Melakhim II Chapter 17 | The Exile of the Ten Tribes

After a series of kings, the worst of whom brought Ba’al worship to the land and the best of whom persisted in the sins of Yerovam and the worship of the calves, the Kingdom of Israel met its end. Interestingly, this end comes during the reign of Hoshe'a son of Ela, whom the text describes as having done evil in God’s eyes, but less so than the kings of Israel before him: “He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord, though not to the extent of the kings of Israel who preceded him” (17:2). The king of Assyria attacked Shomron, besieged it, and after three years exiled the tribes of Israel to Assyria. This event, known as “the exile of the Ten Tribes,” is thought to be a permanent exile, though in the course of our study, we may see references suggesting that parts of the Ten Tribes returned.

After briefly describing the exile of the Ten Tribes, the chapter launches into an extensive theological-historical explanation of this catastrophe. The following ideas emerge in our chapter:

1. The Division of the Kingdom as Sin: While summarizing the sins of Israel and Yehuda, it is stated that: “Israel had torn away from the House of David, and they made Yerovam son of Nevat king. But Yerovam drove Israel away from the Lord and led them to grave sin” (17:21). The division of the kingdom, initially seen as divine punishment for Shlomo’s sins, is presented here as the people’s sin: the people chose to abandon the house of David, and with it, they strayed from Jerusalem and the worship of God until “Finally, the Lord banished Israel from His presence” (17:23). What is the relationship between these two perspectives — the division as punishment and as sin? While space does not permit an exhaustive discussion, several possibilities arise:
1. The sin of Israel could be understood as a natural consequence of Shlomo’s sins, thus serving as both punishment for Shlomo and a sin by the people, who had free will.
2. A distinction can be made between the different aspects of the kingdom’s division: the political division did not necessarily have to lead to a religious division, which was initiated by Yerovam.
3. Over time, there may have been an expectation that Israel would strive to reunite the kingdom under the house of David.
Each of these approaches requires further study, and other interpretations may also be proposed.

2. The Story of the Samaritans: The chapter recounts how the king of Assyria, unwilling to leave Shomron desolate, resettled it with people from various nations — identified in rabbinic literature as the “Kutim” or, in modern terms, the “Shomronim.” The text describes how the land did not welcome them kindly; they were attacked by lions, prompting the Assyrian king to send an Israelite priest to teach them “the customs of the local God” (17:27). This reflects the polytheistic view that each deity had territorial authority, requiring the newcomers to learn the local god’s laws to survive.

The chapter becomes confusing during this narrative: while describing the Samaritans, the text suddenly shifts back to discussing the Israelites. Verses 31 and 41 clearly refer to the Samaritans, but the intervening verses blur the distinction, with some discussing Israel’s breach of the covenant and others unclear as to whom they refer. Shared phrases like “they revere the Lord,” “they do not truly revere the Lord,” and “they follow their former customs” contribute to the ambiguity. Recurring motifs, such as the question whom do they fear, and the question of what their attitude is toward their ancestors’ customs, are common to both parts of the chapter. This comparison and ambiguity may serve to highlight the dire state of the Kingdom of Israel: both the Samaritans and the exiled Israelites worshiped God while also serving idols. This resemblance underscores the Israelites’ failure: whereas the idol-worshipping nations who resettled the land knew to fear God and preserve their ancestral traditions, the Israelites did neither.

For those interested, Rav Dr. Mordechai Sabato gave a shiur discussing the exile of Israel and the settling of the Samaritans (available here).