TRV
Translation
King James Version
And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
Complete Jewish Bible
Thus the people from Bavel made Sukkot-B'not, those from Kutah made Nergal, those from Hamat made Ashima,
Berean Standard Bible
The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima,
American Standard Version
And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
World English Bible Messianic
The men of Babylon made Succoth Benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
Geneva Bible (1599)
For the men of Babel made Succoth-Benoth: and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
Young's Literal Translation
And the men of Babylon have made Succoth-Benoth, and the men of Cuth have made Nergal, and the men of Hamath have made Ashima,
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Commentary on 2 Kings 17 verses 24–41
24 ¶ And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.
25 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them.
26 Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.
28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.
29 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.
30 And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
31 And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
32 So they feared the LORD, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.
33 They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.
34 Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;
35 With whom the LORD had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
37 And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.
38 And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.
39 But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
40 Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.
41 So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children's children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.
Never was land lost, we say, for want of an heir. When the children of Israel were dispossessed, and turned out of Canaan, the king of Assyria soon transplanted thither the supernumeraries of his own country, such as it could well spare, who should be servants to him and masters to the Israelites that remained; and here we have an account of these new inhabitants, whose story is related here that we may take our leave of Samaria, as also of the Israelites that were carried captive into Assyria.
I. Concerning the Assyrians that were brought into the land of Israel we are here told, 1. That they possessed Samaria and dwelt in the cities thereof, Kg2 17:24. It is common for lands to change their owners, but sad that the holy land should become a heathen land again. See what work sin makes. 2. That at their first coming God sent lions among them. They were probably insufficient to people the country, which occasioned the beasts of the field to multiply against them (Exo 23:29); yet, besides the natural cause, there was a manifest hand of God in it, who is Lord of hosts, of all the creatures, and can serve his own purposes by which he pleases, small or great, lice or lions. God ordered them this rough welcome to check their pride and insolence, and to let them know that though they had conquered Israel the God of Israel had power enough to deal with them - that he could have prevented their settling here, by ordering lions into the service of Israel, and that he permitted it, not for their righteousness, but the wickedness of his own people - and that they were now under his visitation. They had lived without God in their own land, and were not plagued with lions; but, if they do so in this land, it is at their peril. 3. That they sent a remonstrance of this grievance to the king their master, setting forth, it is likely, the loss their infant colony had sustained by the lions and the continual fear they were in of them, and stating that they looked upon it to be a judgment upon them for not worshipping the God of the land, which they could not, because they knew not how, Kg2 17:26. The God of Israel was the God of the whole world, but they ignorantly call him the God of the land, apprehending themselves therefore within his reach, and concerned to be upon good terms with him. Herein they shamed the Israelites, who were not so ready to hear the voice of God's judgments as they were, and who had not served the God of that land, though he was the God of their fathers and their great benefactor, and though they were well instructed in the manner of his worship. Assyrians begged to be taught that which Israelites hated to be taught. 4. That the king of Assyria took care to have them taught the manner of the God of the land (Kg2 17:27, Kg2 17:28), not out of any affection to that God, but to save his subjects from the lions. On this errand he sent back one of the priests whom he had carried away captive. A prophet would have done them more good, for this was but one of the priests of the calves, and therefore chose to dwell at Bethel for old acquaintance' sake, and, though he might teach them to do better than they did, he was not likely to teach them to do well, unless he had taught his own people better. However, he came and dwelt among them, to teach them how they should fear the Lord. Whether he taught them out of the book of the law, or only by word of mouth, is uncertain. 5. That, being thus taught, they made a mongrel religion of it, worshipped the God of Israel for fear and their own idols for love (Kg2 17:33): They feared the Lord, but they served their own gods. They all agreed to worship the God of the land according to the manner, to serve the Jewish festivals and rites of sacrificing, but every nation made gods of their own besides, not only for their private use in their own families, but to be put in the houses of their high places, Kg2 17:9. The idols of each country are here named, Kg2 17:30, Kg2 17:31. The learned are at a loss for the signification of several of these names, and cannot agree by what representations these gods were worshipped. If we may credit the traditions of the Jewish doctors, they tell us that Succoth-Benoth was worshipped in a hen and chickens, Nergal in a cock, Ashima in a smooth goat, Nibhaz in a dog, Tartak in an ass, Adrammelech in a peacock, Anammelech in a pheasant. Our own tell us, more probably, that Succoth-Benoth (signifying the tents of the daughters) was Venus. Nergal, being worshipped by the Cuthites, or Persians, was the fire, Adrammelech and Anammelech were only distinctions of Moloch. See how vain idolaters were in their imaginations, and wonder at their sottishness. Our very ignorance concerning these idols teaches us the accomplishment of that word which God has spoken, that these false gods should all perish (Jer 10:11); they are all buried in oblivion, while the name of the true God shall continue for ever. 6. This medley superstition is here said to continue unto this day (Kg2 17:41), till the time when this book was written and long after, above 300 years in all, till the time of Alexander the Great, when Manasse, brother to Jaddus the high priest of the Jews, having married the daughter of Sanballat, governor of the Samaritans, went over to them, got leave of Alexander to build a temple in Mount Gerizim, drew over many of the Jews to him, and prevailed with the Samaritans to cast away all their idols and to worship the God of Israel only; yet their worship was mixed with so much superstition that our Saviour told them they knew not what they worshipped, Joh 4:22.
II. Concerning the Israelites that were carried into the land of Assyria. This historian has occasion to speak of them (Kg2 17:22), showing that their successors in the land did as they had done (after the manner of the nations whom they carried away), they worshipped both the God of Israel and those other gods; but what did the captives do in the land of their affliction? Were they reformed, and brought to repentance, by their troubles? No, they did after the former manner, Kg2 17:34. When the two tribes were afterwards carried into Babylon, they were cured by it of their idolatry, and therefore, after seventy years, they were brought back with joy; but the ten tribes were hardened in the furnace, and therefore were justly lost in it and left to perish. This obstinacy of theirs is here aggravated by the consideration, 1. Of the honour God had put upon them, as the seed of Jacob, whom he named Israel, and from him they were so named, but were a reproach to that worthy name by which they were called. 2. Of the covenant he made with them, and the charge he gave them upon that covenant, which is here very fully recited, that they should fear and serve the Lord Jehovah only, who had brought them up out of Egypt (Kg2 17:36), that, having received his statutes and ordinances in writing, they should observe to do them for evermore (Kg2 17:37), and never forget that covenant which God had made with them, the promises and conditions of that covenant, especially that great article of it which is here thrice repeated, because it had been so often inculcated and so much insisted on, that they should not fear other gods. He had told them that, if they kept close to him, he would deliver them out of the hand of all their enemies (Kg2 17:39); yet when they were in the hand of their enemies, and stood in need of deliverance, they were so stupid, and had so little sense of their own interest, that they did after the former manner (Kg2 17:40), they served both the true God and false gods, as if they knew no difference. Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone. So they did, and so did the nations that succeeded them. Well might the apostle ask, What then, Are we better than they? No, in no wise, for both Jews and Gentiles are all under sin, Rom 3:9.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 24–41. Public domain.
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John ChrysostomAD 407
HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 33.1
How, then, did the Samaritans not know what they worshiped? Because they thought that God was confined to a place and divisible; at least it was in that way that they worshiped him. And it was in this spirit that they sent to the Persians and announced that the God of this place was displeased with them. According to this, their idea of him was no greater than their conception of their idols. Therefore, they continued to worship both evil spirit and him, combining things that were altogether incompatible. But the Jews for the most part were free of this taint and knew that he is God of the universe, even though not all of them [were faithful].
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
This verse precisely enumerates specific pagan deities introduced into the land of Samaria by the foreign peoples resettled there by the Assyrian king following the Northern Kingdom of Israel's exile. It serves as a stark illustration of the pervasive religious syncretism that permeated the former Israelite territory, highlighting the diverse idolatrous practices that supplanted the exclusive worship of Yahweh and further underscored God's righteous judgment on a nation that had already tragically strayed into idolatry.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: This verse is situated within a crucial chapter that narrates the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the subsequent Assyrian resettlement of Samaria. Following the capture of Samaria and the deportation of Israelites (as described in 2 Kings 17:6), the Assyrian king implemented a policy of population transfer, populating the land with various foreign groups. The preceding verses explain why Israel was exiled—their persistent idolatry and disobedience to God's covenant (see 2 Kings 17:7-18). The verses immediately following 2 Kings 17:30 continue to list these foreign groups and their gods, culminating in a description of a mixed, syncretistic religion where the newcomers "feared the Lord, and served their own gods" (2 Kings 17:33). This entire section underscores the tragic consequences of covenant unfaithfulness and the pervasive nature of idolatry.
Historical & Cultural Context: After the fall of Samaria in 722/721 BC, the Assyrian Empire, under Sargon II, implemented a policy of population transfer. This strategy aimed to prevent rebellion by breaking up national identities and mixing conquered peoples. The foreign groups mentioned—from Babylon, Cuth, and Hamath—were from various parts of the vast Assyrian empire. When these peoples were resettled in Samaria, they brought their native religious practices, deities, and cultic objects with them. This influx created a religiously diverse landscape where the worship of Yahweh, which had already been corrupted by Israelite idolatry, was further diluted and challenged by a multitude of pagan cults. The mention of specific deities like Nergal and Ashima reflects the rich pantheons of Mesopotamia and Syria, which often included gods of war, pestilence, fertility, and the underworld, contrasting sharply with the monotheistic demands of the Mosaic Covenant found in Deuteronomy 6:4.
Key Themes: The primary theme is Idolatry, vividly demonstrated by the specific naming of foreign deities and their introduction into the land of Israel. This act directly violates the first commandment, "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). Closely related is Syncretism, the blending of different religious beliefs and practices. The foreign settlers, and later even some of the remaining Israelites, attempted to combine the worship of Yahweh with their native gods, a practice vehemently condemned throughout the Old Testament as spiritual adultery (e.g., Jeremiah 3:8-9). Finally, the verse highlights the Consequences of Disobedience and Divine Judgment. Israel's exile was a direct result of their unfaithfulness, and the subsequent paganization of their land serves as a powerful, visual testament to the judgment that befell them, transforming a land dedicated to Yahweh into a hub of diverse pagan worship.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The primary literary device employed in this verse is Enumeration, as it systematically lists the various foreign groups and the specific deities they introduced into Samaria. This detailed cataloging serves to emphasize the sheer scale and diversity of the pagan religions now polluting the land of Israel, highlighting the comprehensive nature of the spiritual compromise. Furthermore, there is an implicit Contrast at play; the meticulous listing of these foreign gods stands in stark opposition to the singular, exclusive worship demanded by Yahweh in the Mosaic Law. This contrast underscores the profound spiritual degradation that had occurred, transforming a land meant for monotheistic devotion into a hub of polytheistic idolatry. The idols themselves serve as Symbolism, representing not merely physical objects but the spiritual apostasy and the abandonment of the covenant with the one true God.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
This verse powerfully illustrates the theological dangers of idolatry and syncretism, which were central issues throughout Israel's history. The introduction of these foreign gods into the very heart of the land promised to Abraham and consecrated to Yahweh represents the ultimate spiritual defilement. It underscores God's unwavering demand for exclusive worship, a principle enshrined in the very first commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me." The narrative here serves as a historical warning against spiritual compromise, demonstrating how the failure to remain faithful to God alone inevitably leads to a proliferation of false worship and ultimately, divine judgment. The presence of these idols in Samaria is a tangible sign of the spiritual desolation that had befallen the Northern Kingdom due to its persistent unfaithfulness.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
The historical account of 2 Kings 17:30, detailing the influx of foreign gods into Samaria, serves as a timeless and potent warning for believers today. While we may not erect physical idols of Succothbenoth or Nergal, the principle remains profoundly relevant: anything that takes the place of God in our lives, anything we trust in more than Him, or anything that consumes our devotion and affections, becomes an idol. This can manifest as the pursuit of wealth, status, comfort, relationships, personal achievements, or even ideologies that subtly displace God's sovereignty and truth. The danger of syncretism is equally present, as we can be tempted to blend Christian faith with worldly values, cultural norms, or personal preferences, thereby diluting the purity of our worship and commitment. This passage calls us to a rigorous self-examination, urging us to identify and dismantle any "altars" we might have unwittingly built to false gods in our hearts and lives, reaffirming our exclusive and unreserved devotion to the Lord.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is Succothbenoth, and why is its identity debated?
Answer: Succothbenoth is a deity or cultic object mentioned in 2 Kings 17:30 as being worshipped by the men of Babylon. Its identity is debated among scholars because the name "Succothbenoth" literally translates from Hebrew as "booths of daughters" or "tents of daughters." This unusual phrasing has led to various interpretations. Some scholars suggest it refers to a specific cultic practice, possibly involving sacred prostitution or fertility rites conducted in temporary shelters. Others believe it is a Hebrew transliteration or a popular, perhaps derisive, name for a known Babylonian goddess, such as Zarpanitu (the consort of Marduk), who was associated with fertility and creation. The lack of clear parallels in other ancient Near Eastern texts makes its precise identification challenging, contributing to the ongoing scholarly discussion.
Why did the Assyrian king resettle foreign peoples in Samaria, and what was the impact?
Answer: The Assyrian king, after conquering the Northern Kingdom of Israel and exiling its inhabitants (as detailed in 2 Kings 17:6), implemented a deliberate policy of population transfer. This strategy served multiple purposes: to prevent future rebellions by breaking up the national identity of conquered peoples, to integrate diverse populations into the Assyrian Empire, and to repopulate conquered territories for economic and administrative stability. The impact on Samaria was profound. The foreign settlers brought their own distinct religious practices, deities, and cultural norms. This led to a significant religious syncretism, where the worship of Yahweh, which had already been corrupted by Israelite idolatry, was further diluted and mixed with the worship of numerous pagan gods (as seen in 2 Kings 17:33). This transformation fundamentally altered the spiritual landscape of the land once dedicated to the exclusive worship of the Lord.
What is "syncretism" in a biblical context, and why is it condemned?
Answer: In a biblical context, syncretism refers to the blending or mixing of different religious beliefs, practices, or deities. In the Old Testament, it specifically describes the attempt to combine the worship of Yahweh, the one true God, with the worship of pagan gods or the adoption of pagan rituals. For example, 2 Kings 17:33 states that the foreign settlers in Samaria "feared the Lord, and served their own gods." Syncretism is vehemently condemned throughout the Bible because it violates God's absolute demand for exclusive worship, as stated in the first commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). It is seen as spiritual adultery, a betrayal of the covenant relationship with God, and a dilution of His truth and holiness. God's nature is singular and holy, and He cannot be worshipped alongside false gods without diminishing His glory and compromising the purity of faith.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
The narrative of 2 Kings 17:30, with its stark portrayal of rampant idolatry and spiritual syncretism, finds its ultimate fulfillment and resolution in Jesus Christ. The Old Testament consistently highlights humanity's propensity to create and worship false gods, demonstrating the futility and spiritual death that result from turning away from the one true God. Christ, however, is the complete and perfect revelation of God, the "image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15). He is the true object of worship, deserving of all praise and adoration, and through Him, we are called to worship God "in spirit and truth" (John 4:24), which transcends physical idols or geographical locations. The New Covenant, established through Christ's atoning sacrifice, provides the means for humanity to be reconciled to God, not through appeasing multiple deities or mixing faiths, but through faith in the one mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). Furthermore, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in believers empowers them to put to death the "earthly things" that can become modern idols—greed, lust, covetousness—which Paul explicitly calls idolatry (Colossians 3:5). Thus, Christ not only condemns all forms of idolatry but also provides the spiritual freedom and power to live a life of exclusive devotion to God, fulfilling the very purpose for which Israel was called.