2 Kings 17:1-18

1In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, 1Hoshea the son of Elah became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned nine years. 2He did evil in the sight of the Lord, only not as the kings of Israel who were before him. 32Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up 3against him, and Hoshea became his servant and paid him tribute. 4But the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea, who had sent messengers to So king of Egypt and had offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year; so the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison.

5Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole land and went up to 4Samaria and besieged it three years. 6In the ninth year of Hoshea, 5the king of Assyria captured Samaria and 6carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and 7settled them in Halah and Habor, on the river of 8Gozan, and 9in the cities of the Medes.

7Now 10this came about because the sons of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, 11who had brought them up from the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, 12and they had 13feared other gods 8and 14walked in the 15customs of the nations whom the Lord had driven out before the sons of Israel, and in the customs 16of the kings of Israel which they had 17introduced. 9The sons of Israel 18did things secretly which were not right against the Lord their God. Moreover, they built for themselves high places in all their towns, from 19watchtower to fortified city. 1020They set for themselves sacred pillars and 2122Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11and there they burned incense on all the high places as the nations did which the Lord had carried away to exile before them; and they did evil things provoking the Lord. 12They served idols, 23concerning which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.” 13Yet the 24Lord warned Israel and Judah 25through all His prophets and 26every seer, saying, “27Turn from your evil ways and keep My commandments, My statutes according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you through My servants the prophets.” 14However, they did not listen, but 28stiffened their neck 29like their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God. 1530They rejected His statutes and 31His covenant which He made with their fathers and His warnings with which He warned them. And 32they followed vanity and 33became vain, and went after the nations which surrounded them, concerning which the 34Lord had commanded them not to do like them. 16They forsook all the commandments of the Lord their God and made for themselves molten images, even 35two calves, and 36made an 37Asherah and 38worshiped all the host of heaven and 39served Baal. 17Then 40they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and 41practiced divination and enchantments, and 42sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him. 18So the Lord was very angry with Israel and 43removed them from His 44sight; 45none was left except the tribe of Judah.