1 In the twelft yeere of Ahaz King of Iudah began Hoshea the sonne of Elah to reigne in Samaria ouer Israel, and reigned nine yeeres. 2 And he did euill in the sight of the Lord, but not as the Kinges of Israel, that were before him. 3 And Shalmaneser king of Asshur came vp against him, and Hoshea became his seruant, and gaue him presents. 4 And the King of Asshur founde treason in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to So King of Egypt, and brought no present vnto the King of Asshur, as he had done yeerely: therfore the king of Asshur shut him vp, and put him in prison. 5 Then the king of Asshur came vp throughout all the lande, and went against Samaria, and besieged it three yeere. 6 In the ninth yeere of Hoshea, the King of Asshur tooke Samaria, and caryed Israel away vnto Asshur, and put them in Halah, and in Habor by the riuer of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. 7 For when the children of Israel sinned against the Lord their God, which had brought them out of the land of Egypt, from vnder ye hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and feared other gods, 8 And walked according to the facions of the Heathen, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel, and after the maners of the Kings of Israel, which they vsed, 9 And the children of Israel had done secretly things that were not vpright before the Lord their God, and throughout all their cities had built hie places, both from the tower of the watch, to the defensed citie, 10 And had made them images and groues vpon euery hie hill, and vnder euery greene tree, 11 And there burnt incense in all the hie places, as did the heathen, whom the Lord had taken away before them, and wrought wicked things to anger the Lord, 12 And serued idoles: whereof the Lord had sayd vnto them, Ye shall do no such thing, 13 Notwithstanding the Lord testified to Israel, and to Iudah by all the Prophets, and by all the Seers, saying, Turne from your euill wayes, and keepe my commandements and my statutes, according to all the Lawe, which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my seruants the Prophets. 14 Neuerthelesse they would not obey, but hardened their neckes, like to the neckes of their fathers, that did not beleeue in the Lord their God. 15 And they refused his statutes and his couenant, that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies (wherewith he witnessed vnto them) and they followed vanitie, and became vaine, and followed the heathen that were round about them: concerning whome the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them. 16 Finally they left all the commandements of the Lord their God, and made them molten images, euen two calues, and made a groue, and worshipped all the hoste of heauen, and serued Baal. 17 And they made their sonnes and their daughters passe thorowe the fire, and vsed witchcraft and inchantments, yea, solde them selues to doe euill in the sight of the Lord, to anger him. 18 Therefore the Lord was exceeding wroth with Israel, and put them out of his sight, and none was left but the tribe of Iudah onely. 19 Yet Iudah kept not the commandements of the Lord their God, but walked according to the facion of Israel, which they vsed. 20 Therefore the Lord cast off all the seede of Israel, and afflicted them, and deliuered them into the handes of spoylers, vntill he had cast them out of his sight. 21 For he cut off Israel from the house of Dauid, and they made Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat King: and Ieroboam drewe Israel away from following the Lord, and made them sinne a great sinne. 22 For the children of Israel walked in all the sinnes of Ieroboam, which he did, and departed not therefrom, 23 Vntill the Lord put Israel away out of his sight, as he had said by all his seruants the Prophets, and caryed Israel away out of their land to Asshur vnto this day. 24 And the King of Asshur brought folke from Babel, and from Cuthah, and from Aua, and from Hamath, and from Sepharuaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria in steade of the children of Israel: so they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. 25 And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they feared not the Lord: therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which slewe them. 26 Wherefore they spake to the King of Asshur, saying, The nations which thou hast remoued, and placed in the cities of Samaria, knowe not the maner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and behold, they slay them, because they knowe not the maner of the God of the land. 27 Then the King of Asshur commanded, saying, Carie thither one of the Priestes whome ye brought thence, and let him goe and dwell there, and teache them the maner of the God of the countrey. 28 So one of the Priestes, which they had caryed from Samaria, came and dwelt in Beth-el, and taught them how they shoulde feare the Lord. 29 Howbeit euery nation made their gods, and put them in the houses of the hie places, which the Samaritanes had made, euery nation in their cities, wherein they dwelt. 30 For the men of Babel made Succoth-Benoth: and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 And the Auims made Nibhaz, and Tartak: and the Sepharuims burnt their children in the fire to Adrammelech, and Anammelech the gods of Sepharuaim. 32 Thus they feared the Lord, and appoynted out Priestes out of them selues for the hie places, who prepared for them sacrifices in the houses of the hie places. 33 They feared the Lord, but serued their gods after the maner of the nations whome they caryed thence. 34 Vnto this day they doe after the olde maner: they neyther feare God, neyther doe after their ordinances, nor after their customes, nor after the Lawe, nor after the commandement, which the Lord commanded the children of Iaakob, whom he named Israel, 35 And with whom the Lord had made a couenant, and charged them, saying, Feare none other gods, nor bowe your selues to them, nor serue them, nor sacrifice to them: 36 But feare the Lord which brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power, and a stretched out arme: him feare ye, and worshippe him, and sacrifice to him. 37 Also keepe ye diligently the statutes and the ordinances, and the Lawe, and the commandement, which he wrote for you, that ye do them continually, and feare not other gods. 38 And forget not the couenant that I haue made with you, neither feare ye other gods, 39 But feare the Lord your God, and he will deliuer you out of the handes of all your enemies. 40 Howbeit they obeyed not, but did after their olde custome. 41 So these nations feared the Lord, and serued their images also: so did their children, and their childrens children: as did their fathers, so do they vnto this day.
King Hoshea of Israel
1 In the twelfth year of the reign of King Ahaz of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for nine years. 2 He sinned against the Lord, but not as much as the kings who had ruled Israel before him. 3 Emperor Shalmaneser of Assyria made war against him; Hoshea surrendered to Shalmaneser and paid him tribute every year. 4 But one year Hoshea sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, asking for his help, and stopped paying the annual tribute to Assyria. When Shalmaneser learned of this, he had Hoshea arrested and put in prison.
The Fall of Samaria
5 Then Shalmaneser invaded Israel and besieged Samaria. In the third year of the siege, 6 which was the ninth year of the reign of Hoshea, the Assyrian emperor captured Samaria, took the Israelites to Assyria as prisoners, and settled some of them in the city of Halah, some near the Habor River in the district of Gozan and some in the cities of Media.
7 Samaria fell because the Israelites sinned against the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the king of Egypt and had led them out of Egypt. They worshiped other gods, 8 followed the customs of the people whom the Lord had driven out as his people advanced, and adopted customs introduced by the kings of Israel. 9 The Israelites did things that the Lord their God disapproved of. They built pagan places of worship in all their towns, from the smallest village to the largest city. 10 On all the hills and under every shady tree they put up stone pillars and images of the goddess Asherah, 11 and they burned incense on all the pagan altars, following the practice of the people whom the Lord had driven out of the land. They aroused the Lord's anger with all their wicked deeds 12 and disobeyed the Lord's command not to worship idols.
13 The Lord had sent his messengers and prophets to warn Israel and Judah: “Abandon your evil ways and obey my commands, which are contained in the Law I gave to your ancestors and which I handed on to you through my servants the prophets.” 14 But they would not obey; they were stubborn like their ancestors, who had not trusted in the Lord their God. 15 They refused to obey his instructions, they did not keep the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and they disregarded his warnings. They worshiped worthless idols and became worthless themselves, and they followed the customs of the surrounding nations, disobeying the Lord's command not to imitate them. 16 They broke all the laws of the Lord their God and made two metal bull-calves to worship; they also made an image of the goddess Asherah, worshiped the stars, and served the god Baal. 17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters as burnt offerings to pagan gods; they consulted mediums and fortunetellers, and they devoted themselves completely to doing what is wrong in the Lord's sight, and so aroused his anger. 18 The Lord was angry with the Israelites and banished them from his sight, leaving only the kingdom of Judah.
19 But even the people of Judah did not obey the laws of the Lord their God; they imitated the customs adopted by the people of Israel. 20 The Lord rejected all the Israelites, punishing them and handing them over to cruel enemies until at last he had banished them from his sight.
21 After the Lord had separated Israel from Judah, the Israelites made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king. Jeroboam caused them to abandon the Lord and led them into terrible sins. 22 They followed Jeroboam and continued to practice all the sins he had committed, 23 until at last the Lord banished them from his sight, as he had warned through his servants the prophets that he would do. So the people of Israel were taken into exile to Assyria, where they still live.
The Assyrians Settle in Israel
24 The emperor of Assyria took people from the cities of Babylon, Cuth, Ivvah, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the exiled Israelites. They took possession of these cities and lived there. 25 When they first settled there, they did not worship the Lord, and so he sent lions, which killed some of them. 26 The emperor of Assyria was told that the people he had settled in the cities of Samaria did not know the law of the god of that land, and so the god had sent lions, which were killing them. 27 So the emperor commanded: “Send back one of the priests we brought as prisoners; have him go back and live there, in order to teach the people the law of the god of that land.” 28 So an Israelite priest who had been deported from Samaria went and lived in Bethel, where he taught the people how to worship the Lord.
29 But the people who settled in Samaria continued to make their own idols, and they placed them in the shrines that the Israelites had built. Each different group made idols in the cities they were living in: 30 the people of Babylon made idols of the god Succoth Benoth; the people of Cuth, idols of Nergal; the people of Hamath, idols of Ashima; 31 the people of Ivvah, idols of Nibhaz and Tartak; and the people of Sepharvaim sacrificed their children as burnt offerings to their gods Adrammelech and Anammelech. 32 These people also worshiped the Lord and chose from among their own number all sorts of people to serve as priests at the pagan places of worship and to offer sacrifices for them there. 33 So they worshiped the Lord, but they also worshiped their own gods according to the customs of the countries from which they had come.
34 They still carry on their old customs to this day. They do not worship the Lord nor do they obey the laws and commands which he gave to the descendants of Jacob, whom he named Israel. 35 The Lord had made a covenant with them and had ordered them: “Do not worship other gods; do not bow down to them or serve them or offer sacrifices to them. 36 You shall obey me, the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt with great power and strength; you are to bow down to me and offer sacrifices to me. 37 You shall always obey the laws and commands that I wrote for you. You shall not obey other gods, 38 and you shall not forget the covenant I made with you. 39 You shall obey me, the Lord your God, and I will rescue you from your enemies.” 40 But those people would not listen, and they continued to follow their old customs.
41 So those people worshiped the Lord, but they also worshiped their idols; and to this day their descendants continue to do the same.