II Kings 17:22 · Bible study
2 Kings 17:22 Commentary: Persistent Sin and Israel's Fall
Hebrew · 5 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
This verse summarizes Israel's unbroken pattern of following Jeroboam's idolatry, which led to exile. It shows the power of persistent sin and God's justice.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Israel persistently followed Jeroboam's idolatry and refused to repent, leading to their exile.
- Key words: "walked" (halak, habitual conduct); "sins of Jeroboam" (the golden calves and the rejection of Jerusalem worship); "did not depart" (lo'-saru, refused to turn away).
- Main debate: No significant disagreement; all supplied commentaries read this as a description of persistent apostasy.
- Theological theme: The danger of unbroken sin; God's justice and patience; corporate guilt and judgment.
- Best use: A warning against spiritual complacency and the power of entrenched sin; a call to continual repentance.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
The Israelites persisted in all the sins that Jeroboam had committed and did not turn away from them.
WEB World English Bible 2000
The children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they didn’t depart from them
KJV King James Version 1769
For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and the sons of Israel walk in all the sins of Jeroboam that he did, they have not turned aside therefrom,
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them:
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam, which he had done: and they departed not from them,
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y los hijos de Israel anduvieron en todos los pecados de Jeroboam que él hizo, sin apartarse de ellos;
E os filhos de Israel andaram em todos os pecados de Jeroboão que ele fez, sem desviar-se deles;
Les enfants d’ Israël s’ étaient livrés à tous les péchés que Jéroboam avait commis; ils ne s’ en détournèrent point,
Also wandelten die Kinder Israel in allen Sünden Jerobeams, die er angerichtet hatte, und ließen nicht davon,
Alzo wandelden de kinderen Israels in alle zonden van Jerobeam die hij gedaan had; zij weken daarvan niet af;
E i figliuoli d’Israele s’abbandonarono a tutti i peccati che Geroboamo avea commessi, e non se ne ritrassero,
I chodzili synowie Izraelscy we wszystkich grzechach Jeroboamowych, które on czynił, a nie odstąpili od nich,
И поступали сыны Израилевы по всем грехам Иеровоама, какие он делал, не отставали от них,
以色列 人 犯 耶羅波安 所 犯 的一切 罪，總不 離開，
And the children of Israel went on with all the sins which Jeroboam did; they did not keep themselves from them;
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · II Kings 17:22
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that this verse functions as a summarizing indictment of the northern kingdom. The phrase "all the sins of Jeroboam" refers specifically to the golden calves at Bethel and Dan, which Jeroboam instituted to prevent Israel from worshiping in Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:26, 30). As Gill notes, Israel "observed his injunction, not to go to Jerusalem to worship, and they worshipped the calves he did." The added clause "they didn't depart from them" underscores the persistent refusal to repent; across every reign, from Jeroboam's son Nadab down to Hoshea, the northern kings never turned aside from this pattern. The Cambridge Bible observes that the narrator presents this pattern as the central cause of the Assyrian exile. Matthew Henry adds that this stubborn adherence to idolatry, despite repeated prophetic warnings, provoked God's anger and ultimately led to Israel's removal from the land.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Israel's persistent adherence to Jeroboam's idolatry is the stated cause of their judgment and exile.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| What are 'the sins of Jeroboam'? | All supplied commentaries identify the primary reference as the golden calves at Bethel and Dan, and the rejection of worship at Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:26, 30). | Some interpreters expand 'all the sins' to include the full history of Israel's subsequent idolatries, but the supplied sources focus on the calves as the archetype; no substantive disagreement is recorded among them. |
| The meaning of 'did not depart' | All agree it describes a persistent refusal to repent or change course, spanning multiple generations and kings. | The supplied texts do not engage any alternative reading; the clause is uniformly understood as indicating a habitual, unbroken pattern of sin. |
| The role of this verse in the Deuteronomistic history | All see it as part of the theological explanation for the northern kingdom's exile: persistent idolatry provoked God's judgment. | The supplied sources do not debate whether the verse implies that no genuine repentance ever occurred; the cross-references (e.g., 2 Kgs 10:29) show Jehu's partial reform, but the refrain of 'not departing' is used even of him. |
Historical & Cultural Context
II Kings 17:22 stands at the climax of a long theological explanation for why the northern kingdom fell to Assyria. After Solomon’s death, the kingdom split and Jeroboam I, fearing that annual pilgrimages to Jerusalem would reunite his subjects with Judah (1 Kings 12:26, 30), set up two golden calves at Bethel and Dan. He declared them the gods who brought Israel out of Egypt, a direct violation of the second commandment.
The Hebrew verb sur ("to turn aside") appears in the negative: Israel refused to change direction. The same term recurs throughout Kings as a refrain evaluating each northern king: not one fully turned. The cross-references, 2 Kings 3:3, 10:29, 13:2, 13:11, repeat the phrase like a drumbeat. Even Jehu, who destroyed Baal worship, “didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam” (10:29).
This verse is the hinge of the entire chapter. Verses 21, 23 trace the logic: Jeroboam drove Israel from following Yahweh; Israel persisted in his sins; therefore Yahweh removed them from His sight (v.18). The historical event, the Assyrian conquest of Samaria in 722 BC, is presented not as a geopolitical accident but as the just consequence of a centuries-long refusal to repent. For the original readers, this was not just history; it was a stark warning that God’s patience has limits when sin becomes a permanent way of life.
Textual Notes
The supplied commentaries note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts; the Cambridge Bible's note about a textual difference in verse 7 does not apply here.
Reception History
Throughout church history, II Kings 17:22 has served as a sobering warning against persistent sin and the influence of ungodly leadership. Reformation-era exegetes saw in it evidence of humanity's inability to turn from sin without divine grace. In modern preaching, it is used to illustrate how entrenched communal sin can bypass God's patience and lead to judgment. The verse is also read within the broader Christian tradition as a call to examine whether our own patterns of faith allow for genuine repentance, or whether, like Israel, we continue in old ways without turning back.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Nature of the Sin: It was Jeroboam’s sin, a deliberate departure from God’s command to worship at Jerusalem. The golden calves were not a small adjustment but a rival religion.
- The Persistence of the Sin: “They didn’t depart from them.” Across generations, no northern king fully broke the pattern. The verb sur implies a refusal to change direction, even when prophets called for repentance.
- The Consequence: God’s judgment through exile. The patience that lasted for centuries eventually gave way to removal from the land.
Five-point outline
- Origin: Jeroboam’s fear and political calculation led to idolatry (1 Kings 12).
- Participation: “The children of Israel walked”, the whole nation followed.
- Extent: “All the sins”, not just the calves but the whole system of corrupted worship.
- Refusal: “They didn’t depart”, no reformation, no change of direction.
- End: “Until Yahweh removed them out of his sight” (v.23), judgment came at last.
Illustration hooks
- A family-run business that passes down a dishonest practice for decades; everyone knows it’s wrong, but no one changes it because “that’s how we’ve always done it.” Over time the business loses trust and collapses.
- A road that starts as a small detour; after years of use, the original path is overgrown and forgotten. People no longer even know another way exists.
- A patient who keeps ignoring a doctor’s warnings about diet. Year after year the warnings are clear, but the habits remain. The disease advances until treatment can no longer reverse it.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why did God allow Israel to exist for 200+ years if they were so persistently sinful?
- What makes a sinful pattern so hard to break, even when we know it’s wrong?
- Does this verse mean God’s judgment is harsh, or is it the necessary end of a long refusal to turn?
Leading a Discussion
This verse is a verdict on centuries of idolatry. It is not about a single failure but a long refusal to turn. As you discuss, keep the question of hope in view: if the pattern can be broken, how?
Discussion questions
- What were the specific sins of Jeroboam? (See 1 Kings 12:28, 30.) Why did he introduce them?
- Why does the writer say Israel walked in “all” the sins? What does that “all” include?
- What does the phrase “they didn’t depart from them” tell us about their spiritual condition?
- How do the cross-references (2 Kings 3:3, 10:29, 13:2, 13:11) reinforce this pattern? What do they reveal about the northern kings?
- How might a community of faith become stuck in a pattern it knows is wrong? What forces make that pattern hard to break?
- What does this verse teach about God’s character, both His patience and His justice?
- In light of this tragic history, where do we find hope? (Consider the New Covenant promise of a new heart, or the faithful remnant.)
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| II Kings 3:3 | Nevertheless he held to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin. He didn’t depart from them. |
| II Kings 10:29 | However, Jehu didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin—the golden calves that were in Bethel and that were in Dan. |
| II Kings 10:31 | But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of Yahweh, the God of Israel, with all his heart. He didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam, with which he made Israel to sin. |
| II Kings 13:2 | He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin. He didn’t depart from it. |
| II Kings 13:6 | Nevertheless they didn’t depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, with which he made Israel to sin, but walked in them; and the Asherah also remained in Samaria.) |
| II Kings 13:11 | He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight. He didn’t depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin; but he walked in them. |
| II Kings 15:9 | He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, as his fathers had done. He didn’t depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
5 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator identifies three distinct causes for Israel's captivity: adopting Canaanite idol worship, making the molten calves, and embracing Baal and Moloch worship with divination. He also points out that among all nineteen kings of Israel, not one had a good character.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note emphasizes that Israel did not merely commit occasional sins but followed every single sin Jeroboam had introduced. Their persistence is the point: they walked in all those sins and refused to turn from them, showing a complete and stubborn departure from God.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill stresses that Israel did not just repeat Jeroboam’s sins once but clung to them generation after generation. They kept his ban on worshiping in Jerusalem and continued bowing to the calves until the captivity finally came, never turning away.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange insists the comment that Hoshea did evil "not as the kings before him" is a minor modification, not genuine praise. He argues the phrase refers only to Hoshea's immediate predecessors and does not mean he abandoned the calf-worship. If Hoshea had reformed that cult, the text would have said so.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry stresses that Israel's sin was especially grievous because they turned against the very God who rescued them from Egypt. They deliberately walked in the ways of the pagan nations God had driven out, rejecting every prophet's warning and hardening their necks in willful rebellion.