But they would not listen, and they stiffened their necks like their fathers, who did not believe the LORD their God.
Parallel translations
- WEB Notwithstanding, they would not listen, but hardened their neck, like the neck of their fathers, who didn’t believe in Yahweh their God.
- KJV Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God.
- NKJV Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God.
- NASB However, they did not listen, but stiffened their neck like their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God.
- NLT But the Israelites would not listen. They were as stubborn as their ancestors who had refused to believe in the Lord their God.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel refused to listen and hardened their necks like their unbelieving ancestors. Their stubborn unbelief lay beneath their disobedience.
Overview
The people would not heed the prophets, stiffening their necks as their fathers had done in the wilderness. The narrator traces their disobedience to its root: they 'did not believe in the LORD their God.' This diagnosis shows that unbelief is the soil from which rebellion grows, underscoring why Scripture so prizes faith in God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Acts 7:51You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
- Deut 31:27For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you are already rebelling against the LORD while I am still alive, how much more will you rebel after my death!
- Jer 7:26Yet they would not listen to Me or incline their ear, but they stiffened their necks and did more evil than their fathers.
- Rom 2:4–5Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?
- Heb 3:7–8Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear His voice,
- Ps 78:22because they did not believe God or rely on His salvation.
- Ps 78:32In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; despite His wonderful works, they did not believe.
- Prov 29:1A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.
- Deut 1:32But in spite of all this, you did not trust the LORD your God,
- Heb 3:12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God.
- Ps 106:24They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise.
- Isa 48:4For I knew that you are stubborn; your neck is iron and your forehead is bronze.
- Exod 32:9The LORD also said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people.
- 2 Chr 36:13He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 17:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.