Zechariah King of Israel

⁸ In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned six months. ⁹ He did evil^(A) in the eyes of the Lord, as his predecessors had done. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit.

¹⁰ Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against Zechariah. He attacked him in front of the people,^[a] assassinated^(B) him and succeeded him as king. ¹¹ The other events of Zechariah’s reign are written in the book of the annals^(C) of the kings of Israel. ¹² So the word of the Lord spoken to Jehu was fulfilled:^(D) “Your descendants will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.”^[b]

Shallum King of Israel

¹³ Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah, and he reigned in Samaria^(E) one month. ¹⁴ Then Menahem son of Gadi went from Tirzah^(F) up to Samaria. He attacked Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria, assassinated^(G) him and succeeded him as king.

¹⁵ The other events of Shallum’s reign, and the conspiracy he led, are written in the book of the annals^(H) of the kings of Israel.

¹⁶ At that time Menahem, starting out from Tirzah, attacked Tiphsah^(I) and everyone in the city and its vicinity, because they refused to open^(J) their gates. He sacked Tiphsah and ripped open all the pregnant women.

Menahem King of Israel

¹⁷ In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria ten years. ¹⁸ He did evil^(K) in the eyes of the Lord. During his entire reign he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit.

¹⁹ Then Pul^[c](L) king of Assyria invaded the land, and Menahem gave him a thousand talents^[d] of silver to gain his support and strengthen his own hold on the kingdom. ²⁰ Menahem exacted this money from Israel. Every wealthy person had to contribute fifty shekels^[e] of silver to be given to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria withdrew^(M) and stayed in the land no longer.

²¹ As for the other events of Menahem’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? ²² Menahem rested with his ancestors. And Pekahiah his son succeeded him as king.

Pekahiah King of Israel

²³ In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned two years. ²⁴ Pekahiah did evil^(N) in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit. ²⁵ One of his chief officers, Pekah^(O) son of Remaliah, conspired against him. Taking fifty men of Gilead with him, he assassinated^(P) Pekahiah, along with Argob and Arieh, in the citadel of the royal palace at Samaria. So Pekah killed Pekahiah and succeeded him as king.

²⁶ The other events of Pekahiah’s reign, and all he did, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.

Pekah King of Israel

²⁷ In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah^(Q) son of Remaliah^(R) became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned twenty years. ²⁸ He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit.

²⁹ In the time of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser^(S) king of Assyria came and took Ijon,^(T) Abel Beth Maakah, Janoah, Kedesh and Hazor. He took Gilead and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali,^(U) and deported^(V) the people to Assyria. ³⁰ Then Hoshea^(W) son of Elah conspired against Pekah son of Remaliah. He attacked and assassinated^(X) him, and then succeeded him as king in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.

³¹ As for the other events of Pekah’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals^(Y) of the kings of Israel?

Hoshea Last King of Israel^(A)

17 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea^(B) son of Elah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years. ² He did evil^(C) in the eyes of the Lord, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.

³ Shalmaneser^(D) king of Assyria came up to attack Hoshea, who had been Shalmaneser’s vassal and had paid him tribute.^{(E) 4} But the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was a traitor, for he had sent envoys to So^[a] king of Egypt,^(F) and he no longer paid tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore Shalmaneser seized him and put him in prison.^{(G) 5} The king of Assyria invaded the entire land, marched against Samaria and laid siege^(H) to it for three years. ⁶ In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria^(I) captured Samaria^(J) and deported^(K) the Israelites to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, in Gozan^(L) on the Habor River and in the towns of the Medes.

Israel Exiled Because of Sin

⁷ All this took place because the Israelites had sinned^(A) against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt^(B) from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped other gods ⁸ and followed the practices of the nations^(C) the Lord had driven out before them, as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced. ⁹ The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city^(D) they built themselves high places in all their towns. ¹⁰ They set up sacred stones^(E) and Asherah poles^(F) on every high hill and under every spreading tree.^{(G) 11} At every high place they burned incense, as the nations whom the Lord had driven out before them had done. They did wicked things that aroused the Lord’s anger. ¹² They worshiped idols,^(H) though the Lord had said, “You shall not do this.”^{[a] 13} The Lord warned^(I) Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers:^(J) “Turn from your evil ways.^(K) Observe my commands and decrees, in accordance with the entire Law that I commanded your ancestors to obey and that I delivered to you through my servants the prophets.”^(L)

¹⁴ But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked^(M) as their ancestors, who did not trust in the Lord their God. ¹⁵ They rejected his decrees and the covenant^(N) he had made with their ancestors and the statutes he had warned them to keep. They followed worthless idols^(O) and themselves became worthless.^(P) They imitated the nations^(Q) around them although the Lord had ordered them, “Do not do as they do.”

¹⁶ They forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves,^(R) and an Asherah^(S) pole. They bowed down to all the starry hosts,^(T) and they worshiped Baal.^{(U) 17} They sacrificed^(V) their sons and daughters in the fire. They practiced divination and sought omens^(W) and sold^(X) themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.

¹⁸ So the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence.^(Y) Only the tribe of Judah was left, ¹⁹ and even Judah did not keep the commands of the Lord their God. They followed the practices Israel had introduced.^{(Z) 20} Therefore the Lord rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers,^(AA) until he thrust them from his presence.^(AB)

²¹ When he tore^(AC) Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king.^(AD) Jeroboam enticed Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit a great sin.^{(AE) 22} The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them ²³ until the Lord removed them from his presence,^(AF) as he had warned^(AG) through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland^(AH) into exile in Assyria, and they are still there.