And the king of Assyriafoundconspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sentmessengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had doneyear by year: therefore the king of Assyriashut him up, and bound him in prison.
In the ninthyear of Hoshea the king of AssyriatookSamaria, and carriedIsraelawayintoAssyria, and placedthem in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinnedagainst the LORDtheir God, which had broughtthem up out of the land of Egypt, fromunder the hand of Pharaohking of Egypt, and had fearedothergods,
And the children of Israel did secretlythosethingsthatwere not rightagainst the LORDtheir God, and theybuiltthemhighplaces in all theircities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fencedcity.
And theretheyburntincense in all the highplaces, as did the heathenwhom the LORDcarriedawaybeforethem; and wroughtwickedthings to provoke the LORD to anger:
Yet the LORDtestifiedagainstIsrael, and againstJudah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye fromyourevilways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commandedyourfathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
And theyrejected his statutes, and his covenantthat he madewiththeirfathers, and his testimonieswhich he testifiedagainstthem; and theyfollowedvanity, and becamevain, and wentafter the heathenthatwereroundaboutthem, concerningwhom the LORD had chargedthem, thattheyshould not do likethem.
And theyleft all the commandments of the LORDtheir God, and madethemmoltenimages, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and servedBaal.
And theycausedtheirsons and theirdaughters to passthrough the fire, and useddivination and enchantments, and soldthemselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
For he rentIsraelfrom the house of David; and theymadeJeroboam the son of Nebatking: and JeroboamdraveIsraelfromfollowing the LORD, and madethem sin a great sin.
Until the LORDremovedIsrael out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israelcarriedaway out of their own land to Assyriauntothis day.
And the king of Assyriabrought men fromBabylon, and fromCuthah, and from Ava, and fromHamath, and fromSepharvaim, and placedthem in the cities of Samariainstead of the children of Israel: and theypossessedSamaria, and dwelt in the citiesthereof.
Whereforetheyspake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nationswhichthouhastremoved, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hathsentlionsamongthem, and, behold, theyslaythem, becausetheyknow not the manner of the God of the land.
Then the king of Assyriacommanded, saying, Carrythither one of the priestswhom ye broughtfromthence; and let them go and dwellthere, and let him teachthem the manner of the God of the land.
Howbeiteverynationmadegods of their own, and put them in the houses of the highplaceswhich the Samaritans had made, everynation in theircitieswhereintheydwelt.
So theyfeared the LORD, and madeuntothemselves of the lowest of thempriests of the highplaces, whichsacrificed for them in the houses of the highplaces.
Untothis day they do after the formermanners: theyfear not the LORD, neither do theyaftertheirstatutes, or aftertheirordinances, or after the law and commandmentwhich the LORDcommanded the children of Jacob, whom he namedIsrael;
Withwhom the LORD had made a covenant, and chargedthem, saying, Ye shall not fearothergods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor servethem, nor sacrifice to them:
But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egyptwithgreatpower and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shallobserve to do for evermore; and ye shall not fearothergods.
So thesenationsfeared the LORD, and servedtheirgravenimages, boththeirchildren, and theirchildren’schildren: as did theirfathers, so do theyuntothis day.