14. But they would not obey; they were stubborn like their ancestors, who had not trusted in the Lord their God.
15. They refused to obey his instructions, they did not keep the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and they disregarded his warnings. They worshipped worthless idols and became worthless themselves, and they followed the customs of the surrounding nations, disobeying the Lord's command not to imitate them.
16. They broke all the laws of the Lord their God and made two metal bull calves to worship; they also made an image of the goddess Asherah, worshipped the stars, and served the god Baal.
17. They sacrificed their sons and daughters as burnt offerings to pagan gods; they consulted mediums and fortune tellers, and they devoted themselves completely to doing what is wrong in the Lord's sight, and so aroused his anger.
18. The Lord was angry with the Israelites and banished them from his sight, leaving only the kingdom of Judah.
19. But even the people of Judah did not obey the laws of the Lord their God; they imitated the customs adopted by the people of Israel.
20. The Lord rejected all the Israelites, punishing them and handing them over to cruel enemies until at last he had banished them from his sight.
21. After the Lord had separated Israel from Judah, the Israelites made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king. Jeroboam made them abandon the Lord and led them into terrible sins.
22. They followed Jeroboam and continued to practise all the sins he had committed,
23. until at last the Lord banished them from his sight, as he had warned through his servants the prophets that he would do. So the people of Israel were taken into exile to Assyria, where they still live.
24. The emperor of Assyria took people from the cities of Babylon, Cuth, Ivvah, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria, in place of the exiled Israelites. They took possession of these cities and lived there.