2 Kings 17:33: “[The people from other nations] feared the LORD, yet served their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away.”

August 11th, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Because of Israel’s unrelenting idol worship, the northern kingdom fell to the Assyrians during the reign of King Hoshea. The king of Assyria carried the Israelites away into captivity and brought people from other nations into their cities in Samaria. These new peoples did not fear the Lord until He sent lions among them. Then they began to fear Him, but it was the wrong kind of “fear.” They never would have thought of God had it not been for the lions; and when they did think of Him, it was only to be afraid of Him.

Many people only think about God when they are in trouble, like during a serious sickness; but they never think of Him when they are healthy. They consider God only in the storm, never when life is sunny and warm. They cry out to Him when faced with problems, but never when enjoying prosperity. Many a soldier in combat has had a foxhole conversion, making radical promises to God at the moment; but when the battle passes, so does their commitment. They wanted “fire insurance” rather than an active, personal relationship with the living God. Their worship was in form only, meaning their hearts were not in their service to God.

Such worship is found much too often today. As believers, we are guilty of such worship when we sing, “I can sing of Your love forever,” but in our hearts we are wondering when the service will end. We sing, “I’m coming back to the heart of worship and it’s all about You,” while in reality we are thinking about ourselves. Mixing God Almighty with other gods will never work because the God who is God will never share worship with an idol. When we go to a worship service, do we go to have an encounter with God, or do we miss the whole point? Many years ago, The Wall Street Journal carried this 2-sentence news story that perfectly illustrates this problem:

The elms in, South Park, Pa., must be cut down because they are obstructing the monument to Joyce Kilmer. They have lifted their leafy limbs so high that passersby can no longer read the inscription that begins,”I think that I shall never see, a poem lovely as a tree.”

What great irony it is to lose sight of what is most important and begin worshiping idols.

“LORD, we turn our hearts to You and ask that You give us undivided hearts to worship and serve You this day.”

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2 Kings 17 KJV

¹ In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years. ² 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 Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.  ⁴ 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 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 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 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 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 And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the LORDtheir God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. ¹⁰ And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree:  ¹¹ And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the LORDcarried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger: ¹² For they served idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing. ¹³Yet 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 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 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, concerningwhom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them. ¹⁶ 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 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 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. ¹⁹Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. ²⁰And 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 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 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; ²³ 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 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 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 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 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. ²⁸Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el, and taught them how they should fear the LORD. ²⁹ 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 And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima, ³¹ 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 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. ³³They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence. ³⁴ 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 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 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 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 the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods. ³⁹ But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies. ⁴⁰ Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner. ⁴¹ 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.