2 Kings 17:24

My Notes

What Does 2 Kings 17:24 Mean?

2 Kings 17:24 records the aftermath of the northern kingdom's destruction — and the demographic engineering that would reshape the region's identity for centuries to come. This verse is the origin story of the Samaritans.

"And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim" — the Hebrew vayyave' melekh-'Ashshur (and the king of Assyria brought) describes the Assyrian imperial practice of population transfer. When Assyria conquered a territory, they deported the indigenous population and imported settlers from other conquered regions. The goal was to destroy local identities that could fuel rebellion. Five foreign cities are named — Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, Sepharvaim — each from a different part of the empire. The diversity was deliberate: mixed populations can't organize around a shared identity.

"And placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel" — the Hebrew vayyoshevu bĕ'arey Shomĕron tachath bĕney Yisra'el (and they settled in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel). The Hebrew tachath (instead of, in place of, in exchange for) makes the replacement explicit. The imported populations occupy the homes, fields, and cities that belonged to Israelites who are now deported to Assyria. The land changes hands. The identity changes.

"And they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof" — the Hebrew vayyirĕshu 'eth-Shomĕron vayyeshĕvu bĕ'areyha (and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities). The Hebrew yarash (possess, take possession, inherit) is the same word used for Israel's original conquest of Canaan (Deuteronomy 1:8). The imported settlers now "inherit" what Israel was given. The ironic reversal is complete: foreigners possess the land that God gave to Israel as an inheritance.

The mixed population that resulted — part Mesopotamian, part Israelite remnant — would develop its own religious syncretism (v. 29-41 — worshipping Yahweh alongside the gods they brought from their homelands) and would become the Samaritans of the New Testament era. The tension between Jews and Samaritans that Jesus navigated (John 4, Luke 10:33) originates in this verse — in the forced population swap of 722 BC.

Reflection Questions

• 1.The foreigners 'possessed' Samaria using the same Hebrew word as Israel's original conquest. What does it mean that an inheritance from God can be forfeited through unfaithfulness?
• 2.The imported settlers worshipped Yahweh alongside their own gods — religious syncretism. Where do you see similar blending in your own faith — mixing the genuine with the foreign?
• 3.This verse is the origin of the Jewish-Samaritan tension Jesus navigated in John 4. How does knowing the backstory change how you read Jesus's interaction with the Samaritan woman?
• 4.Assyria's strategy was to destroy identity by mixing populations. What threatens the distinctiveness of your faith community — and how do you preserve identity without becoming isolationist?

Devotional

The Israelites are deported. Foreigners are imported. And the land God gave as an inheritance changes hands.

This is the verse where the Samaritans begin — though nobody called them that yet. Five groups from five cities across the Assyrian empire are uprooted and planted in the cities of Samaria. They move into Israelite houses, farm Israelite fields, and inhabit Israelite towns. The Hebrew word for what they do — yarash, possess, inherit — is the same word used for Israel's original conquest. The replacement is linguistically precise. What Israel inherited from God, the foreigners now inherit from Assyria.

The Assyrian strategy was brilliant and cruel: destroy local identity by mixing populations. Deport the Israelites to Assyria, import Babylonians and others to Samaria. No common language. No common religion. No shared history to organize resistance around. The land becomes a melting pot of foreign gods and fragments of Israelite memory.

The religious result (v. 29-41) is messy and instructive: the new settlers feared the LORD (after lions started killing them, v. 25-28, they requested an Israelite priest to teach them local religious customs) while continuing to worship their own gods. The syncretism was permanent. They worshipped Yahweh and Nergal and Ashima and Nibhaz and Tartak and Adrammelech and Anammelech — all simultaneously. The blending became the Samaritan religion that Jews despised for centuries.

When Jesus sits at a well in John 4 and speaks to a Samaritan woman, this verse is the backstory. Seven hundred years of ethnic and religious tension — beginning with an Assyrian king's population transfer — stand behind the simple phrase "Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans" (John 4:9). And Jesus crosses the line anyway.

The land that God gave as an inheritance was lost because of the same sins this chapter catalogs (v. 7-23). The possession wasn't unconditional. The foreigners who replaced Israel serve as a permanent reminder: what God gives, unfaithfulness can forfeit.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture