“The Lord will strike Israel like cattails which shake in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land which he gave their ancestors. He will scatter them beyond the Euphrates River because they dedicated poles to the goddess Asherah and made the Lord furious.
In Hoshea’s ninth year as king of Israel, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the Israelites to Assyria as captives. He settled them in Halah, along the Habor River in Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
‘This is what the Lord says: I’m going to bring disaster on this place and on the people living here according to everything written in the book that the king of Judah has read.
They will ask, “Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?” Answer them, “You have abandoned me and served foreign gods in your land. So you will serve foreigners in a land that isn’t yours.”
All these blessings and curses I have spoken about will happen to you. Take them to heart when you are among all the nations where the Lord your God will scatter you.