2 Kings 17:7-18
Read 2 Kings 17 in full →Israel Rejects Yahweh
7Now athis happened because the sons of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their God—bwho had brought them up from the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt—cand they had 1feared other gods 8and awalked in the statutes of the nations whom Yahweh had dispossessed from before the sons of Israel, and in the statutes bof the kings of Israel which they had made. 9And the sons of Israel 1did things secretly which were not right against Yahweh their God. Moreover, they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from awatchtower to fortified city. 10aAnd they set for themselves sacred pillars and 1,bAsherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11and there they burned incense on all the high places as the nations did which Yahweh had taken away into exile before them; and they did evil things provoking Yahweh to anger. 12And they served idols, aconcerning which Yahweh had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.” 13Yet aYahweh warned Israel and Judah bby the hand of all His prophets and cevery seer, saying, “dTurn from your evil ways and keep My commandments, My statutes according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by the hand of My slaves the prophets.” 14However, they did not listen, but astiffened their neck 1like their fathers, who did not believe in Yahweh their God. 15aThey also rejected His statutes and bHis covenant which He cut with their fathers and His warnings with which He warned them. And cthey followed vanity and dbecame vain, and went after the nations which surrounded them, concerning which eYahweh had commanded them not to do like them. 16And they forsook all the commandments of Yahweh their God and made for themselves molten images, even atwo calves, and bmade an 1Asherah and cworshiped all the host of heaven and dserved Baal. 17Then athey made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and bpracticed divination and omens, and csold themselves to do what is evil in the sight of Yahweh, provoking Him to anger. 18So Yahweh was very angry with Israel and acaused them to depart from His 1presence; bnone was left except the tribe of Judah alone.