings 17:8

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Idolatry was worse in the Israelites than in other nations, since it argued not merely folly and a gross carnal spirit, but also black ingratitude Exodus 20:2-3. The writer subdivides the idolatries of the Israelites into two classes, pagan and native - those which they adopted from the nations whom they drove out, and those which their own kings imposed on them. Under the former head would come the great mass of the idolatrous usages described in 2 Kings…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-23Verses 7-23 Though the destruction of the kingdom of the ten tribes was but briefly related, it is in these verses largely commented upon, and the reasons of it given. It was destruction from the Almighty: the Assyrian was but the rod of his anger, Is 10:5. Those that bring sin into a country or family, bring a plague into it, and will have to answer for all the mischief that follows. And vast as the outward wickedness of the world is, the secret sins…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-13Israel committed many sins, including pagan rituals and practices. Whether done openly or in secret, God knew about them all. Israel's kings often started these practices by building pagan shrines, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles. They copied pagan sacrifices and idol worship (2 Kings 10:29; 15:18, 28; 1 Kings 12:28–33; 15:34; 16:30–33). People from all parts of Israelite society, both royalty and commoners, continued these sins. They ignored warnings…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Kings 17:8

• Assyria
• Babylon
• Judgments
• Rulers

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Children of Israel
• Assyria
• Captivity
• Fear
• Hoshea
• Kings, Books of
• Samaria, Country of
• Syriac Versions

Commentaries on 2 Kings 17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings