1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz, king of Judah, Hoshea, the son of Elah, became king over Israel in Samaria, ruling for nine years.
2 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, though not like the kings of Israel before him.
3 Against him came up Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, and Hoshea became his servant and sent him offerings.
4 But Hoshea's broken faith became clear to the king of Assyria because he had sent representatives to So, king of Egypt, and did not send his offering to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: so the king of Assyria had him shut up in prison and put in chains.
5 Then the king of Assyria went through all the land and came up to Samaria, shutting it in with his forces for three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria, and took Israel away to Assyria, placing them in Halah and in Habor on the river Gozan, and in the towns of the Medes.
7 And the wrath of the Lord came on Israel because they had done evil against the Lord their God, who took them out of the land of Egypt from under the yoke of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and had become worshippers of other gods,
8 Living by the rules of the nations whom the Lord had sent out from before the children of Israel.
9 And the children of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things which were not right, building high places for themselves in all their towns, from the tower of the watchmen to the walled town.
10 They put up pillars of stone and wood on every high hill and under every green tree:
11 Burning their offerings in all the high places, as those nations did whom the Lord sent away from before them; they did evil things, moving the Lord to wrath;
12 And they made themselves servants of disgusting things, though the Lord had said, You are not to do this.
13 And he gave witness to Israel and Judah, by every prophet and seer, saying, Come back from your evil ways, and do my orders and keep my rules, and be guided by the law which I gave to your fathers and sent to you by my servants the prophets.
14 And they did not give ear, but became stiff-necked, like their fathers who had no faith in the Lord their God.
15 And they went against his rules, and the agreement which he made with their fathers, and his laws which he gave them; they gave themselves up to things without sense or value, and became foolish like the nations round them, of whom the Lord had said, Do not as they do.
16 And turning their backs on all the orders which the Lord had given them, they made for themselves images of metal, and the image of Asherah, worshipping all the stars of heaven and becoming servants to Baal.
17 And they made their sons and their daughters go through the fire, and they made use of secret arts and unnatural powers, and gave themselves up to doing evil in the eyes of the Lord, till he was moved to wrath.
18 So the Lord was very angry with Israel, and his face was turned away from them: only the tribe of Judah kept its place.
19 (But even Judah did not keep the orders of the Lord their God, but were guided by the rules which Israel had made.
20 So the Lord would have nothing to do with all the offspring of Israel, and sent trouble on them, and gave them up into the hands of their attackers, till he had sent them away from before his face.)
21 For Israel was broken off from the family of David, and they made Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, king, who, driving them away from the laws of the Lord, made them do a great sin.
22 And the children of Israel went on with all the sins which Jeroboam did; they did not keep themselves from them;
23 Till the Lord put Israel away from before his face, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was taken away from their land to Assyria, to this day.
24 Then the king of Assyria took men from Babylon and from Cuthah and Avva and Hamath and Sepharvaim, and put them in the towns of Samaria in place of the children of Israel; so they got Samaria for their heritage, living in its towns.
25 Now when first they were living there they did not give worship to the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them, causing the death of some of them.
26 So they said to the king of Assyria, The nations whom you have taken as prisoners and put in the towns of Samaria, have no knowledge of the way of the god of the land: so he has sent lions among them, causing their death, because they have no knowledge of his way.
27 Then the king of Assyria gave orders, saying, Send there one of the priests whom you took away, and let him be living there and teaching the people the way of the god of the land.
28 So one of the priests whom they had taken away as a prisoner from Samaria came back, and, living in Beth-el, became their teacher in the worship of the Lord.
29 And every nation made gods for themselves, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the towns where they were living.
30 The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
31 The Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites gave their children to be burned in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
32 So they went on worshipping the Lord, and made for themselves, from among all the people, priests for the high places, to make offerings for them in the houses of the high places.
33 They gave worship to the Lord, but they gave honour to their gods like the nations did from whom they had been taken as prisoners.
34 So to this day they go on in their old ways, not worshipping the Lord or keeping his orders or his ways or the law and the rule which the Lord gave to the children of Jacob, to whom he gave the name Israel;
35 And the Lord made an agreement with them and gave them orders, saying, You are to have no other gods; you are not to give worship to them or be their servants or make them offerings:
36 But the Lord, who took you out of the land of Egypt with his great power and his outstretched arm, he is your God, to whom you are to give worship and make offerings:
37 And the rules and the orders and the law which he put in writing for you, you are to keep and do for ever; you are to have no other gods.
38 And you are to keep in memory the agreement which I have made with you; and you are to have no other gods.
39 And you are to give worship to the Lord your God; for it is he who will give you salvation from the hands of all who are against you.
40 But they gave no attention, but went on in their old way.
41 So these nations, worshipping the Lord, still were servants to the images they had made; their children and their children's children did the same; as their fathers did, so do they, to this day.
1 犹大王亚哈斯在位第十二年， 以拉的儿子何细亚在撒玛利亚登基， 统治以色列九年。
2 他行耶和华看为恶的事， 只是不像他以前的以色列诸王。
3 亚述王撒缦以色上来攻击他， 他就臣服于他， 并且向他进贡。
4 后来， 亚述王发觉何细亚阴谋反叛： 他曾派使者去见埃及王梭， 并且不再向亚述王献上贡物， 像过去每年一样。亚述王就拿住他， 把他囚在牢里。
5 亚述王上来攻击以色列全国各地， 并且到撒玛利亚来， 围城三年。
6 何细亚在位第九年， 亚述王占领了撒玛利亚， 把以色列人掳到亚述去， 徙置他们在哈腊， 在哈博河和歌散河一带， 以及在玛代人的各城。
7 这是因为以色列人得罪了那曾带领他们从埃及王法老的手下离开埃及的耶和华他们的 神， 去敬畏别的神。
8 他们随从耶和华从以色列人面前驱逐的外族人的风俗， 以及以色列诸王奉行的风俗。
9 以色列人也说了亵渎的话， 顶撞耶和华他们的 神， 并且在他们所有的城市， 从哨站到设防城， 为他们自己建筑邱坛。
10 又在各高山顶上和每一棵青翠的树下竖立神柱和亚舍拉。
11 他们在各邱坛上献祭和焚香， 好像耶和华从他们的面前掳去的外族人一样， 又行恶事， 使耶和华发怒。
12 他们又服事雕刻的偶像， 耶和华曾警告他们不可以行这事。
13 耶和华曾借着他的众先知和先见警告以色列人和犹大人说： "从你们的恶道上转回吧！ 谨守我的吩咐和我的律例， 就是我曾吩咐你们的祖先， 和借着我的仆人众先知传递给你们的一切律法。"
14 可是他们不听从， 反而硬着自己的颈项， 好像他们的祖先， 不信服耶和华他们的 神；
15 厌弃他的律例和他与他们的祖先订立的约， 以及他对他们的警戒； 却信从虚无的神， 自己成为虚妄， 跟从他们周围的外族人， 耶和华曾吩咐他们不可跟从他们的行为。
16 他们丢弃耶和华他们 神的一切吩咐， 为自己做了两个牛犊的铸像， 又做亚舍拉， 并且敬拜天上的万象和服事巴力；
17 他们又把儿女用火烧为祭， 并且占卜， 行法术， 出卖自己去行耶和华看为恶的事， 使他发怒。
18 于是耶和华向以色列人大大发怒， 把他们从自己面前赶走， 只剩下犹大一个支派。
19 连犹大人也不持守耶和华他们的 神的吩咐， 随从以色列人所行的习俗。
20 耶和华就厌弃以色列人的后裔， 使他们受苦， 把他们交在抢掠他们的人的手中， 直到把他们从自己的面前完全丢弃。
21 因为他自从使以色列从大卫家分裂出来后， 他们就立了尼八的儿子耶罗波安作王， 耶罗波安却引诱以色列人不去跟从耶和华， 又使他们犯了大罪。
22 以色列人就随从耶罗波安所犯的一切罪恶， 总不转离；
23 以致最后耶和华把以色列人从自己的面前赶走， 就像他借着自己的仆人众先知所说的。于是以色列人被掳离开自己的国土， 往亚述去， 直到今日。
24 亚述王从巴比伦、古他、亚瓦、哈马和西法瓦音带人来， 安置在撒玛利亚的城市， 代替以色列人。他们就得了撒玛利亚作产业， 住在它的城市中。
25 他们开始在那里居住的时候， 并不敬畏耶和华， 所以耶和华派狮子到他们中间， 咬死他们好些人。
26 有人告诉亚述王说： "你所掳去， 安置在撒玛利亚各城市的众民族不知道当地的神的规矩， 所以他派狮子到他们中间。看哪， 狮子咬死他们， 因为他们不知道当地的神的规矩。"
27 于是亚述王下令： "我从那里掳来的祭司中， 要叫一个回到那里去。他要去住在那里， 教导他们当地的神的规矩。"
28 于是从撒玛利亚被掳来的祭司中， 有一个回去， 住在伯特利， 教导他们怎样敬畏耶和华。
29 但各族的人仍然制造自己的神像， 安放在撒玛利亚人所造各邱坛的庙中； 各族人在他们所居住的城市都这样作。
30 巴比伦人做了疏割．比讷像， 古他人做了匿甲像， 哈马人做了亚示玛像，
31 亚瓦人做了匿哈和他珥他像， 西法瓦音人用火焚烧自己的儿女， 献给西法瓦音的神亚得米勒和亚拿米勒。
32 他们也惧怕耶和华， 所以从他们中间选立邱坛的祭司， 替他们在邱坛的庙里献祭。
33 他们既惧怕耶和华， 又服事他们的神； 从哪个民族掳来的， 就按照哪个民族的习俗服事他们的神。
34 直到今日， 他们仍是按照他们初时的习俗去行； 他们不敬畏耶和华， 行事不按他们的规例和典章， 也不按耶和华曾吩咐雅各的子孙的律法和诫命； 后来， 耶和华给雅各起名为以色列。
35 耶和华曾经和他们立约， 又吩咐他们说： "你们不可崇敬别的神， 不可跪拜他们， 不可服事他们， 也不可向他们献祭。
36 但那曾用大能和伸出的膀臂把你们从埃及地领出来的耶和华， 你们应当敬畏他， 跪拜他和向他献祭。
37 他写给你们的律例、典章、律法和诫命， 你们要永远谨守遵行， 不要崇敬别的神。
38 他和你们所立的约你们不可忘记， 不要崇敬别的神。
39 但要敬畏耶和华你们的 神， 他必救你们脱离所有仇敌的手。"
40 可是他们没有听从， 仍然照着他们起初的习俗去行。
41 这样， 这些民族一方面敬畏耶和华； 另一方面又继续服事他们的偶像。他们的子子孙孙继续照着他们的祖先所行的去行， 直到今日。