^{23 Ref} Till the Lord put Israel away from before his face, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was taken away from their land to Assyria, to this day.

^{24 Ref} Then the king of Assyria took men from Babylon and from Cuthah and Avva and Hamath and Sepharvaim, and put them in the towns of Samaria in place of the children of Israel; so they got Samaria for their heritage, living in its towns.

^{25 Ref} Now when first they were living there they did not give worship to the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them, causing the death of some of them.

^{26 Ref} So they said to the king of Assyria, The nations whom you have taken as prisoners and put in the towns of Samaria, have no knowledge of the way of the god of the land: so he has sent lions among them, causing their death, because they have no knowledge of his way.

^{27 Ref} Then the king of Assyria gave orders, saying, Send there one of the priests whom you took away, and let him be living there and teaching the people the way of the god of the land.

^{28 Ref} So one of the priests whom they had taken away as a prisoner from Samaria came back, and, living in Beth-el, became their teacher in the worship of the Lord.

^{29 Ref} And every nation made gods for themselves, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the towns where they were living.

^{30 Ref} The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,

^{31 Ref} The Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites gave their children to be burned in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

^{32 Ref} So they went on worshipping the Lord, and made for themselves, from among all the people, priests for the high places, to make offerings for them in the houses of the high places.

^{33 Ref} They gave worship to the Lord, but they gave honour to their gods like the nations did from whom they had been taken as prisoners.

^{34 Ref} So to this day they go on in their old ways, not worshipping the Lord or keeping his orders or his ways or the law and the rule which the Lord gave to the children of Jacob, to whom he gave the name Israel;

^{35 Ref} And the Lord made an agreement with them and gave them orders, saying, You are to have no other gods; you are not to give worship to them or be their servants or make them offerings:

^{36 Ref} But the Lord, who took you out of the land of Egypt with his great power and his outstretched arm, he is your God, to whom you are to give worship and make offerings:

^{37 Ref} And the rules and the orders and the law which he put in writing for you, you are to keep and do for ever; you are to have no other gods.

^{38 Ref} And you are to keep in memory the agreement which I have made with you; and you are to have no other gods.

^{39 Ref} And you are to give worship to the Lord your God; for it is he who will give you salvation from the hands of all who are against you.

^{40 Ref} But they gave no attention, but went on in their old way.

^{41 Ref} So these nations, worshipping the Lord, still were servants to the images they had made; their children and their children's children did the same; as their fathers did, so do they, to this day.