2 Kings 17:1-9

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.