17:24 The king of Assyria brought foreigners 6 from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in the cities of Samaria 7 in place of the Israelites. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.
23:19 Josiah also removed all the shrines on the high places in the cities of Samaria. The kings of Israel had made them and angered the Lord. 15 He did to them what he had done to the high place in Bethel. 16
1 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “take my staff in your hand.”
3 tn Heb “If you meet a man, do not greet him with a blessing; if a man greets you with a blessing, do not answer.”
4 tn Heb “and he struck him down in Samaria in the fortress of the house of the king, Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men from the sons of the Gileadites, and they killed him.”
sn The precise identity of Argob and Arieh, as well as their relationship to the king, are uncertain. The usual assumption is that they were officials assassinated along with Pekahiah, or that they were two of the more prominent Gileadites involved in the revolt. For discussion see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 173.
5 tn Heb “and struck him down and killed him.”
6 tn The object is supplied in the translation.
7 sn In vv. 24-29 Samaria stands for the entire northern kingdom of Israel.
8 tn Heb “Go.”
9 sn In v. 25 the chief adviser develops further the argument begun in v. 22. He claims that Hezekiah has offended the Lord and that the Lord has commissioned Assyria as his instrument of discipline and judgment.
10 tn Heb “all the words of the scroll which the king of Judah has read.”
11 tn Or “burned incense.”
12 tn Heb “angering me with all the work of their hands.” The translation assumes that this refers to idols they have manufactured (note the preceding reference to “other gods,” as well as 19:18). However, it is possible that this is a general reference to their sinful practices, in which case one might translate, “angering me by all the things they do.”
13 tn Heb “Therefore, look, I am gathering you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your tomb in peace.”
14 tn Heb “your eyes will not see.”
15 tc Heb “which the kings of Israel had made, angering.” The object has been accidentally omitted in the MT. It appears in the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate versions.
16 tn Heb “and he did to them according to all the deeds he had done in Bethel.”
map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.