2 Kings 17:5-28

5Then the king of Assyria invaded the entire land, and went up to 1Samaria and besieged it for three years. 6In the ninth year of Hoshea, 2the king of Assyria captured Samaria and 3led the people of Israel into exile to Assyria, and 4settled them in Halah and Habor, on the river of 5Gozan, and 6in the cities of the Medes.

7Now 7this came about because the sons of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, 8who had brought them up from the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; 9and they had 10feared other gods. 8They also 1112followed the 13customs of the nations whom the Lord had driven out from the sons of Israel, and in the customs 14of the kings of Israel which they had 15introduced. 9And the sons of Israel 16did things secretly against the Lord their God which were not right. Moreover, they built for themselves high places in all their towns, from 17watchtower to fortified city. 10And 18they set up for themselves memorial stones and 1920Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11and there they burned incense on all the high places as the nations did that the Lord had taken into exile before them; and they did evil things, provoking the Lord. 12They served idols, 21concerning which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.” 13Yet the 22Lord warned Israel and Judah 2324through all His prophets and 25every seer, saying, “26Turn back from your evil ways and keep My commandments and My statutes in accordance with all the Law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you 27through 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 which He 32gave them. And 33they followed 34idols and 35became empty, and followed the nations that surrounded them, about which the 36Lord had commanded them not to do as they did. 16And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God and made for themselves cast metal images: 37two calves. And they 38made an 39Asherah, and 40worshiped all the heavenly 41lights, and 42served Baal. 17Then 43they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and they 44practiced divination and interpreting omens, and 45gave themselves over to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him. 18So the Lord was very angry with Israel, and He 46removed them from His 47sight; 48no one was left except the tribe of Judah.

1949Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God either, but they 5051followed the 52customs 53which Israel had 54introduced. 20So the Lord rejected all the 55descendants of Israel and afflicted them and 56handed them over to plunderers, until He had cast them 57out of His sight.

21When 58He had torn Israel from the house of David, 59they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then 60Jeroboam drove Israel away from following the Lord and misled them into a great sin. 22And the sons of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he committed; they did not desist from them 2361until the Lord removed Israel from His sight, 62just as He had spoken through all His servants the prophets. 63So Israel went into exile from their own land to Assyria until this day.

2464Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, 6566Avva, 67Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the sons of Israel. So they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. 25And at the beginning of their living there, they 68did not fear the Lord; therefore the Lord sent lions among them that were killing some of them. 26So they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, “The nations whom you have taken into exile and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the custom of the God of the land; so He has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them because they do not know the custom of the God of the land.”

27Then the king of Assyria issued commands, saying, “Take one of the priests there whom you led into 69exile, and have 70him go and live there; and have him teach them the custom of the God of the land.” 28So one of the priests whom they had led into exile from Samaria came and lived in Bethel, and taught them how they were to fear the Lord.