But they would not listen, and they persisted in their former customs.
Parallel translations
- WEB However they did not listen, but they did what they did before.
- KJV Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.
- NKJV However they did not obey, but they followed their former rituals.
- NASB However, they did not listen, but they kept acting in accordance with their earlier custom.
- NLT But the people would not listen and continued to follow their former practices.
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
Despite this gracious command, the people refused to listen and kept their old ways. The chapter closes on persistent, hardened idolatry.
Overview
The narrator concludes that the inhabitants did not heed the covenant call but continued in their former syncretistic practices. This stubborn refusal mirrors the unbelief that had brought Israel's exile. The closing verse leaves readers sobered by the human tendency to cling to idols, and longing for the new heart that only God's saving grace can give.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- 2 Kgs 17:12They served idols, although the LORD had told them, “You shall not do this thing.”
- 2 Kgs 17:34To this day they are still practicing their former customs. None of them worship the LORD or observe the statutes, ordinances, laws, and commandments that the LORD gave the descendants of Jacob, whom He named Israel.
- Deut 4:28And there you will serve man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.
- 2 Kgs 17:8and walked in the customs of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites, as well as in the practices introduced by the kings of Israel.
- Jer 13:23Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Neither are you able to do good—you who are accustomed to doing evil.
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 17:40 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
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