21. He tore Israel away from David’s dynasty, and Jeroboam son of Nebat became their king. Jeroboam drove Israel away from the Lord and encouraged them to commit a serious sin.
22. The Israelites followed in the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and did not repudiate them.
23. Finally the Lord rejected Israel just as he had warned he would do through all his servants the prophets. Israel was deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to this very day.
24. The king of Assyria brought foreigners from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.
25. When they first moved in, they did not worship the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them and the lions were killing them.
26. The king of Assyria was told, “The nations whom you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the God of the land, so he has sent lions among them. They are killing the people because they do not know the requirements of the God of the land.”
27. So the king of Assyria ordered, “Take back one of the priests whom you deported from there. He must settle there and teach them the requirements of the God of the land.”
28. So one of the priests whom they had deported from Samaria went back and settled in Bethel. He taught them how to worship the Lord.
29. But each of these nations made its own gods and put them in the shrines on the high places that the people of Samaria had made. Each nation did this in the cities where they lived.
30. The people from Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the people from Cuth made Nergal, the people from Hamath made Ashima,
31. the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their sons in the fire as an offering to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
32. At the same time they worshiped the Lord. They appointed some of their own people to serve as priests in the shrines on the high places.