II Kings 17, The End of Israel

Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria sits on the doorstep of Israel and Judah, already having conquered parts of Israel.

2 Kings 17: 1-4, Traitor

In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.

Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up to attack Hoshea, who had been Shalmaneser's vassal and had paid him tribute. But the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was a traitor, for he had sent envoys to So king of Egypt, and he no longer paid tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore Shalmaneser seized him and put him in prison.

Shalmaneser discovers that Hoshea of Israel has been looking to Egypt for an alliance and so Hoshea is attacked, captured and imprisoned.

Hubbard says that there are issues with the dates of Hoshea's reign, issues that are not easily resolved and may be due to scribal error such as writing '12' in place of another number. This issue persists into chapter 18.

2 Kings 17: 5-6, Invasion by Assyria

The king of Assyria invaded the entire land, marched against Samaria and laid siege to it for three years. In the ninth year 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. 

Finally, after three years, Israel is overwhelmed. The Assyrian practice with captured countries was to resettle the people, mixing them up into various regions, breaking up any alliances they might attempt to make. The Israelites are deported a number of towns (in the upper Tigris-Euphrates valley, says Hubbard); later other conquered peoples will be moved into Samaria to replace the Israelites.

2 Kings 17: 7-8, Explanation

All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped other gods 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.

 

The destruction of Israel, says the writer, came about because long ago they had turned away from YHWH, Who had brought them out of Egypt so many centuries before. Hubbard argues that verses 7 to 23 here are the climax of the scroll of Kings and form the primary message of this book, written for Jews in the later exile or afterwards.

2 Kings 17: 9-13, From watchtower to fortified city

The Israelites secretly did things against the LORD their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city they built themselves high places in all their towns. They set up sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree. At every high place they burned incense, as the nations whom the LORD had driven out before them had done. They did wicked things that provoked the LORD to anger. They worshiped idols, though the LORD had said, "You shall not do this."

 

The LORD warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers: "Turn from your evil ways. Observe my commands and decrees, in accordance with the entire Law that I commanded your fathers to obey and that I delivered to you through my servants the prophets."
 

From "watchtower to fortified city", the Israelites eagerly put of idols to all sorts of other gods, despite the past warnings. With a stubborn regularity, they violated the Second Commandment.

2 Kings 17: 14-17, Becoming worthless

But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their fathers, who did not trust in the LORD their God. They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their fathers and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the LORD had ordered them, "Do not do as they do," and they did the things the LORD had forbidden them to do.

They forsook all the commands of the LORD their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshiped Baal. They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire. They practiced divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the LORD, provoking him to anger.
 

Worshiping worthless idols leads one to worthlessness. The Israelites absorbed every aspect of the culture around them.

2 Kings 17: 18-23, Thrust from the presence of God

So the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. Only the tribe of Judah was left, and even Judah did not keep the commands of the LORD their God. They followed the practices Israel had introduced. 

Therefore the LORD rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers, until he thrust them from his presence.

When he tore Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king. Jeroboam enticed Israel away from following the LORD and caused them to commit a great sin. The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them until the LORD removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there.

The past of Israel is summarized here. The exile to Assyria is explained by the centuries of idolatry of Israel.

If verses 7-23 form the main message of Kings, verse 20, the middle paragraph above, is the climax of that passage.

2 Kings 17: 24-28, Assyrian deportations

The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took over Samaria and lived in its towns.  When they first lived there, they did not worship the LORD; so he sent lions among them and they killed some of the people.

It was reported to the king of Assyria: "The people you deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria do not know what the god of that country requires. He has sent lions among them, which are killing them off, because the people do not know what he requires."

 

Then the king of Assyria gave this order: "Have one of the priests you took captive from Samaria go back to live there and teach the people what the god of the land requires." So one of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came to live in Bethel and taught them how to worship the LORD.
 

As standard operation procedures, the Assyrians bring other people into Samaria while the Israelites are moved elsewhere.  Yet when lions attack the new residents, the leaders see this as punishment from the local gods and so they seek a few Israelites to teach them about the Israelite gods.

2 Kings 17: 29-31, Other groups, other gods

Nevertheless, each national group made its own gods in the several towns where they settled, and set them up in the shrines the people of Samaria had made at the high places. The men from Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the men from Cuthah made Nergal, and the men from Hamath made Ashima; the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire as sacrifices to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

New people bring with them new gods. The author of our book lists the various foreign gods brought into Samaria.

2 Kings 17: 32-33, Worshiping YHWH and other gods

They worshiped the LORD, but they also appointed all sorts of their own people to officiate for them as priests in the shrines at the high places. They worshiped the LORD, but they also served their own gods in accordance with the customs of the nations from which they had been brought. To this day they persist in their former practices. They neither worship the LORD nor adhere to the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands that the LORD gave the descendants of Jacob, whom he named Israel.

In the mixture of people groups we see an adaptation of pantheons, with YHWH thrown in to the mix. Some people worship YHWH, but only as a local god, far different, far weaker, than the YHWH of Moses! The author of 1 & 2 Kings says that this idolatry persists to "today".

2 Kings 17: 35-41, Persistent idolatry

When the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites, he commanded them: "Do not worship any other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them. But the LORD, who brought you up out of Egypt with mighty power and outstretched arm, is the one you must worship. To him you shall bow down and to him offer sacrifices.

You must always be careful to keep the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands he wrote for you. Do not worship other gods. Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. Rather, worship the LORD your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies."

They would not listen, however, but persisted in their former practices. Even while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did.

Despite the warning of Moses and prophets, despite the examples from the Exodus, the descendants of Jacob persisted in idolatry, an idolatry which continues (says the writer.)