Israel Carried Captive to Assyria

5 Now dthe king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years. 6 eIn the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and fcarried Israel away to Assyria, gand placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

7 For hso it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and they had ifeared other gods, 8 and jhad walked in the statutes of the nations whom the Lord had cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made. 9 Also the children of Israel secretly did against the Lord their God things that were not right, and they built for themselves 1high places in all their cities, kfrom watchtower to fortified city. 10 lThey set up for themselves sacred pillars and mwooden images 2 non every high hill and under every green tree. 11 There they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom the Lord had carried away before them; and they did wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger, 12 for they served idols, oof which the Lord had said to them, p“You shall not do this thing.”

13 Yet the Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His qprophets, revery seer, saying, s“Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.” 14 Nevertheless they would not hear, but tstiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who udid not believe in the Lord their God. 15 And they vrejected His statutes wand His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them; they followed xidols, ybecame idolaters, and went after the nations who were all around them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them that they should znot do like them. 16 So they left all the commandments of the Lord their God, amade for themselves a molded image and two calves, bmade a wooden image and worshiped all the chost of heaven, dand served Baal. 17 eAnd they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, fpracticed witchcraft and soothsaying, and gsold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left hbut the tribe of Judah alone.

19 Also iJudah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. 20 And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and jdelivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His ksight. 21 For lHe tore Israel from the house of David, and mthey made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord, and made them commit a great sin. 22 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, 23 until the Lord removed Israel out of His sight, nas He had said by all His servants the prophets. oSo Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day.