The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
King James Version KJV
1 It was in the twelfth year of Achaz king of Y'hudah that Hoshea the son of Elah began his reign over Isra'el in Shomron; he ruled for nine years.
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In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years.
2 He did what was evil from ADONAI's perspective, although he wasn't as bad as the kings of Isra'el who had preceded him.
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And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him.
3 Shalman'eser king of Ashur advanced against Hoshea, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute.
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Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.
4 But the king of Ashur found that Hoshea was conspiring [against him] - he had sent messengers to So the king of Egypt and not paid his tribute to the king of Ashur, as he had previously done every year. For this the king of Ashur imprisoned him, putting him in chains.
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And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
5 Then the king of Ashur invaded all the land, advanced on Shomron and put it under siege for three years.
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Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Ashur captured Shomron. He carried Isra'el away captive to Ashur, resettling them in Halach, in Havor on the Gozan River and in the cities of the Medes.
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In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
7 This came about because the people of Isra'el had sinned against ADONAI their God, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, out from under the domination of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They feared other gods
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For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
8 and lived by the customs of the nations that ADONAI had expelled ahead of the people of Isra'el and by those of the kings of Isra'el.
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And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
9 The people of Isra'el secretly did things that were not right, according to ADONAI their God. They built high places for themselves wherever they lived, from the watchtower to the fortified city.
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And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the LORD their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
10 They set up standing-stones and sacred poles for themselves on any high hill and under any green tree.
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And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree:
11 Then they would make offerings on all the high places, like the nations ADONAI had expelled ahead of them, and would do wicked things to provoke the anger of ADONAI;
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And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the LORD carried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger:
12 moreover, they served idols, something ADONAI had expressly told them not to do.
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For they served idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing.
13 ADONAI had warned Isra'el and Y'hudah in advance through every prophet and seer, "Turn from your evil ways; and obey my mitzvot and regulations, in accordance with the entire Torah which I ordered your ancestors to keep and which I sent to you through my servants the prophets."
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Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
14 Nevertheless, they refused to listen but made themselves as stubborn as their ancestors, who did not put their trust in ADONAI their God.
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Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God.
15 Thus they rejected his laws; his covenant, which he had made with their ancestors; and the solemn warnings he had given them. Instead they pursued worthless things and became worthless themselves, imitating the nations around them, whom ADONAI had ordered them not to emulate.
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And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them.
16 They abandoned all the mitzvot of ADONAI their God. They made cast metal images for themselves, two calves. They made an asherah. They worshipped the whole army of heaven. They served Ba'al.
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And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
17 They had their sons and daughters pass through fire [as a sacrifice]. They used divination and magic spells. And they gave themselves over to do what was evil from ADONAI's perspective, thereby provoking him;
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And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
18 so that ADONAI, by now very angry with Isra'el, removed them from his sight. None was left except the tribe of Y'hudah alone.
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Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
19 (However, neither did Y'hudah obey the mitzvot of ADONAI their God; rather they lived according to the customs of Isra'el.)
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Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.
20 Yes, ADONAI came to despise all the descendants of Isra'el. He caused them trouble and handed them over to plunderers, until finally he threw them out of his sight.
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And the LORD rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.
21 He tore Isra'el away from the house of David. They made Yarov'am the son of N'vat king; and Yarov'am drew Isra'el away from following ADONAI and made them commit a great sin.
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For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the LORD, and made them sin a great sin.
22 The people of Isra'el followed the example of all the sins that Yarov'am had committed and did not turn away from them,
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For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;
23 until ADONAI removed Isra'el out of his sight, as he had said he would through all his servants the prophets. Thus Isra'el was carried away captive from their own land to Ashur, and it remains so to this day.
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Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.
24 The king of Ashur brought people from Bavel, Kutah, 'Ava, Hamat and S'farvayim and settled them in the cities of Shomron in place of the people of Isra'el; they took possession of Shomron and lived in its cities.
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And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.
25 When they first came to live there, they did not fear ADONAI. Therefore ADONAI sent lions among them, which killed some of them.
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And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them.
26 So they said to the king of Ashur, "The nations you carried away and settled in the cities of Shomron are not familiar with the rules for worshipping the God of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them; and they are there, killing them; because they're not familiar with the rules for worshipping the God of the land."
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Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.
27 In response, the king of Ashur gave this order: "Take back one of the cohanim you brought from there. Have him go and live there, and have him teach them the rules for worshipping the God of the land."
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Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.
28 So one of the cohanim they had carried away captive from Shomron came and lived in Beit-El, and he taught them how they should fear ADONAI.
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Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.
29 Nevertheless, every nation made gods of their own and put them in the temples on the high places which the Shomronim had made, every nation in the cities where they lived.
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Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.
30 Thus the people from Bavel made Sukkot-B'not, those from Kutah made Nergal, those from Hamat made Ashima,
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And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
31 the 'Avim made Nivchaz and Tartak, and the S'farvim burned up their children in the fire as sacrifices to Adramelekh and 'Anamelekh the gods of S'farvayim.
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And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
32 So they feared ADONAI, while at the same time they appointed for themselves priests from among themselves to preside at the high places, and they would sacrifice for them in the temples on the high places.
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So they feared the LORD, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.
33 They both feared ADONAI and served their own gods in the manner customary among the nations from which they had been taken away.
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They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.
34 To this day they continue to follow their former [pagan] customs. They do not fear ADONAI. They do not follow the regulations, rulings, Torah or mitzvah which ADONAI ordered the descendants of Ya'akov, to whom he gave the name Isra'el,
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Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;
35 with whom ADONAI had made a covenant and charged them, "Do not fear other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them.
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With whom the LORD had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
36 On the contrary, you are to fear ADONAI, who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm. Worship him, and sacrifice to him.
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But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
37 You are to observe forever the laws, rulings, Torah and mitzvah which he wrote for you. You are not to fear other gods,
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And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.
38 and you are not to forget the covenant I made with you. No, you must not fear other gods
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And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.
39 but must fear ADONAI your God; then he will rescue you from the power of all your enemies."
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But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
40 However, they didn't listen, but followed their old [pagan] practices.
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Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.
41 So these nations mixed fearing ADONAI with serving their carved idols; likewise their children; and to this day, their descendants do the same as their ancestors did.
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So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children's children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The King James Version is in the public domain.