2 Kings 17
1 Hoshea, son of Elah, became king of Israel, in the twelfth year of the reign of King Ahaz of Judah. He reigned in Samaria for nine years.
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, the reign of Hoshea son of Elah began. He ruled in Samaria over Israel for nine years.
2 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, but not in the same way the kings of Israel who were before him.
He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him.
3 Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, came and attacked him, and Hoshea submitted to him and paid him tribute.
Shalmaneser king of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his servant and brought him tribute.
4 But then the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was being disloyal. Hoshea had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, asking for help, and he also had stopped sending annual tribute to the king of Assyria as he had done previously. So the king of Assyria arrested Hoshea and put him in prison.
Then the king of Assyria realized that Hoshea had been plotting against him, for Hoshea had sent messengers to So king of Egypt; also, he 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.
5 Then the king of Assyria invaded the whole country, and attacked Samaria, besieging it for three years.
Then the king of Assyria attacked throughout all the land, and attacked Samaria and besieged it for three years.
6 In the ninth year of the reign of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River, and in the towns of the Medes.
In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria. He put them in Halah, at the Habor River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
7 All this happened because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, the one who had led them out of Egypt, saving them from the power of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. They had worshiped other gods,
This captivity happened because the people of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their God, who had brought them up from the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. The people had been worshiping other gods
8 adopting the ways of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites, and the pagan practices introduced by the kings of Israel.
and walking in the practices of the nations whom Yahweh had driven out before the people of Israel, and in the practices of the kings of Israel that they had done.
9 Secretly the Israelites did things that were not right against the Lord their God. They built high places in all their towns, from watchtowers to fortified cities.
The people of Israel did secretly—against Yahweh their God—things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their cities, from the watchtower to the fortress.
10 They set up pagan stone pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.
They also set up stone pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.
11 They offered sacrifices on all the high places, just like the nations the Lord drove out before them. They did evil things, angering the Lord.
There they burned incense in all the high places, as the nations had done, those whom Yahweh had carried away before them. The Israelites performed wicked things to provoke Yahweh to anger;
12 They worshiped idols, even though the Lord had told them, “You are not to do this.”
they worshiped idols, about which Yahweh had said to them, “You will not do this thing.”
13 Yet the Lord had warned Israel and Judah repeatedly through all his prophets and seers, saying, “Leave your wicked ways and keep my commandments and instructions. Follow the whole law that I ordered your forefathers to obey, and gave to you through my servants the prophets.”
Yet Yahweh had testified to Israel and to Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, and be careful to keep all the law I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”
14 But they refused listen, and they were as stubborn as their forefathers who did not trust the Lord their God.
But they would not listen; instead they were very stubborn like their fathers who did not trust in Yahweh their God.
15 They gave up on his regulations and the covenant he had made with their forefathers, as well as the decrees he had given them. They followed pointless idols and they became pointless themselves, copying the nations around them that the Lord ordered them not to copy.
They rejected his statutes and the covenant that he had made with their ancestors, and the covenant decrees that he had given to them. They followed useless practices and they themselves became useless. They followed the pagan nations who were around them, those that Yahweh had commanded them not to imitate.
16 They ignored all the commandments of the Lord their God, and they made themselves two metal idols of calves and an Asherah pole. They bowed down in worship to the sun, moon, and stars and served Baal.
They ignored all the commandments of Yahweh their God. They made cast metal figures of two calves to worship. They made an Asherah pole, and they worshiped all the stars of the heavens and Baal.
17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters as pagan burnt offerings, and practiced fortune-telling and witchcraft. They gave themselves over to doing what was evil in the Lord's sight, making him angry.
They made their sons and daughters pass through the fire, they used divination and enchantments, they sold themselves to do that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and they provoked him to anger.
18 So the Lord was extremely angry with Israel, and he banished them from his presence. Only the tribe of Judah was left,
Therefore Yahweh was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. There was no one left but the tribe of Judah alone.
19 but even Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but followed the idolatry that Israel had introduced.
Even Judah did not keep the commandments of Yahweh their God, and they followed the practices that Israel had done.
20 The Lord gave up on all the descendants of Israel. He punished them and handed them over to their enemies, until he had banished them from his presence.
So Yahweh rejected all the descendants of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hand of those who would take the possession as spoil, until he had cast them out of his sight.
21 When the Lord ripped Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam, son of Nebat, their king. Jeroboam led Israel away from the Lord and made them commit terrible sins.
He tore Israel from the royal line of David, and they made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Jeroboam drove Israel away from following Yahweh and made them commit a great sin.
22 The Israelites continued to practice all the sins that Jeroboam committed. They did not stop doing them,
The people of Israel followed all the sins of Jeroboam and they did not depart from them,
23 so the Lord eventually expelled them from his presence, just as he had said he would through all his servants, the prophets. So the Israelites were deported from their land and taken to Assyria, where they are to this day.
so Yahweh removed Israel from his sight, as he had said through all his servants the prophets that he would. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria, and it is this way to this present day.
24 The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Kuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria instead of the Israelites. They took over ownership of Samaria and lived in its towns.
The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon and from Kuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria in place of the people of Israel. They took over Samaria and lived in its cities.
25 When they first started living there they did not worship the Lord, so he sent lions there among them, killing some of them.
It happened at the beginning of their residence there that they did not honor Yahweh. So Yahweh sent lions among them which killed some of them.
26 The king of Assyria was told, “The peoples that you brought and settled in the towns of Samaria they don't not know the rules of the God of the land. As a result, he has sent lions among them, which are killing them off because they don't know what the God of the land requires.”
So they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, “The nations that you have carried away and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the practices required by the god of the land. So he has sent lions among them, and, see, the lions are killing people there because they do not know the practices required by the god of the land.”
27 The king of Assyria gave the order: “Send back one of the priests you deported from Samaria, and let him go back and live there and teach the rules of the God of the land.”
Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, “Take one of the priests there whom you brought from there, and let him go and live there, and let him teach them the practices required by the god of the land.”
28 So one of the priests who had been deported from Samaria returned to live in Bethel, and taught them how to worship the Lord.
So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in Bethel; he taught them how they should honor Yahweh.
29 But the people of the different nations went on making their own gods in the towns where they had settled, and they placed them in the shrines of the high places that the people of Samaria had made.
Every ethnic group made gods of their own, and put them in the high places that the Samaritans had made—every ethnic group in the cities where they lived.
30 Those from Babylon made Sukkoth Benoth, those from Kuthah made Nergal, and those from Hamath made Ashima.
The people of Babylon made Succoth Benoth; the people of Kuthah made Nergal; the people of Hamath made Ashima;
31 The Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites sacrificed their children as burnt offerings to their gods Adrammelech and Anammelech.
the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak. The Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelek and Anammelek, the gods of the Sepharvites.
32 While they worshiped the Lord, they also appointed priests from all kinds of their own people to offer sacrifices for them in the shrines of the high places.
They also honored Yahweh, and appointed from among themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the temples at the high places.
33 So even though they worshiped the Lord, they also worshiped their own gods following the practices of the nations they had come from.
They honored Yahweh and also worshiped their own gods, in the customs of the nations from among whom they had been taken away.
34 Even to this day they are still following their former practices. None of them truly worship the Lord or observe the regulations, requirements, laws, and commandments that the Lord gave to the descendants of Jacob, the one he named Israel.
To this day they persist in their old customs. They neither honor Yahweh, nor do they follow the statutes, decrees, the law, or the commandments that Yahweh gave to the people of Jacob—whom he named Israel—
35 For the Lord had made an agreement with the Israelites, ordering them, “Don't worship other gods or bow down to them; don't serve them or offer sacrifices to them.
and with whom Yahweh had made a covenant and commanded them, “You will not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor worship them, nor sacrifice to them.
36 You must worship only the Lord, who led you out of Egypt, helping you with his great power and strong arm. Only bow down to him; only offer sacrifices to him.
But Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and a raised arm, is the one you must honor; it is to him that you will prostrate yourselves, and it is to him that you will sacrifice.
37 Always pay attention to observe the regulations, requirements, laws, and commandments he gave you in writing, and don't worship other gods.
The statutes and the decrees, the law and the commandments that he wrote for you, you will keep them forever. So you must not fear other gods,
38 Don't forget the agreement I have made with you, and don't worship other gods.
and the covenant that I have made with you, you will not forget; neither will you honor other gods.
39 You must worship only the Lord your God, and he will save you from all your enemies.”
But Yahweh your God is who you will honor. He will rescue you from the might of your enemies.”
40 But they refused to listen, and continued their former idolatrous practices.
They would not listen, because they continued to do what they had done in the past.
41 Even while these people from different nations were worshiping the Lord, they were actually worshiping their idols. Their children and grandchildren continue to do as their forefathers did to this day.
So these nations feared Yahweh and they also worshiped their carved figures, and their children did the same—as did their children's children. They continue to do what their ancestors did, up to this day.
