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2 Kings Chapter
Seventeen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 17
This
chapter relates the captivity of the ten tribes of Israel, and how it came
about, 2 Kings 17:1, the
cause of it, their idolatry, which they persisted in, notwithstanding the
remonstrances made against it, 2 Kings 17:7, in
whose stead were placed people from different parts, who exercised a mixed
religion, partly Heathenish, and partly Israelitish, 2 Kings 17:24.
2 Kings 17:1 In
the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah became king of
Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years.
YLT
1In the twelfth year of Ahaz
king of Judah reigned hath Hoshea son of Elah in Samaria, over Israel -- nine
years,
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of
Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years. In this account there is
some difficulty, since it was in the twentieth of Jotham, that is, the fourth
of Ahaz, that Hosea conspired against Pekah king of Israel, and slew him, when
it might be reasonably thought he began his reign: now either there was an
interregnum until the twelfth of Ahaz, or Hoshea however was not generally
received and acknowledged as king till then, as others think; he being a
tributary to the king of Assyria, and a kind of viceroy, is not said to reign
until he rebelled against him; after which he reigned nine years, four in the
times of Ahaz, and five in the reign of Hezekiah, 2 Kings 18:9, in
this way the author of the Jewish chronology goesF18Seder Olam
Rabba, c. 22. , in which he is followed by other Jewish writers; and this bids
as fair as any to remove the difficulty, unless these nine years refer to the
time of his reign before the twelfth of Ahaz; and the sense be, that in the
twelfth of Ahaz he had reigned nine year's; but it is said he "began"
to reign then.
2 Kings 17:2 2 And he did evil in the
sight of the Lord,
but not as the kings of Israel who were before him.
YLT
2and he doth the evil thing
in the eyes of Jehovah, only, not as the kings of Israel who were before him;
And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but not
as the kings of Israel that were before him. He did not worship Baal,
as some of them had done; and he could not worship the calves, as all of them
had, for they were carried away by the Assyrians in the former captivities, as
the JewsF19Seder Olam Rabba, c. 22. say; and who also observeF20T.
Bab. Gittin, fol. 88. Kimchi in loc. , that he removed the garrisons set on the
borders of the land to watch the Israelites, that they might not go up to
Jerusalem; and this being done on the fifteenth of Ab, that day was afterwards
observed as a festival on that account; and they further remarkF21Seder
Olam Raba, ut supra. (c. 22.) , that the captivity of the ten tribes was in the
reign of this king, who was better than the rest, to show that it was not
barely the sins of the kings on whom the Israelites would cast the blame, that
they were carried captives, but their own, according to Hosea 5:3.
2 Kings 17:3 3 Shalmaneser king of
Assyria came up against him; and Hoshea became his vassal, and paid him tribute
money.
YLT
3against him came up
Shalmaneser king of Asshur, and Hoshea is to him a servant, and doth render to
him a present.
Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria,.... Which
some take to be the same with Tiglathpileser, see 1 Chronicles 5:26
but he rather seems to be his son; his name was to be found, as JosephusF23Antiqu.
l. 9. c. 14. sect. 2. relates, in the archives of the Tyrians, against whom he
had an expedition; his name is Salmanassar in MetasthenesF24De
Judicio Temp. fol. 221. 2. , who says he reigned seventeen years:
and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents, to depart
from him; he became tributary to him, and agreed to pay him a yearly tax.
2 Kings 17:4 4 And the king of Assyria
uncovered a conspiracy by Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to So, king of
Egypt, and brought no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done
year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in
prison.
YLT
4And the king of Asshur
findeth in Hoshea a conspiracy, in that he hath sent messengers unto So king of
Egypt, and hath not caused a present to go up to the king of Asshur, as year by
year, and the king of Asshur restraineth him, and bindeth him in a house of
restraint.
And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea,.... That he
was forming a scheme to rebel against him, and cast off his yoke; of this he
had intelligence by spies he sent, and placed to observe him very probably:
for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt; to treat with
him, and enter into alliance with him, to help him against, and free him from,
the king of Assyria. This king of Egypt is supposed to be Sabacon the
Ethiopian, who reigned in Egypt ninety years; of whom HerodotusF25Euterpe,
sive, l. 2. c. 137. and Diodorus SiculusF26Bibliothec l. 1. p. 59.
make mention; by Theodoret he is called Adramelech the Ethiopian, who dwelt in
Egypt:
and brought no presents to the king of Assyria, as he had done
year by year; did not pay him his yearly tribute:
therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison; that is,
after he took Samaria, the siege of which is next related; unless it can be
thought that he met with him somewhere out of the capital, and seized him, and
made him his prisoner, and after that besieged his city; which is not so
likely.
2 Kings 17:5 5 Now the king of Assyria
went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three
years.
YLT
5And the king of Asshur
goeth up into all the land, and he goeth up to Samaria, and layeth siege
against it three years;
Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land,.... Of
Israel, there being none to oppose his march; Hoshea not daring to come out,
and meet him and fight him:
and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years; so long the
city held out against him, see 2 Kings 18:9.
2 Kings 17:6 6 In the ninth year of
Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria,
and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the
cities of the Medes.
YLT
6in the ninth year of Hoshea
hath the king of Asshur captured Samaria, and removeth Israel to Asshur, and
causeth them to dwell in Halah, and in Habor, [by] the river Gozan, and [in]
the cities of the Medes.
In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria,..... Which
was the last year of his reign, and to be reckoned either from the time of his
reigning in full power and authority, or from his first casting off the
Assyrian yoke; See Gill on 2 Kings 17:1.
and carried Israel away into Assyria; not only the
inhabitants of Samaria, but all the ten tribes inhabiting the several parts of
the kingdom, for which Josephus is expressF1Antiqu. l. 9. c. 10.
sect. 1. .
and placed them in Halah, and in Habor, by the river of Gozan; some of them
he placed here, which were in Assyria. Halah is the Calachena of Ptolemy, at
the north of Assyria, and Habor is the mount Chobaras of the same; from which
mountain, as you go to the Caspian sea, about midway, is the city Gauzania, the
same with Gozan, which might give name to this riverF2Vid. Witsium
de 10 Trib. Israel. c. 4. sect. 2. . The Jews sayF3Rambam apud Eliam
in Tishbi, p. 134. , this is the river Sambation, which runs so swiftly, that
there is no passing except on the sabbath day; and which then the Jews cannot
pass because of the profanation of the sabbath; and is the reason they give why
the ten tribes are there detained; and Manasseh ben IsraelF4Spes
Israelis, sect. 17. p. 55. fancies Habor to be Tabor, a province in Tartary,
where some Jews are:
and in the cities of the Medes; others of them he placed
there, under his jurisdiction, the same with Hara, 1 Chronicles 5:26,
which with the Greeks is called Aria; and Herodotus saysF5Polymnia,
sive, l. 7. c. 60. So Pausanias Corinthiac. sive, l. 2. p. 91. Vid. Vossium in
Melam, de Situ Orbis, l. 1. c. 2. p. 13. , these Medes formerly were called by
all Arii. It appears from hence that the kingdom of Media was now subject to
the king of Assyria: someF6See Bierwood's Inquiries, p. 104. take
Halach to be Colchi, and Habor to be Iberia, and Hara to be Armenia, and
Gauzani to be Media, which all bounded the north of Assyria.
2 Kings 17:7 7 For so 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 feared other gods,
YLT
7And it cometh to pass,
because the sons of Israel have sinned against Jehovah their God -- who
bringeth them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king
of Egypt -- and fear other gods,
For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the
Lord their God,.... By committing idolatry, which is the sin enlarged upon in
the following discourse, as the cause of their being carried captive:
which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the
hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt; which is observed to show their
ingratitude, and to aggravate their sin of idolatry:
and had feared other gods; which could do them
neither good nor hurt, wherefore it must be great stupidity to fear them.
2 Kings 17:8 8 and had 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.
YLT
8and walk in the statutes of
the nations that Jehovah dispossessed from the presence of the sons of Israel,
and of the kings of Israel that they made;
And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out
from before the children of Israel,.... Meaning the
Canaanites, in whose idolatrous ways they walked, and whom they imitated;
though their ejection out of the land should have been a warning to them, and
they were the more inexcusable, as they were particularly cautioned against
walking in them, Leviticus 18:3.
and of the kings of Israel, which they had made; their laws
and statutes, to worship the golden calves, and not go up to Jerusalem to
worship.
2 Kings 17:9 9 Also the children of
Israel secretly did against the Lord their God things that were
not right, and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from
watchtower to fortified city.
YLT
9and the sons of Israel do
covertly things that [are] not right against Jehovah their God, and build for
them high places in all their cities, from a tower of the watchers unto the
fenced city,
And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not
right against the Lord their God,.... As being partly
conscious to themselves that they were not right, and ashamed to commit them
openly; and partly as foolishly imagining, that, being done privately, they
were not seen and observed of God, having imbibed some atheistical notions of
him, that he was not omniscient, or saw not, and had forsaken the earth; or
they "covered"F7יחפאו
"occultaverunt", Montanus, Vatablus, Grotius;
"palliaverunt", Piscator. these actions of theirs under reigned and
plausible pretences, that what they did they were obliged to by their kings,
and with political views, and that they worshipped the true God in the calves;
but these were coverings too thin not to be seen through:
and they built them high places in all their cities, from the
tower of the watchmen to the fenced city; not content with those
built in former times, they built new ones; and these not in their metropolis
only, but in all the cities of the kingdom; and not in large cities only, but
in every town and village between one fortified city and another; even wherever
there was a watch tower erected, either for shepherds to watch their flocks, or
for keepers of gardens, orchards, and vineyards, to watch the fruits of them,
that they were not taken away.
2 Kings 17:10 10 They set up for themselves
sacred pillars and wooden images[a] on every
high hill and under every green tree.
YLT
10and set up for them
standing-pillars and shrines on every high height, and under every green tree,
And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and
under every green tree. That is, statues and idols; for groves of trees could not be set
under green trees; but they placed idols of stone, and of wood, as the latter
were, in such places as Heathens were wont to do; see Jeremiah 3:6; see
Gill on 1 Kings 14:23, so
the Indians to this day have idols dispersed here and there in the fields,
placed in little groves, or at the foot of some hill that casts a shadowF8Agreement
of Customs between the East Indians and Jews, art. 5. p. 34. .
2 Kings 17:11 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,
YLT
11and make perfume there in
all high places, like the nations that Jehovah removed from their presence, and
do evil things to provoke Jehovah,
And there they burnt incense in all the high places,.... As even
the tribe of Judah did, which is observed in all the preceding reigns:
as did the Heathen whom the Lord carried away before them: the
Canaanites, and therefore they might justly expect to be carried captive also:
and wrought wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger: by their
several immoralities, but especially their idolatries.
2 Kings 17:12 12 for they served idols, of
which the Lord
had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.”
YLT
12and serve the idols, of
which Jehovah said to them, `Ye do not do this thing;'
For they served idols,.... Baalim, as the
Targum; dunghill gods, as the word signifies, as they are often called in
Scripture; and Sterculius was one of the names of Saturn, an Heathen deity,
which he had, as is supposed, by his finding out the method of making land
fruitful with dungF9Vid. Macrob. l. 1. c. 7. Lactant. de fals.
Relig. l. 1. c. 20. :
whereof the Lord said unto them, ye shall not do this thing; see Exodus 20:3.
2 Kings 17:13 13 Yet the Lord testified
against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying,
“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.”
YLT
13And Jehovah testifieth
against Israel, and against Judah, by the hand of every prophet, and every
seer, saying, `Turn back from your evil ways, and keep My commands, My
statutes, according to all the law that I commanded your fathers, and that I
sent unto you by the hand of My servants the prophets;'
Yet the Lord testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all
the prophets, and by all the seers,.... Against their sins,
reproving them for them, dehorting them from them, exhorting them to repent and
leave them; as in all preceding reigns, by Ahijah the Shilonite, by Elijah and
Elisha, by Hosea, Amos, and Micah, and others:
saying, turn ye from your ways; repent of them, and
reform from them, worship of the calves particularly:
and keep my commandments, and my statutes, according to all the
law which I commanded your fathers; which was given them and
enjoined them at Mount Sinai:
and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets; by whom he
put them in mind of them, explained them, and urged obedience to them.
2 Kings 17:14 14 Nevertheless they would
not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did
not believe in the Lord
their God.
YLT
14and they have not
hearkened, and harden their neck, like the neck of their fathers, who did not
remain stedfast in Jehovah their God,
Notwithstanding, they would not hear,.... Their
instructions, advice, and admonitions, and obey them:
but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that
did not believe in the Lord their God: as Terah and Nahor, who
were idolaters; or rather, their fathers in the wilderness, that made and
served the calf, and those that rebelled against Moses and Aaron; it is a
metaphor taken from oxen, that will not submit their necks to the yoke, but
draw back from it, or cast it off, see Acts 7:51.
2 Kings 17:15 15 And they rejected His
statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His
testimonies which He had testified against them; they followed idols, became
idolaters, and went after the nations who were all around them, concerning
whom the Lord
had charged them that they should not do like them.
YLT
15and reject His statutes and
His covenant that He made with their fathers, and His testimonies that He
testified against them, and go after the vain thing, and become vain, and after
the nations that are round about them, of whom Jehovah commanded them not to do
like them;
And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with
their fathers,.... At Sinai and Horeb, see Exodus 24:8,
and his testimonies which he testified against them; calling
heaven and earth to witness what he would do to them if they broke his laws, Deuteronomy 4:26,
and which were so many testifications of his mind and will what they should do,
or otherwise what should be done to them; Ben Gersom also interprets this of
the feasts of the passover and tabernacles, which were witnesses of Israel's
coming out of Egypt, and of the sanctification and redemption of the firstborn,
a testimony of the slaying the firstborn in Egypt:
and they followed vanity; idols, which are vain
things for help, can neither hear, see, speak, &c.
and became vain; as sottish and stupid as the idols they
worshipped; which is the usual fruit and effect of idolatry, see Romans 1:21.
and went after the heathen that were round about them: imitated them
in their idolatrous practices, as the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, &c.
concerning
whom the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them; of this
charge see Deuteronomy 6:13.
2 Kings 17:16 16 So they left all the
commandments of the Lord
their God, made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a
wooden image and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
YLT
16And they forsake all the
commands of Jehovah their God, and make to them a molten image -- two calves,
and make a shrine, and bow themselves to all the host of the heavens, and serve
Baal,
And they left all the commandments of the Lord their God,.... Which
their idolatry led them to; and indeed he that offends in one point is guilty
of them all, James 2:10.
and made them molten images, even two calves; which they
set up at Dan and Bethel, in the times of their first king Jeroboam, 1 Kings 13:28.
and made a grove; as Ahab, another of their kings, did, 1 Kings 16:33.
and worshipped all the host of heaven: not the angels,
sometimes so called, but, besides the sun and moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars,
Mercury, Venus:
and served Baal; which was service to the sun, as Abarbinel
interprets it; this was the god of the Zidonians Ahab worshipped, having
married a princess of that people, 1 Kings 16:31.
2 Kings 17:17 17 And they caused their sons
and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying,
and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke
Him to anger.
YLT
17and cause their sons and
their daughters to pass over through fire, and divine divinations, and use
enchantments, and sell themselves to do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah,
to provoke Him;
And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the
fire,.... To Baal or Moloch, which were the same, and represented the
sun, which, as the above writer observes, presides in the element of fire; this
was done either by way of lustration, or so as to be burnt, see 2 Kings 16:3.
and used divination and enchantments: to get
knowledge of what was to be done at present, or of things to come, neglecting
the word of God and his prophets, and acting against the express law of God, Deuteronomy 18:10.
and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, to
provoke him to anger; as Ahab their king did, see 1 Kings 21:20, they
were as much the servants of sin as if they had sold themselves to be slaves to
it.
2 Kings 17:18 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry
with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe
of Judah alone.
YLT
18That Jehovah sheweth
himself very angry against Israel, and turneth them aside from His presence;
none hath been left, only the tribe of Judah by itself.
Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel,.... Nothing
being more provoking to him than idolatry:
and removed them out of his sight; not out of the reach of
his all seeing eye, but from all tokens of his favour, from the good land he
had given them, and all the benefits and privileges of it:
there was none left but the tribe of Judah only; and part of
Benjamin, which was annexed to it, and incorporated in it, and made one kingdom,
and maintained the same worship; and there was the lot of Simeon, which was
within the tribe of Judah; and the priests and the Levites, and various
individuals of the several tribes, that came and settled among them for the
sake of worship; but no perfect, distinct, tribe besides.
2 Kings 17:19 19 Also Judah did not keep
the commandments of the Lord
their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.
YLT
19Also Judah hath not kept
the commands of Jehovah their God, and they walk in the statutes of Israel that
they had made.
Also Judah kept not the commandments of the Lord their God,.... But were
infected with the idolatry of the ten tribes, and drawn into it by their
example, and persisted therein, notwithstanding what befell the ten tribes;
which are aggravations of the sins of them both, see Jeremiah 3:7,
but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made; worshipping
the calves as they did, particularly in the times of Ahaz, he setting the
example, see 2 Kings 16:3.
2 Kings 17:20 20 And the Lord rejected all
the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of
plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight.
YLT
20And Jehovah kicketh against
all the seed of Israel, and afflicteth them, and giveth them into the hand of
spoilers, till that He hath cast them out of His presence,
And the Lord rejected all the seed of Israel,.... The ten
tribes, with loathing and contempt, and wrote a "loammi" on them,
rejected them from being his people, gave them a bill of divorce, and declared
them no more under his care and patronage:
and afflicted them; as he did before he utterly cast them off,
as by famine, drought, and pestilence, Amos 4:6.
and delivered them into the hands of spoilers; as, first,
into the hands of Hazael and Benhadad, kings of Syria, and then of
Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, 2 Kings 13:3,
until he had cast them out of his sight; by suffering
them, as now, to be carried captive by Shalmaneser, 2 Kings 17:6.
2 Kings 17:21 21 For He tore Israel from
the house of David, and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam
drove Israel from following the Lord, and made them commit a
great sin.
YLT
21for He hath rent Israel
from the house of David, and they make Jeroboam son of Nebat king, and Jeroboam
driveth Israel from after Jehovah, and hath caused them to sin a great sin,
For he rent Israel from the house of David,.... In the
times of Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when ten tribes revolted from him,
signified by the rending of a garment in twelve pieces, ten of which were given
to Jeroboam; and it is here ascribed to the Lord, being according to his
purpose and decree, and which was brought about by his providence, agreeably to
a prophecy of his, see 1 Kings 11:30.
and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king; of
themselves, without consulting the Lord and his prophets; and which was
resented by him, though it was his will, and he had foretold it, that Jeroboam
should be king, see Hosea 8:4.
and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the Lord; forbidding
them to go up to Jerusalem to worship; the Targum is,
"made
them to err:"
and made them sin a great sin; obliging them to worship
the calves he set up.
2 Kings 17:22 22 For the children of Israel
walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them,
YLT
22and the sons of Israel walk
in all the sins of Jeroboam that he did, they have not turned aside therefrom,
For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam
which he did,.... They observed his injunction, not to go to Jerusalem to
worship, and they worshipped the calves he did:
they departed not from them: in all succeeding
reigns, until the time of their captivity.
2 Kings 17:23 23 until the Lord removed Israel
out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel
was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day.
YLT
23till that Jehovah hath
turned Israel aside from His presence, as He spake by the hand of all His
servants the prophets, and Israel is removed from off its land to Asshur, unto
this day.
Until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight,.... Suffered
them to be carried captive into the land of Assyria:
as he had said by all his servants the prophets; by Hosea,
Amos, Micah, and others; see their prophecies, and also 1 Kings 13:32,
so was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria, unto
this day; the time of the writing this book; nor have they returned unto
our days, nearly 2,800 years later.
2 Kings 17:24 24 Then the king of Assyria
brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, and from Sepharvaim,
and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of
Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities.
YLT
24And the king of Asshur bringeth
in from Babylon and from Cutha, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and Sepharvaim,
and causeth [them] to dwell in the cities of Samaria instead of the sons of
Israel, and they possess Samaria, and dwell in its cities;
And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon,.... Which was
at this time under the dominion of the king of Assyria; though in a little time
after this it revolted, and had a king of its own, 2 Kings 20:12, this
king of Assyria was either Shalmaneser, who carried Israel captive, or it may
be rather his son Esarhaddon, see Ezra 4:2,
and from Cuthah; which, according to JosephusF11Antiqu.
l. 9. c. 14. sect. 1. , was a city in Persia, where was a river of the same
name; but it was rather a place in Erech, in the country of Babylon; see Gill
on Genesis 10:10,
and from Ava; the same with Ivah, Isaiah 37:13, where
perhaps a colony of the Avim had settled, Deuteronomy 2:23.
and from Hamath; a city of Syria, which lay on the northern
borders of the land of Canaan, Numbers 34:8
and from Sepharvaim; thought by some to be
the Sippara of Ptolemy, or the Sippareni of Abydenus, in Mesopotamia; though
Vitringa takes it to be a city in Syro-Phoenicia; see Gill on Isaiah 36:19,
and placed them in the cities of Samaria, instead of the children
of Israel; not in Samaria, which was now destroyed, according to the
prophecy in Micah 1:6 as
Abarbinel and other Jewish writers note:
and they possessed Samaria; as an inheritance; sowed
it with corn, and planted vineyards there:
and dwelt in the cities thereof; in the several parts of
the kingdom.
2 Kings 17:25 25 And it was so, at the
beginning of their dwelling there, that they did not fear the Lord; therefore the
Lord sent lions
among them, which killed some of them.
YLT
25and it cometh to pass, at
the commencement of their dwelling there, they have not feared Jehovah, and
Jehovah doth send among them the lions, and they are destroying among them.
And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they
feared not the Lord,.... Did not serve him in any manner, but their idols only, which
they brought with them; whereas it was usual with Heathens to serve the gods of
the country, as they reputed them, where they came, along with their own; but
even this those men did not do:
therefore the Lord sent lions among them; even into
their cities, into which lions sometimes cameF12Aristot. Hist.
Animal. l. 9. c. 44. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 16. , especially when old, out
of the thickets of Jordan and other places where they haunted, see Jeremiah 49:19.
which slew some of them; this the Lord did to
assert his sovereignty, authority, and mighty power, and to let them know that
he could as easily clear the land of them, as they, by his permission, had
cleared the land of the Israelites, JosephusF13Ut supra. (Antiqu. l.
9. c. 14. sect. 1.) calls this a plague that was sent among them.
2 Kings 17:26 26 So they spoke to the king
of Assyria, saying, “The nations whom you have removed and placed in the cities
of Samaria do not know the rituals of the God of the land; therefore He has
sent lions among them, and indeed, they are killing them because they do not
know the rituals of the God of the land.”
YLT
26And they speak to the king
of Asshur, saying, `The nations that thou hast removed, and dost place in the
cities of Samaria, have not known the custom of the God of the land, and He
sendeth among them the lions, and lo, they are destroying them, as they do not
know the custom of the God of the land.'
Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria,.... In
letters, or by messengers they sent unto him:
saying, the nations which thou hast removed; from
different places before mentioned:
and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the
God of the land; taking Jehovah the God of Israel to be a topical deity, limited
peculiarly to the land of Israel, whereas he was the God of the whole earth; a
like notion obtained among the Syrians, see 1 Kings 20:28 now
they say they know not his "manner" or "judgment"F14משפט "judicium", Pagninus, Montanus, &c. ,
the laws, statutes, ordinances, and judgments, according to which he was
worshipped by the people of Israel:
therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay
them; they perceived it was not a common case, nor could they impute
it to any second cause, as want of food with the lions, &c. but the hand of
a superior Being was in it: and they could think of no other reason, but
because they know not the manner of the God of the land; how he was to
be worshipped; and because they did not worship him, and knew not how to do it,
it was resented in this manner by him.
2 Kings 17:27 27 Then the king of Assyria
commanded, saying, “Send there one of the priests whom you brought from there;
let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the rituals of the God of
the land.”
YLT
27And the king of Asshur
commandeth, saying, `Cause to go thither one of the priests whom ye removed
thence, and they go and dwell there, and he doth teach them the custom of the God
of the land.'
Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying,.... Gave the
following orders and directions:
carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; for they
carried away all the people of every class, civil and religious:
and let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner
of the God of the land; it is in the plural number, "let them go", &c.F15ילכו וישבו "eant et
sedeant", Montanus. ; there might be more priests than one ordered, or,
however, others, to attend and assist him in his work; the Jews sayF16Pirke
Eliezer, c. 38. , two were sent to circumcise them, and teach them the book of
the law; and they give their names, Dosthai, or Dosithaeus, and Zachariah; and
JosephusF17Antiqu. l. 9. c. 14. sect. 3. says, the people desired
that priests might be sent to them of the captives.
2 Kings 17:28 28 Then one of the priests
whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught
them how they should fear the Lord.
YLT
28And one of the priests whom
they removed from Samaria cometh in, and dwelleth in Beth-El, and he is
teaching them how they do fear Jehovah,
Then one of the priests whom, they had carried away from Samaria
came and dwelt in Bethel,.... According to an Arabic writerF18Abulpharag. Hist.
Dynast. Dyn. 3. p. 65. , his name was Uzziah; but EpiphaniusF19Contr.
Haeres. l. 1. Haer. 8. says his name was Esdras; but he wrongly makes him to be
sent by Nebuchadnezzar, thirty years after the captivity of the Jews in
Babylon: this priest was, doubtless, one of the priests of the calves; for
there were none else in the kingdom of Israel carried captive, and as seems
also by his choosing to dwell in Bethel, where probably he formerly dwelt, and
officiated in the service of the calf there, and by teaching to make priests of
the lowest order of the people, as Jeroboam's priests were, 2 Kings 17:32.
and taught them how they should fear the Lord; serve and
worship him; he might not teach them the worship of the calves, that being a
political business, and now no end to be answered by it; and besides, they were
now carried out of the land. This priest taught, no doubt, according to the law
of Moses, but was not the author of the Pentateuch; which ridiculous conceit of
Le Clerc is sufficiently exposed by WitsiusF20Miscellan. tom. 1. l.
1. c. 14. sect. 7. 28. .
2 Kings 17:29 29 However every nation
continued to make gods of its own, and put them in the shrines on the
high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities
where they dwelt.
YLT
29and they are making each
nation its gods, and place [them] in the houses of the high places that the
Samaritans have made, each nation in their cities where they are dwelling.
Howbeit, every nation made gods of their own,.... Served
and worshipped those they brought with them, and which were the work of their
own hands, even the nations, or those out of the nations, mentioned 2 Kings 17:24
these, notwithstanding the instructions they had about the worship of the God
of Israel, retained and served their own deities: and put them in the houses of
the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities
wherein they dwelt; as the Israelites had built high places everywhere for
idolatry, and put images in them, 2 Kings 17:9 these
Heathens placed their gods there in the room of them, which were as follow.
2 Kings 17:30 30 The men of Babylon made
Succoth Benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima,
YLT
30And the men of Babylon have
made Succoth-Benoth, and the men of Cuth have made Nergal, and the men of
Hamath have made Ashima,
And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth,.... That is,
those that came from Babylon made and served an idol of this name, which,
according to the Jewish writersF21T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 63. 2. ,
were the figures of an hen and chickens; but others suppose them to be the
Pleiades, or seven stars, the stars being had in great veneration by the
Babylonians; though others rather think those Succothbenoth, "tabernacles",
or "booths of the daughters", as the words may be rendered, have
respect to the apartments in the temple of Venus, or Mylitta with the
Babylonians and Assyrians, in which women once in their lives prostituted
themselves to whomsoever asked them, in honour of Venus; of which filthy
practice of theirs HerodotusF23Clio, sive, l. 1. c. 199. makes
mention; and Valerius Maximus speaksF24L. 2. c. 6. sect. 15. of a
temple of Sicca Venus, which is near in sound to this, where the like
impurities were committed:
and the men of Cuth made Nergal; which, according to the
Jews, was in the likeness of a cock; but others, because the first part of the
word signifies a lamp, suppose fire is meant, worshipped by the Persians, from
whom it is thought these men came; but rather the word signifies, as HillerusF25Onomastic.
Sacr. p. 601. observes, the fountain of light, and denotes the sun, worshipped
by the Babylonians, Cuth being a province of theirs; from hence one of the
princes of Babylon had part of his name, Jeremiah 39:3.
and the men of Hamath made Ashima; which, the Jews say, was
in the form of a goat, without any wool on it, or an apeF26David de
Pomis Lexic. fol. 17. 2. ; but according to HillerusF1Onomast. Sacr.
p. 609. , with the Arabs, Ashima is the name of a lion, a symbol of the sun,
under which form it might be worshipped; unless Ashima is the same with
Shamaim, the heavens, worshipped by the Heathens; we read of the Ashemath of
Samaria, by which they swore, Amos 8:14, though
that was before these men came thither.
2 Kings 17:31 31 and the Avites made Nibhaz
and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burned their children in fire to Adrammelech
and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
YLT
31and the Avites have made
Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites are burning their sons with fire to
Adrammelech and Anammelech, gods of Sepharvim.
And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak,.... The
former of which is represented by the Jews in the shape of a dog, deriving the
word from "nabach", to bark, as if it was the same with the Anubis
Latrator of VirgilF2Aeneid. l. 6. So Ovid. Metamorph. l. 9. Fab. 12.
ver. 689. , an Egyptian deity; though that is saidF3Jablonski apud
Michael. Obs. Sacr. Exercit. 4. p. 66, 67. to have its name from NOeb, which in
the Egyptian language signifies "gold", the statutes of it being made
of gold; and the latter in the form of an ass, for what reason I cannot say;
but the first word, according to HillerusF4Ut supra, (Onomast.
Sacr.) p. 859. , signifies, "the remote one seeth", that is, the sun,
which beholds all things; and Tartak is a chain, and may denote the fixed stars
chained as it were in their places; or the satellites of the planets, chained
to their orbs:
and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech
and to Anammelech the gods of Sepharvaim; which were the same with
Moloch; which may be concluded, partly from the worship paid them, and partly
from the signification of their names; both end with "melech", king,
which Moloch also signifies; the first may be interpreted the mighty king, and
the latter the king that answers in an oracular way; from the first, one of the
sons of Sennacherib king of Assyria had his name, Isaiah 37:36,
though the Jews, according to their fancy, represent the one in the likeness of
a mule, and the other in the likeness of a horse; and some make the one to be a
peacock, and the other a pheasantF5Vid. Kimchium in loc. ; the
Septuagint version puts the article before them in the feminine gender,
excepting the two last, taking them for she deities, or leaving the word εικονα, "images", to
be understood.
2 Kings 17:32 32 So they feared the Lord, and from
every class they appointed for themselves priests of the high places, who
sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places.
YLT
32And they are fearing
Jehovah, and make to themselves from their extremities priests of high places,
and they are acting for them in the house of the high places.
So they feared the Lord,.... Worshipped the God
of Israel in the manner they were taught:
and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high
places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places; these were
made after the manner of Jeroboam's priests, 1 Kings 12:31, and
were to sacrifice to the God of Israel in the high places, and temples built
there; for otherwise they had, no doubt, priests of their own to sacrifice to
their gods, and which they brought with them.
2 Kings 17:33 33 They feared the Lord, yet served
their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they
were carried away.
YLT
33Jehovah they are fearing,
and their gods they are serving, according to the custom of the nations whence
they removed them.
They feared the Lord, and served their own gods,....
Worshipped both:
after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence; the
Israelites, whom they had carried captive from Samaria; they worshipped the
Lord in their idols, as they did, who pretended to worship God in the calves;
so they worshipped the supreme God in and by their idols, and made use of them
as mediators with him.
2 Kings 17:34 34 To this day they continue
practicing the former rituals; they do not fear the Lord, nor do they
follow their statutes or their ordinances, or the law and commandment which the
Lord had commanded
the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel,
YLT
34Unto this day they are
doing according to the former customs -- they are not fearing Jehovah, and are
not doing according to their statutes, and according to their ordinances, and
according to the law, and according to the command, that Jehovah commanded the
sons of Jacob whose name He made Israel,
Unto this day they do after the former manners,.... Which may
be understood either of the new colonies in Samaria doing after the former
customs in their own land, or after the customs of the idolatrous Israelites;
or of the Israelites in captivity continuing in their idolatry, not being in
the least reformed by their troubles; or of such of them as were left in the
land, who repented not of their idolatries, nor reformed from them:
they fear not the Lord; did not worship him, at
least not alone, and much less in a spiritual manner, with reverence and godly
fear:
neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances,
or after the law and commandment which the Lord commanded the children of
Jacob, whom he named Israel; that is, they did not observe the statutes
and ordinances of the law given on Mount Sinai respecting religious worship, to
act according to them.
2 Kings 17:35 35 with whom the Lord had made a
covenant and charged them, saying: “You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down
to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them;
YLT
35and Jehovah maketh with
them a covenant, and chargeth them, saying, `Ye do not fear other gods, nor bow
yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them,
With whom the Lord had made a covenant,.... As he did
at Sinai, 2 Kings 17:15.
and charged them, saying, ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow
yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them; all which is
contained in the first and second commandments of the law.
2 Kings 17:36 36 but the Lord, who brought
you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, Him you
shall fear, Him you shall worship, and to Him you shall offer sacrifice.
YLT
36but Jehovah who brought you
up out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a stretched-out arm, Him
ye do fear, and to Him ye bow yourselves, and to Him ye do sacrifice;
But the Lord, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt, with
a great power, and a stretched out arm,.... Which is observed,
to show the obligations they lay under, in point of gratitude, to serve the
Lord:
him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye
do sacrifice: and him only, and not other gods; none but he being the object
of religious fear and divine worship, and to whom sacrifices should be offered.
2 Kings 17:37 37 And the statutes, the
ordinances, the law, and the commandment which He wrote for you, you shall be
careful to observe forever; you shall not fear other gods.
YLT
37and the statutes, and the
judgments, and the law, and the command, that He wrote for you, ye observe to
do all the days, and ye do not fear other gods;
And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the
commandment which he wrote for you,.... On the two tables of
stone:
ye shall observe to do for evermore; those commands relating
to religious worship, especially the object of it, and to moral duties, being
of eternal obligation; and all other statutes and ordinances of a ceremonial
kind he ordered to be written for them, being such that they were to regard
until the Messiah came, and a new world began:
and ye shall not fear other gods; which is repeated, that
it might be observed, as it also afterwards is.
2 Kings 17:38 38 And the covenant that I
have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods.
YLT
38and the covenant that I
have made with you ye do not forget, and ye do not fear other gods;
And the covenant that I have made with you, ye shall not forget,.... The law
given at Mount Sinai; the first table of which chiefly concerned the worship of
the one true and living God, and forbid the worship of any other, as follows:
neither shall ye fear other gods; or make them the object
of worship.
2 Kings 17:39 39 But the Lord your God you
shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.”
YLT
39but Jehovah your God ye do
fear, and He doth deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies;'
But the Lord your God ye shall fear,.... Or worship him, both
internally and externally, according to his revealed will; for the fear of God
includes both internal and external worship:
and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies; that is,
provided they feared and served him as he required, and it became them to do.
2 Kings 17:40 40 However they did not obey,
but they followed their former rituals.
YLT
40and they have not
hearkened, but according to their former custom they are doing,
Howbeit, they did not hearken, but did after their former manner. They did not
repent of their idolatries, but persisted in them, and even when they were in
captivity in Assyria, or such of them as were left in the land.
2 Kings 17:41 41 So these nations feared
the Lord,
yet served their carved images; also their children and their children’s
children have continued doing as their fathers did, even to this day.
YLT
41and these nations are
fearing Jehovah, and their graven images they have served, both their sons and
their sons' sons; as their fathers did, they are doing unto this day.
So these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven images,.... Just in
like manner as the Israelites had done, who served the Lord and the calves, and
worshipped God and Baal:
both their children, and their children's children; that is, the
children and children's children of the Samaritans:
as did their fathers, so do they unto this day; to the
writing of this book, which some ascribe to Jeremiah, to whose times, and even
longer, they continued this mixed and mongrel worship, for the space of three
hundred years, to the times of Alexander the great, of whom Sanballat, governor
of Samaria, got leave to build a temple, on Gerizim, for his son-in-law
Manasseh, of which he became priest; and the Samaritans were prevailed upon to
relinquish their idolatry, and to worship only the God of Israel; and yet it
seems but ignorantly, and not without superstition, to the times of Christ, John 4:22.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)