What is the meaning of 2 Kings 17:29? Nevertheless The inspired narrator draws a stark contrast with God’s clear instruction against idolatry (Exodus 20:3–4). Despite warnings through prophets such as Hosea (Hosea 4:17) and Amos (Amos 5:26), the people stubbornly pressed on. This “Nevertheless” signals deliberate rebellion, reminding us of Israel’s earlier “nevertheless” moments (Psalm 106:34–39) when they mingled with the nations and learned their practices. the people of each nation After Assyria resettled conquered peoples in Samaria (2 Kings 17:24), each ethnic group brought its own religious baggage. Like the mixed multitude in Exodus 12:38 who later instigated the golden-calf episode (Exodus 32:1–4), these foreigners carried idols into the land that belonged to the LORD. Ezra later faced the same syncretistic pressure (Ezra 4:1–3). continued to make their own gods Instead of surrendering to the one true God, these settlers fabricated new deities—hand-made, localized, and powerless (Isaiah 44:15–20). Psalm 115:4–8 underscores the futility of such gods: “Those who make them will be like them.” The pattern mirrors Judges 2:11–13, where Israel repeatedly “made” or “served” Baals, provoking God’s righteous anger. in the cities where they had settled Idolatry wasn’t hidden in remote corners; it was woven into everyday city life, just as Lot “settled” in Sodom and grew accustomed to its wickedness (Genesis 13:12–13). Deuteronomy 12:2–3 had commanded Israel to destroy pagan sites in their cities; instead, new residents planted fresh ones. The contagion of false worship spread house-to-house (Jeremiah 7:17–18). and they set them up in the shrines Shrines offered an appearance of religion without true covenant obedience. Like Jeroboam’s calves at Bethel and Dan (1 Kings 12:31), these structures mimicked legitimate worship while diverting hearts from Jerusalem’s temple. Isaiah 17:8 warns that on judgment day men will “look to their Maker” and no longer regard “the altars, the work of their hands.” that the people of Samaria had made The newcomers merely repurposed what apostate Israelites had already built. Sin leaves monuments that entice the next generation (2 Kings 15:34–35). By ignoring 2 Chronicles 30:6–9’s call to return to the LORD, Samaria became a training ground for further compromise, proving Galatians 6:7: “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” on the high places High places symbolized self-chosen worship contrary to God’s chosen place (Deuteronomy 12:5–14). From Solomon onward, these elevated sites fostered syncretism (1 Kings 11:7–8). Micah 1:3–5 declares that Samaria’s high places would become ruins—fulfilling God’s promise to demolish every counterfeit altar (2 Kings 23:19–20). summary 2 Kings 17:29 reveals entrenched, willful idolatry. Even after divine judgment removed Israel, the incoming nations perpetuated the same sin, proving that human hearts, apart from grace, instinctively create substitute gods. The verse warns believers to dismantle every modern “high place” and worship the LORD alone, for He tolerates no rivals (James 4:4–5). |
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