And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
And they followed the customs and practices of the pagan nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites, as well as the traditions that the kings of Israel had created.
This verse explains that the Israelites abandoned God's ways and instead copied the religious practices of the pagan nations God had removed from the land, plus the corrupt traditions their own kings had started.
📚 Historical Context
In the historical context of 2 Kings 17, the Northern Kingdom of Israel had turned away from God by adopting the religious customs of the pagan nations that He had driven out when giving the land to the Israelites centuries earlier. The kings of Israel played a key role in this by establishing and enforcing these idolatrous practices, which directly violated God's covenant. This verse highlights the buildup to the Assyrian conquest in 722 BC, as God's judgment on their unfaithfulness.
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