1
In the twelfth year of Ahaz, king of Judah, Hoshea, the son of Elah, became king over Israel in Samaria, ruling for nine years.
2
He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, though not like the kings of Israel before him.
3
Against him came up Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, and Hoshea became his servant and sent him offerings.
4
But Hoshea's broken faith became clear to the king of Assyria because he had sent representatives to So, king of Egypt, and did not send his offering to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: so the king of Assyria had him shut up in prison and put in chains.
5
Then the king of Assyria went through all the land and came up to Samaria, shutting it in with his forces for three years.
6
In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria, and took Israel away to Assyria, placing them in Halah and in Habor on the river Gozan, and in the towns of the Medes.
7
And the wrath of the Lord came on Israel because they had done evil against the Lord their God, who took them out of the land of Egypt from under the yoke of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and had become worshippers of other gods,
8
Living by the rules of the nations whom the Lord had sent out from before the children of Israel.
9
And the children of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things which were not right, building high places for themselves in all their towns, from the tower of the watchmen to the walled town.
10
They put up pillars of stone and wood on every high hill and under every green tree: