In those days the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel’s territory. Hazael attacked their eastern border.

The king of Assyria marched through the whole land. He attacked Samaria and besieged it for three years.

The Israelites followed in the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and did not repudiate them.

The Lord was with him; he succeeded in all his endeavors. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and refused to submit to him.

They burned incense on all the high places just like the nations whom the Lord had driven away from before them. Their evil practices made the Lord angry.

So the Lord rejected all of Israel’s descendants; he humiliated them and handed them over to robbers, until he had thrown them from his presence.

He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; in this regard there was none like him among the kings of Judah either before or after.

Who among all the gods of the lands has rescued their lands from my power? So how can the Lord rescue Jerusalem from my power?’”

He followed in the footsteps of his father and worshiped and bowed down to the disgusting idols which his father had worshiped.

He did what the Lord approved and followed in his ancestor David’s footsteps; he did not deviate to the right or the left.

This will happen because they have abandoned me and offered sacrifices to other gods, angering me with all the idols they have made. My anger will ignite against this place and will not be extinguished!’”

He and his entire entourage returned to the prophet. Naaman came and stood before him. He said, “For sure I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel! Now, please accept a gift from your servant.”

Jehu sent invitations throughout Israel, and all the servants of Baal came; not one was absent. They arrived at the temple of Baal and filled it up from end to end.

But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey the law of the Lord God of Israel. He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit.

The Israelites said things about the Lord their God that were not right. They built high places in all their cities, from the watchtower to the fortress.

‘Therefore I will allow you to die and be buried in peace. You will not have to witness all the disaster I will bring on this place.’”’” Then they reported back to the king.

No king before or after repented before the Lord as he did, with his whole heart, soul, and being in accordance with the whole law of Moses.

The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant before the Lord, agreeing to follow the Lord and to obey his commandments, laws, and rules with all his heart and being, by carrying out the terms of this covenant recorded on this scroll. All the people agreed to keep the covenant.