Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who made Israel sin, but walked therein: and there remained the grove also in Samaria.)
But even so, they didn't turn away from the sins that Jeroboam's family had started, which led all of Israel into sin. They kept following those same wrong ways, and the sacred pole used for idol worship was still standing in Samaria.
This verse shows that despite some improvements, the people of Israel continued following the same sinful patterns of idol worship that had been established by earlier kings.
📚 Historical Context
In the divided kingdom of Israel after Solomon's reign, King Jeroboam I introduced idolatrous practices like worshiping golden calves at alternative sites to keep his people from traveling to the temple in Jerusalem, which deepened the nation's spiritual rebellion. This sin persisted through generations of kings, as seen in 2 Kings 13 during the rule of Jehoahaz, where the people of Israel continued to follow these ways despite God's warnings and occasional reforms. The mention of the "grove" refers to an Asherah pole, a symbol of Canaanite worship that remained in Samaria, highlighting the ongoing idolatry that plagued the northern kingdom.
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