Old/New Testament
The Israelites are Deported to Assyria
17 In the twelfth year of King Ahaz of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah became king in Samaria over Israel, and he reigned nine years. 2 He did what was evil in Adonai’s eyes, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him. 3 King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched against him, so Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. 4 But the king of Assyria caught Hoshea conspiring—he had sent messengers to King So of Egypt, and had not paid the tribute to the king of Assyria as he had done every year. Therefore the king of Assyria seized him and put him in prison. 5 Then the king of Assyria invaded the entire country, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria. He placed them in Halah and Habor, on the Gozan River, and in the towns of the Medes. 7 Now it was so because the men of Israel had sinned against Adonai their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods. 8 Instead they followed the customs of the nations, whom Adonai had dispossessed before Bnei-Yisrael, yet which the kings of Israel practiced. 9 Bnei-Yisrael secretly did things against Adonai their God that were not right. They built shrines for themselves in all their settlements—from watchtowers to fortified cities, 10 and they set up pillars and Asherah poles for themselves on every high hill and under every leafy tree. 11 There they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom Adonai had driven out before them. So they did wicked things to provoke Adonai. 12 They worshipped idols, about which Adonai had said to them, “You shall not do this thing.”
13 Yet Adonai had forewarned Israel and Judah by the hand of every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the Torah which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by the hand of My servants the prophets.” 14 Yet they would not listen, but stiffened their neck like their fathers, who did not trust in Adonai their God. 15 So they rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies that He testified against them. Instead they went after futile things and became futile, following the nations that surrounded them, about whom Adonai had charged them not to emulate. 16 So they abandoned all the mitzvot of Adonai their God. So they made for themselves molten images, two calves, and made an Asherah pole, and bowed down to all the host of heavens, and worshipped Baal, 17 and they made their sons and daughters pass through the fire, practiced divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in Adonai’s eyes, to provoke Him.
18 So Adonai became very angry with Israel, and banished them from His presence. There was none left but the tribe of Judah alone.
19 Even Judah did not keep the mitzvot of Adonai their God, but followed the customs which Israel had practiced. 20 So Adonai spurned all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them out of His sight.
21 When He had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drew Israel away from following Adonai and made them commit a great sin. 22 The men of Israel kept walking in all the sins that Jeroboam committed. They did not turn away from them, 23 until Adonai banished Israel from His presence, as He spoke by the hand of all His servants the prophets. So Israel has been exiled from their own land to Assyria to this day.
Origin of the Samaritans
24 Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria, instead of the men of Israel. So they possessed Samaria and settled in its cities. 25 When they first began dwelling there, they did not fear Adonai—so Adonai sent lions among them, which killed some of them. 26 Then they spoke to the king of Assyria saying, “The nations that you deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria do not know the requirement of the God of the land. Therefore He has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them because they don’t know the requirement of the God of the land.”
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded saying, “Send there one of the kohanim whom you have exiled from there. Let them go and live there and teach them the requirement of the God of the land.” 28 So one of the kohanim that had been deported from Samaria came and lived in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear Adonai.
29 However, every nation kept making its own gods, and put them in the shrines of the high places that the Samaritans had made—every nation in their cities where they settled. 30 So the people of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the people of Cuth made Nergal, the people of Hamath made Ashima, 31 the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. 32 So they feared Adonai, while they also appointed for themselves from among themselves priests of the shrines, who officiated for them in the shrines of the high places. 33 They continued to fear Adonai, but worshipped their own gods, after the custom of the nations from which they had been deported.
34 Up to this day, they follow their former customs. Nor do they fear Adonai, or follow the statutes, the ordinances, the Torah or the mitzvot that Adonai commanded the children of Jacob—whom He had renamed Israel. 35 With them Adonai had made a covenant, and charged them saying, “You will not fear other gods, or bow down to them, or serve them, or sacrifice to them, 36 but only Adonai, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm—Him will you fear, and to Him will you bow down and to Him will you sacrifice. 37 The statutes and the ordinances, and the Torah and the mitzvah, which He wrote for you, you will take care to do all the time. You are not to fear other gods. 38 The covenant that I have made with you, you will not forget. Nor will you fear other gods, 39 but Adonai your God will you fear. Then He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.”
40 Yet they did not listen, but they continued their former practices. 41 So while these nations feared Adonai, they also worshipped their idols. Their children and grandchildren do as their fathers did to this day.
Righteous King Hezekiah
18 Now it was in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel that Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 He was 25 years old when he became king and he reigned for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi daughter of Zechariah. 3 He did what was right in Adonai’s eyes, according to all his ancestor David had done. 4 He removed the high places, smashed the pillars and cut down the Asherah poles. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made—for up to those days Bnei-Yisrael were still burning incense to it—it was called Nehushtan.
5 He trusted in Adonai, the God of Israel. Indeed, none of all the kings of Judah after him was like him—and none before him. 6 For he clung to Adonai. He did not turn away from following Him, but kept His mitzvot, which Adonai had commanded Moses. 7 So Adonai was with him. Wherever he went he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. 8 He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its territories, from watchtower to fortified city.
9 Now it came to pass in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of King Elah of Israel, that King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched against Samaria and besieged it, 10 and at the end of three years they captured it. So Samaria was captured in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of King Hoshea of Israel. 11 The king of Assyria deported Israel to Assyria and placed them in Halah and Habor on the Gozan River, and in the towns of the Medes. 12 For they had not listened to the voice of Adonai their God, but transgressed His covenant—all that Moses the servant of Adonai had commanded—they neither listened nor did it.
Proud Sennacherib Challenges Hezekiah
13 Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, King Sennacherib of Assyria marched against all the fortified towns of Judah and seized them. 14 So King Hezekiah of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish saying, “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me, whatever you impose on me, I will bear.” So the king of Assyria imposed on King Hezekiah of Judah 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold. 15 Then Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the House of Adonai as well as in the treasuries of the royal palace. 16 At that time Hezekiah stripped off the gold from the doors of the Temple of Adonai and from the doorposts that King Hezekiah of Judah had overlaid, and gave them to the king of Assyria.
17 Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab-saris and the Rab-shakeh[a] from Lachish with a great army to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. So they went up and arrived at Jerusalem. Now when they arrived, they stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is on the highway of the fuller’s field. 18 When they had called to the king, Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the royal palace, Shebnah the scribe, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder, came out to them.
19 So the Rab-shakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: ‘What is this confidence you’ve relied on? 20 You say you have a plan and military force for the battle—they are only words of a lip. Who do you rely on now, so that you have rebelled against me? 21 Behold, you rely on this splintered reed as a staff—Egypt! If a man leans on it, it will go into the palm of his hand and pierce it—thus Pharaoh king of Egypt is to all who trust in him.
22 “But if you say to me: ‘We trust in Adonai our God’—is it not He whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has removed, and then said to Judah and Jerusalem: ‘You must worship before this altar in Jerusalem’?
23 “So now, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you 2,000 horses—if you could put riders of your own on them! 24 So, how can you repulse a single lieutenant—the least of my master’s servants? Yes, you’re relying on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen.
25 “Moreover, have I now come up against this land to destroy it without Adonai’s approval? Adonai said to me: ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’”
26 Then Eliakim and Shebna and Joah said to the Rab-shakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it. Don’t speak to us in the language of the Jews when the people on the wall are listening.”
27 But the Rab-shakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall—who will eat their own wastes and drink their own urine with you?”
28 Then the Rab-shakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in the language of the Jews and said: “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria. 29 ‘Thus says the king: Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of my hand! 30 Nor let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in Adonai by saying: “Adonai will surely deliver us—this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”” ’
31 “Don’t listen to Hezekiah! For thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make peace with me and come out to me. Then everyone will eat from his own vine and fig tree, and everyone will drink water from his own cistern, 32 until I come, and take you away to a land like your own land—a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive oil and honey, that you may live and not die.’
“So don’t listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you by saying: ‘Adonai will deliver us.’ 33 Have any of the gods of the nations delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria? 34 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? 35 Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their country out of my hand? So will Adonai deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
36 But the people were silent and did not answer him a word, for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.”
37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the scribe, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of the Rab-shakeh.
19 “Now this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world and men loved the darkness instead of the light,[a] because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone who does evil hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed. 21 But whoever practices the truth comes to the light, so that it may be made known that his deeds have been accomplished in God.”
The Living Word, Source of Life
22 Afterwards, Yeshua and His disciples came to the land of Judea. There He was staying with them and immersing. 23 Now John also was immersing at Aenon near Salim, because much water was there and many were coming and being immersed; 24 for John had not yet been thrown into prison.
25 Now an argument came up between John’s disciples and a Judean concerning purification. 26 They came to John and said, “Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about—look, He is immersing, and all are coming to Him!”
27 John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah,’ but rather, ‘I am sent before Him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the best man rejoices when he stands and hears the bridegroom’s voice. So now my joy is complete! 30 He must increase, while I must decrease.”
31 The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth is of the earth, and of the earth he speaks. The One who comes from heaven is above all. 32 And what He has seen and heard, He testifies to that; yet no one receives His testimony. 33 Whoever receives His testimony has certified that God is true.
34 The One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Ruach without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given everything into His hand. 36 He who trusts in the Son has eternal life. He who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.