2 kings 17

Read 2 Kings 17 at Bible Gateway.

The Hebrew paragraph divisions:

2 Kin 17:1-6 {p} Hoshea, king of Israel/ Shalmaneser king of Assyria made Israel vassal, then took them captive
2 Kin 17:7-23 {p} Israel carried away captive by Assyria, for they rejected God, and He removed them from His sight
2 Kin 17:24-41 {p} The king of Assyria settled foreigners in the cities of Israel, who mixed idolatry with the worship of God

There is an interesting series of chiastic structures in 2 Kin 17:

1a) 2 Kin 17:7-18a, Israel sinned against God, who brought them up from Egypt/ they served idols + did not keep His commandments;

1) 2 Kin 17:7a, 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,

2) 2 Kin 17:7b-18a, They served idols, walked in the statutes of the nations + did not keep His commandments or believe in Him;

1a) 2 Kin 17:8a-11, They walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out + did wickedly to provoke the LORD to anger;

1a) 2 Kin 17:8a, And had walked in the statutes of the nations;
1b) 2 Kin 17:8b, 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;
central axis) 2 Kin 17:9-11a, 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. 10 They set up for themselves sacred pillars and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. There they burned incense on all the high places;
2b) 2 Kin 17:11b, Like the nations whom the Lord had carried away before them;
2a) 2 Kin 17:11c, And they did wicked things to provoke the Lord to anger;

1b) 2 Kin 17:12, For they served idols, of which the LORD had said to them, “You shall not do this thing;”
1c) 2 Kin 17:13a, The LORD testified against Israel + Judah, by all of His prophets: “Turn from your evil ways;”
1d) 2 Kin 17:13b, “Keep My commandments + My statutes, according to all the Law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets;”
central axis) 2 Kin 17:14, Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the LORD their God;
2d) 2 Kin 17:15a, They rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers;
2c) 2 Kin 17:15b, And His testimonies which He had testified against them;
2b) 2 Kin 17:15c, 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;
2a) 2 Kin 17:16-18a, 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. 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. Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel;

1b) 2 Kin 17:18b-23a, He removed Israel from His sight + rejected them for they did not keep His commandments;

1a) 2 Kin 17:18b-20, And removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone. Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. 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;
central axis) 2 Kin 17:21a, For He tore Israel from the house of David;
2a) 2 Kin 17:21b-23a, And they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD, and made them commit a great sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, until the LORD removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets;

1c) 2 Kin 17:23b {p} So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day;

2c) 2 Kin 17:24, 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;

2b) 2 Kin 17:25-32, The Samaritans did not fear + feared the LORD: they worshiped Him + continued to serve their own gods;

1a) 2 Kin 17:25a-28b, They did not fear the Lord/ the king of Assyria returned a priest of Samaria/ he taught them how to fear the LORD;
central axis) 2 Kin 17:29-31, 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. 30 The men of Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 and the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burned their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim;
2a) 2 Kin 17:32, 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;

2a) 2 Kin 17:33-41 {p} They feared the LORD yet served their own gods, they did not keep His commandments, though He brought them up from Egypt;

1a) 2 Kin 17:33-34a, They feared the Lord, yet served their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away. To this day they continue practicing the former rituals;
1b) 2 Kin 17:34b-36, They do not fear the LORD, nor follow His Law, even though He made with them a covenant, to fear not other gods, but the LORD only, who delivered them from Egypt;

1) 2 Kin 17:36a, 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;
2) 2 Kin 17:35a, With whom the LORD had made a covenant and charged them, saying:
3) 2 Kin 17:35b, “You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them;”
4) 2 Kin 17:36, “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;”

2b) 2 Kin 17:37-39, The Law you shall observe, and not fear other gods nor forget My covenant to fear not other gods, but the LORD only, and He will deliver you from all your enemies;

1) 2 Kin 17:37, 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.
2) 2 Kin 17:38a, “And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget;”
3) 2 Kin 17:38b, “Nor shall you fear other gods;”
4) 2 Kin 17:39, “But the LORD your God you shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.”

2a) 2 Kin 40-41 {p} However they did not obey, but they followed their former rituals. 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.

The point is made in both the B pairs that the people did not fear or serve the LORD, which is defined by obeying His commandments, the chief of which, is to have no other gods before Him. Otherwise I cannot yet see how they relate, just that they are forced together by the matching elements surrounding them. This history tells the origin of the Samaritan people, who were a mixture of native Israelites and the people of the nations who the king of Israel imported; and their worship of God was likewise a mixture of doing the LORD’s rituals while still continuing to serve the gods of the nations from whence they came.

Please notice the central axis of the 1a pair:

central axis) 2 Kin 17:14, Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the LORD their God;

What did they not hear? The testimony of the prophets, who continuously exhorted them to return to the LORD God in keeping His commandments. This disobedience to His commandments, the Scripture equates with unbelief, for they refused to hear this admonition to obey, because they did not believe in the LORD their God.

Jesus repeats this warning in Mat 7:21-23:

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

In other words, the evidence which testifies to belief or faith in Christ, is not miracles, but obedience. May we have ears to hear!