Bible Strands
2 Kings 17:9
The Israelites secretly did things against the LORD their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city, they built high places in all their cities.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator documents the systematic apostasy of the northern kingdom in the period immediately preceding its Assyrian exile, addressing the reader with historical reportage rather than direct address. The passage records the people's collective actions rather than a speech to a specific audience.
The words — The verb וַיְחַפֲּאוּ (va-yḥappĕ'û) literally renders "they did secretly," highlighting the covert nature of the rebellion. The phrase לֹא כֵן (lōʾ kēn) translates to "not right," indicating actions that fell fundamentally short of covenant requirements.
The thread — The geographic phrase "from watchtower to fortified city" mirrors the territorial scope of 2 Kings 18:8. The theme of hidden covenant violation aligns with Deuteronomy 13:6's warning about secret enticement and Deuteronomy 27:15's curse on idol makers.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to identify how rebellion operates through both concealed compromise and overt institutionalization across every level of society. It demands a clear assessment of where personal or communal practices have replaced exclusive adherence to the covenant.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 18:8 He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its borders, from watchtower to fortified city.
- Deuteronomy 13:6 If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (which neither you nor your fathers have known,
- Deuteronomy 27:15 ‘Cursed is the man who makes a carved idol or molten image—an abomination to the LORD, the work of the hands of a craftsman—and sets it up in secret.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
- Job 31:27 so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,
- Ezekiel 8:12 “Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his own idol? For they are saying, ‘The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the land.’”
- Hosea 12:11 Is there iniquity in Gilead? They will surely come to nothing. Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal? Indeed, their altars will be heaps of stones in the furrows of the field.