1 In the twelfth year of Aḥaz sovereign of Yehuḏah, Hoshĕa son of Ělah began to reign over Yisra’ĕl in Shomeron, for nine years.
2 And he did evil in the eyes of יהוה, but not as the sovereigns of Yisra’ĕl who were before him.
3 Shalmaneser sovereign of Ashshur came up against him. And Hoshĕa became his servant, and rendered him a present.
4 But the sovereign of Ashshur found a conspiracy in Hoshĕa, for he had sent messengers to So, sovereign of Mitsrayim, and had not brought a present to the sovereign of Ashshur, as year by year. And the sovereign of Ashshur shut him up, and bound him in prison.
5 And the sovereign of Ashshur went through all the land, and went up to Shomeron and besieged it for three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshĕa, the sovereign of Ashshur captured Shomeron and exiled Yisra’ĕl to Ashshur, and settled them in Ḥalaḥ and Ḥaḇor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
7 Now this came to be because the children of Yisra’ĕl had sinned against יהוה their Elohim – who had brought them up out of the land of Mitsrayim, from under the hand of Pharaoh sovereign of Mitsrayim – and feared other mighty ones,
8 and walked in the laws of the gentiles whom יהוה had dispossessed from before the children of Yisra’ĕl, and of the sovereigns of Yisra’ĕl that they had made.
9 And the children of Yisra’ĕl secretly did against יהוה their Elohim matters that were not right, and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from watchtower unto the walled city,
10 and set up for themselves pillars and Ashĕrim on every high hill and under every green tree,
11 and burned incense there on all the high places, like the gentiles whom יהוה had removed from their presence. And they did evil matters to provoke יהוה,
12 and served the idols, of which יהוה had said to them, “Do not do this.”
13 And יהוה warned Yisra’ĕl and Yehuḏah, through all of His prophets, and every seer, saying, “Turn back from your evil ways, and guard My commands and My laws, according to all the Torah which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.”
14 But they did not listen and hardened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not put their trust in יהוה their Elohim,
15 and rejected His laws and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His witnesses which He had witnessed against them, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless, and after the gentiles who were all around them, of whom יהוה had commanded them not to do like them.
16 And they left all the commands of יהוה their Elohim, and made for themselves a moulded image, two calves, and made an Ashĕrah and bowed themselves to all the host of the heavens, and served Ba‛al,
17 and caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, and practised divination and sorcery, and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of יהוה, to provoke Him.
18 So יהוה was very enraged with Yisra’ĕl, and removed them from His presence – none was left but the tribe of Yehuḏah alone.
19 Yehuḏah, also, did not guard the commands of יהוה their Elohim, but walked in the laws of Yisra’ĕl which they made.
20 And יהוה rejected all the seed of Yisra’ĕl, and afflicted them, and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them out from His presence.
21 For He tore Yisra’ĕl from the house of Dawiḏ, and they made Yaroḇ‛am son of Neḇat sovereign. And Yaroḇ‛am drove Yisra’ĕl from following יהוה, and made them commit a great sin.
22 And the children of Yisra’ĕl walked in all the sins of Yaroḇ‛am which he did. They did not turn away from them,
23 until יהוה removed Yisra’ĕl from His presence, as He spoke by all His servants the prophets. So Yisra’ĕl was exiled from their land to Ashshur, as it is to this day.
24 And the sovereign of Ashshur brought people from Baḇel, and from Kuthah, and from Awwa, and from Ḥamath, and Sepharwayim, and placed them in the cities of Shomeron instead of the children of Yisra’ĕl. And they took possession of Shomeron and dwelt in its cities.
25 And it came to be, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they did not fear יהוה, and יהוה sent lions among them, which kept on slaying among them.
26 And they spoke to the sovereign of Ashshur, saying, “The nations whom you have removed and placed in the cities of Shomeron do not know the right-ruling of the Elohim of the land. And He has sent lions among them, and see, they are slaying among them because they do not know the right-ruling of the Elohim of the land.”
27 And the sovereign of Ashshur commanded, saying, “Send one of the priests whom you exiled from there, to go there. Let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the right-ruling of the Elohim of the land.”
28 And one of the priests whom they had exiled from Shomeron came and dwelt in Bĕyth Ěl, and taught them how to fear יהוה.
29 But every nation was making mighty ones of its own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Shomeronites had made, every nation in the cities where they dwelt.
30 And the men of Baḇel made Sukkoth Benoth, and the men of Kuth made Nĕrg̅al, and the men of Ḥamath made Ashima,
31 and the Awwites made Niḇḥaz and Tartaq. And the Sepharwites burned their children in fire to Aḏrammeleḵ and Anammeleḵ, the mighty ones of Sepharim.
32 They also feared יהוה, and from every class they made for themselves priests of the high places, who offered for them in the house of the high places.
33 They were fearing יהוה, and they were serving their own mighty ones, according to the ruling of the nations from among whom they had been exiled.
34 To this day they are doing according to the former rulings: they are not fearing יהוה, nor do they follow their laws or their right-rulings, or the Torah and command which יהוה had commanded the children of Ya‛aqoḇ, whose name He made Yisra’ĕl,
35 with whom יהוה had made a covenant and commanded them, saying, “Do not fear other mighty ones, nor bow down to them nor serve them nor slaughter to them;
36 but יהוה, who brought you up from the land of Mitsrayim with great power and with an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, and to Him you shall bow yourselves, and to Him you shall slaughter.
37 “And guard to do forever the laws, and the right-rulings, and the Torah, and the command which He wrote for you. And do not fear other mighty ones.
38 “And do not forget the covenant that I have made with you, and do not fear other mighty ones.
39 “But fear יהוה your Elohim, so that He delivers you from the hand of all your enemies.”
40 And they did not obey, but did according to their former ruling.
41 So these nations were fearing יהוה, and served their carved images, both their children and their children’s children. As their fathers did, they are doing to this day.