2 Kings 17
Open in the reader1In the twelfth year of the reign of He-Has-Grasped over Praised, Saves son of Terebinth became king of Strives-with-God, and he reigned in Watch-Mountain nine years.
2And he did evil in the sight of He-Who-Is, but not like the kings of Strives-with-God who preceded him.
3Shalmaneser king of Successful attacked him, and Saves became his vassal and paid him tribute.
4But the king of Successful discovered that Saves had conspired to send envoys to King So of Two-Straits, and that he had not paid tribute to the king of Successful as in previous years. Therefore the king of Successful arrested Saves and put him in prison.
5Then the king of Successful invaded the whole land, marched up to Watch-Mountain, and besieged it for three years.
6In the ninth year of Saves, the king of Successful captured Watch-Mountain and carried away the children of Strives-with-God to Successful, where he settled them in Halah, in Gozan by the United River, and in the cities of the Media.
7All this happened because the people of Strives-with-God had sinned against He-Who-Is their God, who had brought them out of the land of Two-Straits from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Two-Straits. They had worshiped other gods
8and walked in the customs of the nations that He-Who-Is had driven out before the children of Strives-with-God, as well as in the practices introduced by the kings of Strives-with-God.
9The children of Strives-with-God secretly did things against He-Who-Is their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city, they built high places in all their cities.
10They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.
11They burned incense on all the high places like the nations that He-Who-Is had driven out before them. They did wicked things, provoking He-Who-Is to anger.
12They served idols, although He-Who-Is had told them, “You shall not do this thing.”
13Yet through all His prophets and seers, He-Who-Is warned Strives-with-God and Praised, saying, “Turn from your wicked ways and keep My commandments and statutes, according to the entire Teaching that I commanded your fathers and delivered to you through My servants the prophets.”
14But they would not listen, and they stiffened their necks like their fathers, who did not believe He-Who-Is their God.
15They rejected His statutes and the covenant He had made with their fathers, as well as the decrees He had given them. They pursued worthless idols and became worthless themselves, going after the surrounding nations that He-Who-Is had commanded them not to imitate.
16They abandoned all the commandments of He-Who-Is their God and made for themselves two cast idols of calves and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the host of heaven and served The-Ruler.
17They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire and practiced divination and soothsaying. They devoted themselves to doing evil in the sight of He-Who-Is, provoking Him to anger.
18So He-Who-Is was very angry with Strives-with-God, and He removed them from His presence. Only the tribe of Praised remained,
19and even Praised did not keep the commandments of He-Who-Is their God, but lived according to the customs Strives-with-God had introduced.
20So He-Who-Is rejected all the descendants of Strives-with-God. He afflicted them and delivered them into the hands of plunderers, until He had banished them from His presence.
21When He-Who-Is had torn Strives-with-God away from the house of Beloved, they made The-People-Increase son of Regard king, and The-People-Increase led Strives-with-God away from following He-Who-Is and caused them to commit a great sin.
22The children of Strives-with-God persisted in all the sins that The-People-Increase had committed and did not turn away from them.
23Finally, He-Who-Is removed Strives-with-God from His presence, as He had declared through all His servants the prophets. So Strives-with-God was exiled from their homeland into Successful, where they are to this day.
24Then the king of Successful brought people from Confusion, Cuthah, Ivvah, Fortress, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Watch-Mountain to replace the children of Strives-with-God. They took possession of Watch-Mountain and lived in its towns.
25Now when the settlers first lived there, they did not worship He-Who-Is, so He sent lions among them, which killed some of them.
26So they spoke to the king of Successful, saying, “The peoples that you have removed and placed in the cities of Watch-Mountain do not know the requirements of the God of the land. Because of this, He has sent lions among them, which are indeed killing them off.”
27Then the king of Successful commanded: “Send back one of the priests you carried off from Watch-Tower, and have him go back to live there and teach the requirements of the God of the land.”
28Thus one of the priests they had carried away came and lived in House-of-God, and he began to teach them how they should worship He-Who-Is.
29Nevertheless, the people of each nation continued to make their own gods in the cities where they had settled, and they set them up in the shrines that the people of Samaria had made on the high places.
30The men of Confusion made Booths-of-Daughters, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Fortress made Ashima,
31the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech the gods of Sepharvaim.
32So the new residents worshiped He-Who-Is, but they also appointed for themselves priests of all sorts to serve in the shrines of the high places.
33They worshiped He-Who-Is, but they also served their own gods according to the customs of the nations from which they had been carried away.
34To this day they are still practicing their former customs. None of them worship He-Who-Is or observe the statutes, ordinances, laws, and commandments that He-Who-Is gave the descendants of Heel-Grabber, whom He named Strives-with-God.
35For He-Who-Is had made a covenant with the Israelites and commanded them, “Do not worship other gods or bow down to them; do not serve them or sacrifice to them.
36Instead, worship He-Who-Is, who brought you out of the land of Two-Straits with great power and an outstretched arm. You are to bow down to Him and offer sacrifices to Him.
37And you must always be careful to observe the statutes, ordinances, teachings, and commandments He wrote for you. Do not worship other gods.
38Do not forget the covenant I have made with you. Do not worship other gods,
39but worship He-Who-Is your God, and He will deliver you from the hands of all your enemies.”
40But they would not listen, and they persisted in their former customs.
41So these nations worshiped He-Who-Is but also served their idols, and to this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did.