1
00:00:02,759 --> 00:00:06,720
Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your

2
00:00:06,800 --> 00:00:10,720
Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Study Headquarters

3
00:00:11,119 --> 00:00:15,200
Speaker 1: dot com. You're listening to the Chapter a Day Audio Bible.

4
00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:20,640
Speaker 1: I'm John Stanghi and today we're in Second Kings, chapter seventeen,

5
00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:26,240
Speaker 1: and we'll be reading from the new English translation. In

6
00:00:26,280 --> 00:00:30,560
Speaker 1: the twelfth year of King Ahaz's reign over Judah, Hoshea,

7
00:00:30,760 --> 00:00:34,680
Speaker 1: son of Elah, became king over Israel. He reigned in

8
00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:38,920
Speaker 1: Samaria for nine years. He did evil in the sight

9
00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:41,519
Speaker 1: of the Lord, but not to the same degree as

10
00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:46,680
Speaker 1: the Israelite kings who preceded him. King Shalmaneser of Assyria

11
00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:51,840
Speaker 1: threatened him. Hosheia became his subject and paid him tribute.

12
00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:55,720
Speaker 1: The King of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was planning a revolt.

13
00:00:56,440 --> 00:01:00,279
Speaker 1: Hoshea had sent messengers to King so of Egypt and

14
00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:03,680
Speaker 1: had not sent his annual tribute to the King of Assyria.

15
00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:08,400
Speaker 1: So the King of Assyria arrested him and imprisoned him.

16
00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:11,560
Speaker 1: The King of Assyria marched through the whole land. He

17
00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:15,800
Speaker 1: attacked Samaria and besieged it for three years. In the

18
00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:19,680
Speaker 1: ninth year of Hoshea's reign, the King of Assyria captured

19
00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:24,520
Speaker 1: Samaria and deported the people of Israel to Assyria. He

20
00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:28,080
Speaker 1: settled them in Halla, along the Habor, the river of Gozen,

21
00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:32,399
Speaker 1: and in the cities of the Medes. This happened because

22
00:01:32,400 --> 00:01:35,920
Speaker 1: the Israelites sinned against the Lord their God, who brought

23
00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:38,880
Speaker 1: them up from the land of Egypt and freed them

24
00:01:38,959 --> 00:01:42,720
Speaker 1: from the power of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. They worshiped

25
00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:46,240
Speaker 1: other gods. They observed the practices of the nations whom

26
00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:49,680
Speaker 1: the Lord had driven out from before Israel, and followed

27
00:01:49,680 --> 00:01:53,760
Speaker 1: the example of the kings of Israel. The Israelites said

28
00:01:53,800 --> 00:01:56,640
Speaker 1: things about the Lord their God that were not right.

29
00:01:57,240 --> 00:02:00,240
Speaker 1: They built high places and all their cities, from the

30
00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:04,320
Speaker 1: watchtower to the fortress. They set up sacred pillars and

31
00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:07,720
Speaker 1: a sheerer polls on every high hill and under every

32
00:02:07,840 --> 00:02:12,280
Speaker 1: green tree. They burned incense on all the high places,

33
00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:15,359
Speaker 1: just like the nations whom the Lord had driven away

34
00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:20,040
Speaker 1: from before them. Their evil practices made the Lord angry.

35
00:02:20,680 --> 00:02:25,080
Speaker 1: They worshiped the disgusting idols in blatant disregard of the

36
00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:30,360
Speaker 1: Lord's command. The Lord solemnly warned Israel and Judah through

37
00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:34,639
Speaker 1: all his prophets and all the seers, turned back from

38
00:02:34,680 --> 00:02:38,680
Speaker 1: your evil ways, obey my commandments and rules that are

39
00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:43,600
Speaker 1: recorded in the law. I ordered your ancestors to keep

40
00:02:43,639 --> 00:02:47,200
Speaker 1: this law and sent my servants, the prophets, to remind

41
00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:52,480
Speaker 1: you of its demands. But they did not pay attention

42
00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:56,000
Speaker 1: and were as stubborn as their ancestors, who had not

43
00:02:56,120 --> 00:03:00,360
Speaker 1: trusted the Lord their god. They rejected his rules, the

44
00:03:00,400 --> 00:03:03,800
Speaker 1: covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws

45
00:03:03,840 --> 00:03:07,600
Speaker 1: he had commanded them to obey. They paid allegiance to

46
00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:12,079
Speaker 1: worthless idols, and so became worthless to the Lord. They

47
00:03:12,160 --> 00:03:16,960
Speaker 1: copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard

48
00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:21,079
Speaker 1: of the Lord's command. They abandoned all the commandments of

49
00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:24,320
Speaker 1: the Lord their God. They made two metal calves and

50
00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,840
Speaker 1: an ashi a poll, bowed down to all the stars

51
00:03:27,880 --> 00:03:32,280
Speaker 1: in the sky, and worshiped bail. They passed their sons

52
00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:36,760
Speaker 1: and daughters through the fire, and practiced divination and omen reading.

53
00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:40,200
Speaker 1: They committed themselves to doing evil in the sight of

54
00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:44,080
Speaker 1: the Lord and made him angry. So the Lord was

55
00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:48,160
Speaker 1: furious with Israel and rejected them. Only the tribe of

56
00:03:48,280 --> 00:03:52,440
Speaker 1: Judah was left. Judah also failed to keep the commandments

57
00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:56,680
Speaker 1: of the Lord their god. They followed Israel's example. So

58
00:03:56,760 --> 00:04:01,640
Speaker 1: the Lord rejected all of Israel's descendants. He humiliated them

59
00:04:01,920 --> 00:04:05,200
Speaker 1: and handed them over to robbers until he had thrown

60
00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:10,280
Speaker 1: them from his presence. He tore Israel away from David's dynasty,

61
00:04:10,800 --> 00:04:15,440
Speaker 1: and Jeroboam's son of Nebat, became their king. Jeroboam drove

62
00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:18,560
Speaker 1: Israel away from the Lord and encouraged them to commit

63
00:04:18,640 --> 00:04:22,880
Speaker 1: a serious sin. The Israelites followed in the sinful ways

64
00:04:22,920 --> 00:04:28,040
Speaker 1: of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, and did not repudiate them. Finally,

65
00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:31,479
Speaker 1: the Lord rejected Israel, just as he had warned he

66
00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:36,080
Speaker 1: would do through all his servants the prophets. Israel was

67
00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:40,039
Speaker 1: deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to

68
00:04:40,120 --> 00:04:44,839
Speaker 1: this very day. The King of Assyria brought foreigners from

69
00:04:44,880 --> 00:04:51,320
Speaker 1: Babylon kuthah, Ava, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in

70
00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:55,800
Speaker 1: the cities of Samaria in place of the Israelites. They

71
00:04:55,800 --> 00:05:00,120
Speaker 1: took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. They

72
00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:02,960
Speaker 1: first moved in, they did not worship the Lord, so

73
00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:05,880
Speaker 1: the Lord sent lions among them, and the lions were

74
00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:10,560
Speaker 1: killing them. The king of Assyria was told the nations

75
00:05:10,600 --> 00:05:13,880
Speaker 1: whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria

76
00:05:14,279 --> 00:05:17,159
Speaker 1: do not know the requirements of the God of the land.

77
00:05:17,560 --> 00:05:20,880
Speaker 1: So he has sent lions among them. They are killing

78
00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:24,440
Speaker 1: the people because they do not know the requirements of

79
00:05:24,520 --> 00:05:27,880
Speaker 1: the God of the land. So the King of Assyria

80
00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:31,680
Speaker 1: ordered take back one of the priests whom you deported

81
00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:34,960
Speaker 1: from there. He must settle there and teach them the

82
00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:38,560
Speaker 1: requirements of the God of the land. So one of

83
00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:42,119
Speaker 1: the priests whom they had deported from Samaria went back

84
00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:45,920
Speaker 1: and settled in Bethel. He taught them how to worship

85
00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:49,800
Speaker 1: the Lord. But each of these nations made its own

86
00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:52,560
Speaker 1: gods and put them in the shrines on the high

87
00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:56,839
Speaker 1: places that the people of Samaria had made. Each nation

88
00:05:57,120 --> 00:06:00,560
Speaker 1: did this in the cities where they lived. The people

89
00:06:00,560 --> 00:06:05,719
Speaker 1: from Babylon made Sucketh Benath, the people from Kuth made Nergal,

90
00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:11,480
Speaker 1: the people from Hamath made Ashimah. The Avites made Nibhaz

91
00:06:11,839 --> 00:06:16,120
Speaker 1: and Tartak, and the Cepharvites burned their sons in the

92
00:06:16,160 --> 00:06:21,320
Speaker 1: fire as an offering to Adrammelek and Animelek, the gods

93
00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:26,400
Speaker 1: of Sephar Vain. At the same time they worshiped the Lord,

94
00:06:27,480 --> 00:06:30,000
Speaker 1: they appointed some of their own people to serve as

95
00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:34,280
Speaker 1: priests in the shrines on the high places. They were

96
00:06:34,279 --> 00:06:37,120
Speaker 1: worshiping the Lord and at the same time serving their

97
00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:41,080
Speaker 1: own gods, in accordance with the practices of the nations

98
00:06:41,400 --> 00:06:45,200
Speaker 1: from which they had been deported. To this very day,

99
00:06:45,320 --> 00:06:49,720
Speaker 1: they observed their earlier practices. They do not worship the Lord.

100
00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:53,720
Speaker 1: They do not obey the rules, regulations, law, and commandments

101
00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,080
Speaker 1: that the Lord gave The descendants of Jacob, whom he

102
00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:02,400
Speaker 1: renamed Israel. Made an agreement with them and instructed them,

103
00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:06,800
Speaker 1: you must not worship other gods. Do not bow down

104
00:07:06,880 --> 00:07:11,440
Speaker 1: to them, serve them, or offer sacrifices to them. Instead,

105
00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:14,880
Speaker 1: you must worship the Lord, who brought you up from

106
00:07:14,920 --> 00:07:18,920
Speaker 1: the land of Egypt by his great power and military ability,

107
00:07:19,640 --> 00:07:24,360
Speaker 1: bow down to him and offer sacrifices to him. You

108
00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:29,680
Speaker 1: must carefully obey at all times the rules, regulations, law,

109
00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:33,280
Speaker 1: and commandments he wrote down for you. You must not

110
00:07:33,440 --> 00:07:36,720
Speaker 1: worship other gods. You must never forget the agreement I

111
00:07:36,840 --> 00:07:41,200
Speaker 1: made with you, and you must not worship other gods. Instead,

112
00:07:41,680 --> 00:07:44,800
Speaker 1: you must worship the Lord, your God. Then he will

113
00:07:44,880 --> 00:07:49,200
Speaker 1: rescue you from the power of all your enemies, but

114
00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:54,600
Speaker 1: they pay no attention. Instead, they observe their earlier practices.

115
00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:59,160
Speaker 1: These nations are worshiping the Lord and at the same

116
00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:04,640
Speaker 1: time serve their idols. Their sons and grandsons do just

117
00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:13,480
Speaker 1: as their fathers have done to this very day. Let's pray, Lord,

118
00:08:13,520 --> 00:08:15,760
Speaker 1: we thank you for your word, and we thank you

119
00:08:15,880 --> 00:08:19,440
Speaker 1: for all the things that you make abundantly clear to

120
00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:22,040
Speaker 1: us when we read it. And Lord, we could see

121
00:08:22,080 --> 00:08:25,200
Speaker 1: by example that the people of Israel and Judah, even

122
00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:28,200
Speaker 1: though they had been rescued by you, even though you

123
00:08:28,280 --> 00:08:31,720
Speaker 1: had established them in their land, and even though you

124
00:08:31,840 --> 00:08:35,640
Speaker 1: continually sent your message to them through the prophets, they

125
00:08:35,679 --> 00:08:38,360
Speaker 1: went their own way. And Lord, we could see that

126
00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:40,760
Speaker 1: the people living in the land of Israel made it

127
00:08:40,800 --> 00:08:44,200
Speaker 1: a pattern and a practice to follow the customs of

128
00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:46,559
Speaker 1: the nations that you had driven out of that land.

129
00:08:47,200 --> 00:08:51,360
Speaker 1: They worshiped idols, they sacrificed their children, and then those

130
00:08:51,400 --> 00:08:54,600
Speaker 1: that came after them paid lip service to worshiping You.

131
00:08:54,679 --> 00:08:57,840
Speaker 1: They worshiped their former gods while at the same time

132
00:08:57,920 --> 00:09:01,400
Speaker 1: claiming to be worshipers of yours. And Lord, that's the

133
00:09:01,440 --> 00:09:05,840
Speaker 1: spot that we can find ourselves very easily in as well. Lord,

134
00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:08,520
Speaker 1: we know that salvation comes only through faith in your

135
00:09:08,559 --> 00:09:11,360
Speaker 1: son Jesus Christ, and so we pray Lord that you'd

136
00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:14,640
Speaker 1: help us to have genuine faith in your son. But

137
00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:18,040
Speaker 1: we know, Lord that so often we can find ourselves

138
00:09:18,520 --> 00:09:21,520
Speaker 1: trying to find satisfaction for our hearts and for our

139
00:09:21,559 --> 00:09:25,120
Speaker 1: souls through lesser things, through the idols that we invite

140
00:09:25,160 --> 00:09:27,920
Speaker 1: into our lives. But Lord, we know that that's not

141
00:09:28,040 --> 00:09:30,079
Speaker 1: your desire for us, and so we pray Lord that

142
00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:33,200
Speaker 1: you'd help us, by your grace, as your Holy Spirit

143
00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:36,880
Speaker 1: illuminates this truth to our hearts, to identify things that

144
00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:39,720
Speaker 1: we've welcomed into our lives as idols, that we would

145
00:09:39,800 --> 00:09:43,760
Speaker 1: cast them aside, and that we would worship you sincerely

146
00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:48,200
Speaker 1: and truly all the days of our lives. Lord, we

147
00:09:48,280 --> 00:09:50,520
Speaker 1: love you. We thank you for your love for us,

148
00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:53,200
Speaker 1: We thank you for your patience with us, and we

149
00:09:53,280 --> 00:09:55,280
Speaker 1: pray Lord that you'd help us to conform to the

150
00:09:55,320 --> 00:09:58,360
Speaker 1: image of your son Jesus Christ throughout the course of

151
00:09:58,400 --> 00:10:01,160
Speaker 1: this day and every day that we we commit this

152
00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:03,400
Speaker 1: day Lord to your care. We thank you that you're

153
00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:05,440
Speaker 1: with us in the midst of it, and we pray

154
00:10:05,520 --> 00:10:08,920
Speaker 1: this all in Jesus' name Amen