2 Kings 17:19 kjv
Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.
2 Kings 17:19 nkjv
Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.
2 Kings 17:19 niv
and even Judah did not keep the commands of the LORD their God. They followed the practices Israel had introduced.
2 Kings 17:19 esv
Judah also did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced.
2 Kings 17:19 nlt
But even the people of Judah refused to obey the commands of the LORD their God, for they followed the evil practices that Israel had introduced.
2 Kings 17 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 26:14-17 | "But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments... I will appoint over you a dread, consumption..." | Consequences of disobedience |
| Deut 4:26-27 | "I declare to you today that you shall surely perish... scattered among the peoples..." | Warnings against idolatry and exile |
| Deut 28:15 | "But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD your God or be careful to do all his commandments..." | Curse for disobedience |
| Deut 30:17-18 | "But if your heart turns away... I declare to you today that you shall surely perish..." | Warning against turning away |
| 1 Kgs 12:28-30 | "So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold... and said to them, 'You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough...'" | Jeroboam's sinful calves (Israel's "statutes") |
| 2 Kgs 17:7-12 | "And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God..." | Israel's detailed sins leading to exile |
| 2 Kgs 17:15 | "They despised his statutes... and followed after worthless idols and became worthless themselves..." | Israel's rejection of God's statutes |
| 2 Kgs 21:10-15 | "Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations... therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel..." | Judah's later abomination and judgment |
| Neh 9:26-27 | "But they became disobedient and rebelled against you... therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemies..." | Israel's historical rebellion and punishment |
| Ps 78:56-58 | "Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God and did not keep his testimonies..." | Israel's persistent disobedience |
| Ps 106:34-40 | "They did not destroy the peoples, as the LORD commanded them, but mingled with the nations and learned their works..." | Israel's adoption of pagan practices |
| Isa 1:4-6 | "Ah, sinful nation... They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel..." | Judah's spiritual corruption |
| Jer 3:6-11 | "Have you seen what faithless Israel did?... Faithless Judah did not return to me with her whole heart, but in pretense..." | Judah's greater guilt than Israel |
| Jer 7:22-26 | "For when I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to them... but this command I gave them..." | Judah's failure to obey the law |
| Jer 9:13-16 | "Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice or walked in it..." | Reason for Judah's desolation |
| Ezek 23:1-49 | "Son of man, there were two women... Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem is Oholibah..." | Allegory of Israel and Judah's promiscuity |
| Hos 4:1-2 | "There is no faithfulness or steadfast love, and no knowledge of God in the land; there is swearing, lying, murder..." | Covenant breaking charges |
| Matt 15:8-9 | "This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me... teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." | Contrast between human and divine commands |
| Rom 1:21-25 | "For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him... exchanged the truth about God for a lie..." | Suppressing truth, worshipping creation |
| Heb 3:17-19 | "And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?... so we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief." | Consequences of unbelief/disobedience |
2 Kings 17 verses
2 Kings 17 19 Meaning
2 Kings 17:19 declares that the Southern Kingdom of Judah, much like their northern counterparts, Israel, failed to obey the divine commands of the LORD, their God. Instead of adhering to the true covenant established by God, Judah chose to follow and implement the man-made, idolatrous religious practices and ordinances originated by the Kingdom of Israel. This verse serves as a crucial theological justification for the eventual judgment and exile of Judah, showing that they learned nothing from the destruction of Israel despite witnessing it firsthand. It highlights the universality of God's righteous demands and the accountability of His covenant people.
2 Kings 17 19 Context
2 Kings chapter 17 is a pivotal theological narrative within the Deuteronomistic History, explaining the downfall and exile of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. The chapter details Israel's pervasive idolatry, covenant unfaithfulness, rejection of prophets, and adoption of pagan practices despite witnessing God's powerful acts. Verses 7-18 serve as a detailed theological explanation for their judgment, attributing their demise not to Assyrian military might alone, but to divine wrath against their rebellion.Verse 19 then transitions the focus by explicitly implicating Judah, the Southern Kingdom. Coming immediately after the comprehensive indictment of Israel, it highlights the severe irony and added culpability of Judah: they saw God's judgment unfold upon their northern kinsmen due to identical sins, yet failed to repent. This sets the stage for the later narrative of Judah's own decline, eventual judgment, and Babylonian exile, demonstrating a consistent divine principle that covenant disobedience brings dire consequences for both kingdoms.
2 Kings 17 19 Word analysis
- Also: Hebrew gam (גַּם). This conjunction explicitly links Judah's sin to Israel's. It emphasizes continuity and parallel culpability. Despite being the kingdom where the Temple stood and the Davidic line reigned, Judah was not exempt from the standards of God's covenant.
- Judah: Hebrew Yĕhûḏâ (יְהוּדָה). The Southern Kingdom, encompassing the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, the presumed legitimate inheritors of the Davidic covenant and custodians of the Temple in Jerusalem. Its mention here foreshadows its later similar fate to Israel.
- did not keep: Hebrew lo' shamar (לֹא שָׁמְרוּ). The negative particle "lo" combined with the verb "shamar" (to guard, observe, keep). This implies an active and deliberate failure to adhere to, protect, and live by God's commands. It's not passive forgetfulness but active negligence or defiance.
- the commandments: Hebrew mitzvōt (מִצְוֹת). Refers to divine decrees, moral injunctions, and specific laws given by God, especially through Moses. These were the core requirements of the Mosaic Covenant. Not keeping them was a direct breach of their relationship with God.
- of the LORD their God: Hebrew Yahweh Elohēhem (יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם). "LORD" (Yahweh) is the personal covenant name of God, emphasizing His relationship with Israel. "Their God" underscores the special, exclusive covenant bond Judah shared with God, making their unfaithfulness even more grievous. It highlights the rejection of their specific divine suzerain.
- but walked: Hebrew wattiṯhallêk (וַתִּתְהַלֵּךְ). This verb, in the Hithpael stem, implies a customary or habitual manner of conduct, a lifestyle choice. Judah continually chose this path, showing sustained deviation.
- in the statutes: Hebrew bĕḥuqqōṯ (בְּחֻקֹּת). Refers to ordinances or decrees. In biblical context, "statutes" can be God's righteous laws. However, when juxtaposed with "commandments of the LORD" and linked to "Israel, which they made," it carries a negative connotation, referring to man-made, unholy, or pagan decrees that violated God's covenant. This indicates embracing the apostate norms.
- of Israel: Hebrew yiśrā’ēl (יִשְׂרָאֵל). Refers to the Northern Kingdom, which had historically adopted syncretistic and idolatrous practices initiated by Jeroboam I (e.g., golden calves, unappointed priests, unsanctioned altars). Judah adopted these specifically, not just general paganism.
- which they made: Hebrew ’ăšer ‘āśû (אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ). The crucial distinction. These "statutes" were human creations, inventions of man, lacking divine origin or authorization. This directly contrasts with God's "commandments." It speaks of self-invented religion and idolatrous innovations.
- "Also Judah... but walked in the statutes of Israel": This phrase directly establishes a parallel between the sins of Israel and Judah. It suggests Judah consciously mimicked Israel's apostasy, despite having the legitimate temple and priesthood in Jerusalem. Judah did not merely stumble into error but actively embraced the condemned path of the North.
- "did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel, which they made": This contrast highlights the core theological conflict: obedience to God's divinely revealed will versus adherence to humanly devised religion. The consequence of rejecting the former and embracing the latter is God's just judgment. It indicates a systematic departure from God's way.
2 Kings 17 19 Bonus section
The phrase "which they made" regarding Israel's statutes carries significant weight, signifying a recurring theme in the prophetic literature: the futility and offense of worshipping that which humans have manufactured. It underscores that true worship is rooted in divine revelation, not human innovation. This self-made religion by Israel and adopted by Judah included not just idol worship, but also illicit cult sites, non-Levitical priesthoods, and altered festival calendars, all detailed elsewhere in 1 Kings and Hosea. The spiritual apostasy described was total and deeply ingrained, affecting all aspects of national life and making Judah's participation a deliberate imitation of a clearly condemned path. Their choice was particularly heinous because they had a clearer example of the consequences.
2 Kings 17 19 Commentary
2 Kings 17:19 serves as a theological bridge and a solemn warning. Having exhaustively explained Israel's downfall as a consequence of their deep-seated idolatry and disregard for the Mosaic Covenant, the text turns its gaze southward, declaring that Judah was equally guilty of similar covenant infractions. This verse shatters any notion of Judah's inherent righteousness or immunity due to its unique status as the keeper of the temple and the Davidic monarchy. Their failure was not accidental but a deliberate rejection of "the commandments of the LORD their God," substituting divine authority with "the statutes of Israel, which they made"—a human-fabricated religion born out of convenience and syncretism. This willful disobedience, despite the living example of Israel's destruction, sealed Judah's own future. It underscores that God's justice is impartial, holding all covenant peoples accountable to His revealed will, not to their self-invented spiritualities. This applies also to Christian life as well; if one disregards the bible but focuses only on human philosophies, then it is rejecting divine wisdom but choosing human.Examples: A church that replaces biblical doctrine with man-made traditions or popular cultural trends to attract members. Individuals who neglect personal study of God's Word in favor of transient self-help ideologies.