2 Kings 17:7–18

WHY ISRAEL FELL

⁷This disaster happened because the people of Israel sinned against the Lord their God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt^ac and because they worshiped^B other gods.^{ad 8}They lived according to the customs of the nations that the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites^ae and according to what the kings of Israel did.^{af 9}The Israelites secretly did things^C against the Lord their God that were not right. They built high places in all their towns from watchtower^ag to fortified city. ¹⁰They set up for themselves sacred pillars^ah and Asherah poles^ai on every high hill and under every green tree.^{aj 11}They burned incense there on all the high places just like the nations that the Lord had driven out before them had done. They did evil things, angering the Lord. ¹²They served idols, although the Lord had told them, “You must not do this.”^{a 13}Still, the Lord warned^b Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.”^c

¹⁴But they would not listen. Instead they became obstinate like^D their ancestors who did not believe the Lord their God.^{d 15}They rejected his statutes and his covenant he had made with their ancestors^e and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves,^f following the surrounding nations the Lord had commanded them not to imitate.^g

¹⁶They abandoned all the commands of the Lord their God. They made cast images^h for themselves, two calves, and an Asherah pole.ⁱ They bowed in worship to all the stars in the sky^j and served Baal.^{k 17}They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire^El and practiced divination and interpreted omens.^m They devoted themselves to do what was evil in the Lord’s sight and angered him.ⁿ

¹⁸Therefore, the Lord was very angry with Israel, and he removed them from his presence.^o Only the tribe of Judah remained.^p