| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1In the twelfth year of King Ahaz's reign over Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria for nine years. | 1During the twelfth year of the reign of King Ahaz of Judah, Elah's son Hoshea became king over Israel for nine years in Samaria. |
| 2He did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not to the same degree as the Israelite kings who preceded him. | 2He practiced what the LORD considered to be evil, though not like the kings of Israel who had preceded him. |
| 3King Shalmaneser of Assyria threatened him; Hoshea became his subject and paid him tribute. | 3King Shalmaneser of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his servant and paid tribute to him. |
| 4The king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was planning a revolt. Hoshea had sent messengers to King So of Egypt and had not sent his annual tribute to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria arrested him and imprisoned him. | 4But the king of Assyria uncovered a conspiracy involving Hoshea, who had sent envoys to King So of Egypt and stopped offering tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done annually. As a result, the king of Assyria placed him under arrest and sent him to prison. |
| 5The king of Assyria marched through the whole land. He attacked Samaria and besieged it for three years. | 5After this, the king of Assyria invaded the entire land, approached Samaria, and began a three year siege. |
| 6In the ninth year of Hoshea's reign, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the people of Israel to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, along the Habor (the river of Gozan), and in the cities of the Medes. | 6As a result, during the ninth year of the reign of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the Israelis off to Assyria, placing them in Halah, along the Habor River in Gozan, and in cities ruled by the Medes. |
| 7This happened because the Israelites sinned against the LORD their God, who brought them up from the land of Egypt and freed them from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped other gods; | 7This happened because the Israelis had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up from the land of Egypt and from the domination of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, because they were fearing other gods, |
| 8they observed the practices of the nations whom the LORD had driven out from before Israel, and followed the example of the kings of Israel. | 8and because they were following the rules of the nations whom the LORD had expelled before the Israelis and that the kings of Israel had practiced. |
| 9The Israelites said things about the LORD their God that were not right. They built high places in all their cities, from the watchtower to the fortress. | 9The Israelis practiced secret things that were not right, offending the LORD their God. In addition, they built high places for use by all their towns, watchtowers, and fortified cities. |
| 10They set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. | 10They set up pillars and Asherim on every high hill and in the shade of every green tree, |
| 11They burned incense on all the high places just like the nations whom the LORD had driven away from before them. Their evil practices made the LORD angry. | 11where they made offerings on all the high places, as did the nations whom the LORD had expelled before them. They also practiced other wickedness, provoking the LORD to become angry, |
| 12They worshiped the disgusting idols in blatant disregard of the LORD's command. | 12and they served idols, a practice that the LORD had warned them, "You are not to do this." |
| 13The LORD solemnly warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and all the seers, "Turn back from your evil ways; obey my commandments and rules that are recorded in the law. I ordered your ancestors to keep this law and sent my servants the prophets to remind you of its demands." | 13Nevertheless, the LORD had warned both Israel and Judah by means of every prophet and seer: "Turn away from your evil practices and keep my commandments and statutes according to the entire Law that I gave your ancestors and that I sent to you through my servants, the prophets." |
| 14But they did not pay attention and were as stubborn as their ancestors, who had not trusted the LORD their God. | 14But they would not listen. Instead, they were stubborn, just like their ancestors had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God. |
| 15They rejected his rules, the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws he had commanded them to obey. They paid allegiance to worthless idols, and so became worthless to the LORD. They copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard of the LORD's command. | 15They rejected the LORD's statutes, the covenant that he had made with their ancestors, and his warnings that he gave them. They pursued meaninglessness—and became meaningless themselves—as they followed the lifestyles of the nations that surrounded them, a practice that the LORD had warned them not to do. |
| 16They abandoned all the commandments of the LORD their God; they made two metal calves and an Asherah pole, bowed down to all the stars in the sky, and worshiped Baal. | 16They abandoned all of the commands given by the LORD their God, crafted for themselves cast images of two calves, constructed an Asherah, worshipped all of the stars in heaven, and served Baal. |
| 17They passed their sons and daughters through the fire, and practiced divination and omen reading. They committed themselves to doing evil in the sight of the LORD and made him angry. | 17They passed their sons and daughters through fire, practiced divination, cast spells, and sold themselves to practice what the LORD considered to be evil, thereby provoking him. |
| 18So the LORD was furious with Israel and rejected them; only the tribe of Judah was left. | 18As a result, the LORD was angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. No one was left except for the tribe of Judah. |
| 19Judah also failed to keep the commandments of the LORD their God; they followed Israel's example. | 19But Judah, too, did not keep the commands of the LORD their God. Instead, they lived the lifestyle that Israel had chosen, |
| 20So the LORD rejected all of Israel's descendants; he humiliated them and handed them over to robbers, until he had thrown them from his presence. | 20so the LORD rejected all of the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and handed them over to the control of plunderers until he had thrown them away from his presence. |
| 21He tore Israel away from David's dynasty, and Jeroboam son of Nebat became their king. Jeroboam drove Israel away from the LORD and encouraged them to commit a serious sin. | 21He ripped them away from the heritage of David, even as the people appointed Nebat's son Jeroboam to be king. Jeroboam drove Israel away from following the LORD and made them commit great sin. |
| 22The Israelites followed in the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and did not repudiate them. | 22The Israelis practiced all the sins that Jeroboam had practiced, and never wavered from them |
| 23Finally the LORD rejected Israel just as he had warned he would do through all his servants the prophets. Israel was deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to this very day. | 23until the LORD removed Israel from his presence, just as he had warned through all of his prophets who served him. So Israel was carried off into exile from their own land into Assyria, where they remain to this day. |
| 24The king of Assyria brought foreigners from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. | 24Because the king of Assyria brought captives from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sephar-vaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria to replace the Israelis, the settlers possessed Samaria and lived in its cities. |
| 25When they first moved in, they did not worship the LORD. So the LORD sent lions among them and the lions were killing them. | 25When they first began to live there, the settlers did not fear the LORD, so he sent lions among them, and they killed a few of them. |
| 26The king of Assyria was told, "The nations whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the God of the land, so he has sent lions among them. They are killing the people because they do not know the requirements of the God of the land." | 26As a result, they reported to the king of Assyria, "Because the nations whom you exiled to live in the cities of Samaria don't know the law of the god of the land, he has sent lions among them. Look how the lions are killing them, because they don't know the law of the god of the land!" |
| 27So the king of Assyria ordered, "Take back one of the priests whom you deported from there. He must settle there and teach them the requirements of the God of the land." | 27So the king of Assyria issued this order: "Take one of the priests whom you carried away and let him go back and live there. Let him teach them the law of the god of the land." |
| 28So one of the priests whom they had deported from Samaria went back and settled in Bethel. He taught them how to worship the LORD. | 28So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria went to live in Bethel to teach them how they ought to fear the LORD. |
| 29But each of these nations made its own gods and put them in the shrines on the high places that the people of Samaria had made. Each nation did this in the cities where they lived. | 29Nevertheless, each nation continued to craft their own gods and install them in the temples on the high places that the people of Samaria had constructed—every nation in their own cities where they continued to live. |
| 30The people from Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the people from Cuth made Nergal, the people from Hamath made Ashima, | 30Settlers from Babylon built Succoth-benoth, settlers from Cuth built Nergal, settlers from Hamath built Ashima, |
| 31the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their sons in the fire as an offering to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. | 31and settlers from Avva built Nibhaz and Tartak. The residents of Sephar-vaim burned their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sephar-vaim. |
| 32At the same time they worshiped the LORD. They appointed some of their own people to serve as priests in the shrines on the high places. | 32Because they feared the LORD, they also appointed from among themselves priests for the high places who acted on their behalf in the temples on the high places. |
| 33They were worshiping the LORD and at the same time serving their own gods in accordance with the practices of the nations from which they had been deported. | 33While they continued to fear the LORD, they served their own gods, following the custom of the nations whom they had carried away from there. |
| 34To this very day they observe their earlier practices. They do not worship the LORD; they do not obey the rules, regulations, law, and commandments that the LORD gave the descendants of Jacob, whom he renamed Israel. | 34To this very day, they still follow the former customs: they don't fear the LORD and they don't live in accordance with the statutes, ordinances, laws, or commandments that the LORD had given to the descendants of Jacob—whom he renamed Israel— |
| 35The LORD made an agreement with them and instructed them, "You must not worship other gods. Do not bow down to them, serve them, or offer sacrifices to them. | 35and with whom the LORD had made a covenant when he gave these orders to them: "You are not to fear other gods, bow down to them, serve them, or sacrifice to them. |
| 36Instead you must worship the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt by his great power and military ability; bow down to him and offer sacrifices to him. | 36Instead, it is to be the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, showing great power and public demonstrations of might, whom you are to fear, worship, and to whom you are to offer sacrifice. |
| 37You must carefully obey at all times the rules, regulations, law, and commandments he wrote down for you. You must not worship other gods. | 37Furthermore, you are to be careful to observe forever the statutes, ordinances, law, and the commandment that he wrote for you. And you are not to fear other gods. |
| 38You must never forget the agreement I made with you, and you must not worship other gods. | 38You are not to forget the covenant that I've made with you, and you are not to fear other gods. |
| 39Instead you must worship the LORD your God; then he will rescue you from the power of all your enemies." | 39But you are to fear the LORD, and he will deliver you from the control of all your enemies." |
| 40But they pay no attention; instead they observe their earlier practices. | 40But they wouldn't listen. Instead, they did what they had been doing before. |
| 41These nations are worshiping the LORD and at the same time serving their idols; their sons and grandsons do just as their fathers have done, to this very day. | 41These nations feared the LORD and also served their carved images. Their descendants did the same thing, as did their grandchildren. Just as their ancestors had done, they also do the same thing to this day. |
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