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2 Kings 17:24-26
New Catholic Bible
2 Kings 17:24-26
New Catholic Bible
24 Foreigners Deported to Samaria.[a] The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and he settled them in the cities of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities.
25 When they first began to dwell there, they did not fear the Lord, so the Lord sent lions among them which killed some of them. 26 The king of Assyria was told, “The nations that you deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know the law of the God of the land. This is why he sent lions among them to kill them, because they did not know the law of the God of the land.”
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- 2 Kings 17:24 In accordance with Assyrian custom, the territory now largely deserted is repopulated by other peoples, who are taught to worship the Lord but who combine this with worship of the gods of their native lands. The resultant syncretism gives rise to the Samaritans, who will be regarded as heretics (Ezr 4:1-5; Sir 50:25), even in New Testament times (Jn 4:9, 20; 8:48; Acts 8:4-6; Lk 9:52; Mt 10:5). The mingling of the remaining Israelites with the newcomers was perhaps enough to explain the development.
