The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Kings — Section 286

mu,tranelation. The Hebrew rnna, "And The cle.usl'IB from the present to the end of on Habor (Khabor), the river of Gozan" ver. l 7 depend on the " when" of this (eo also in eh. xviii 11). "Habor, the river vorse ; the apodosis does not oome till ver. of C'TOzan," is undoubtedly one of the 18, "When the children of lernel had dune Khnbours. Thoeewho find Halah in Calah, e.11 that is stated in vers. 7-17, then th~ or in Calacine (Calaohene), generally prefer result was that the Lord was very angry the eastern river which rnns into the Tigris with Israel, and removed them out of hiij from Kurdistan e. liUle below Jezireh. But sight." Wbioh had brought them up out of there is no evidence that this river bore the the l&nd of Egypt. So oommenoing his ne.me in e.ntiqnity. The Western Kha.hour, long series of mercies to the nation, and on the other he.nd, WllS well known to the indicating his gracious favour towards it. Aasyrians under that appellation, and is "The deliverance from Egypt," as Bahr the Aborrhas of Stre.bo e.nd Procopius, the well says, " was not only the beginning, but Che.boras of Pliny and Ptolemy, the Aburas the symbol, of all Divine gro.ce towards of Ise.dore of Charax, and the Abore. of Israel, and the pledge cfits Divine guide.nee." Zosimus. It adjoins a district ce.lled Hence the stress hi.id upon it, both here and Chalcitis, and it drains the country of by the Prophet Hosea (comp. lioa. xi. 1 : Gauz:initis or Mygdonia. The Western xii. 9, 13: xiii. 4). From under the hand Khabour is a river of Upper Mesopotamia, -i.e. the oppression-of Pharaoh King of and runs iuto the Euphrates from the north- Egypt, and had fee.red other gods ; i.e. re- east near the site of the ancient Circesion. verenced and worshipped them. The tract which it drains is called Mygdonia Ver. 8. -And walked in the statutes of by Strabo, Gauzanitis by Ptolemy. And in the heathen. '.!.'he" statutes of the heathen" the cities of the Medes. Media had been are their customs and observances, especially repeatedly invaded and ravaged by the in matters of religion. The Israelites had AssTiians from the time of Vul-nirari IV. been repeatedly warned n:ot to follow these (about B.C. 810); but the first king to con- (see Lev. xviii. 3, 30; Dent. xii. 29-31: quer any portion of it, and people its cities xviii. 9-14, etc.). Whom the Lord cast out with settlers from other parts of his domi- from before the children of Israel-i.e. the nions, was Sargon (Oppert, 'Inscriptions des Ce.ne.anitish nations, whose idolatries and Sargonides,' pp. 25, 37). We learn from the other "abominations" were particularly preeent passage that a certain number of hateful to God (see Lev. xviii. 26-29 ; Deut. these settlers were Israeli tee (oomp. eh. xx. 18; :xxix. 17; xxxii. 16, eto.)-and of xviii 11 and Tobit i 14). the kings of Israel. The sins and idolatries of Israel had a double origin. The great Vers. 7-23.-The proooca1lom which in- majority were derived from the heathen duced God to destroy the Israelite kingd,om. nations with whom they were brought into contact, and were adopted voluntarily by Here, for once, the writer ceases to be the the people themselves. Of this kind were mere historian, and becomes the religious the worship at "high places" (ver. 9), the teacher and prophet, drawing out the lessons ''images" and "gro.es" (ver. 10), the of history, and justifying the ways of God caUBing of their children to "pass through the fire" (ver. 17), the employment of divi- to man. As Bahr says, be "does not carry nation and enchantments (ver. 17), e.nd per- on the narrative as taken from the original haps the " worship of the host of heaven" authorities, but himself here begins a re- (ver. 16). A certain number, however, view of the b.ietory and fate of Israel, which came in from e. different source, being im- ends with ver. 23, aud forms an independent posed upon the people by their kings. To 11CCtion by itself." The section divides itself this class belong the desertion of the temple- worship, enforced by Jeroboam (ver. 21), into four portions: (1) From ver. 7 to ver. the setting up of the calves at De.n and 12, e. genera.I statement of Israel's wicked- Bethel (ver. 16) by the same, and the Be.al ness; (2) from ver. 13 to ver. 15, e. special e.ud Aste.rte worship (ver. 16), introduced aggravation of their guilt, viz. their rejection by Ahab. This last and worst idolatry was of' prophets; (3) vers. 16 e.nd I 7 contain a not established without e. good dee.I of per• secution, as we learn from l Kings xviii. 4. 11pecifice.tion of their chief acts of sin; e.nd Which they had made. (4) from ver. 18 to ver. 23, a general sum- Ver. 9.-And the ohildren of Israel did mary, including some words of w1<rning to 1eoretly those things that were not right Judah. against the Lord their God. Most of the evil practices of the Israelites were open and Ver. 7.-Por so it we.1, that the children dogrant, but some sought the veil of secrecy, of Israel had Binned against the Lord their as the use of divination and enohe.ntments God ; rather, Ar,d it oame to paas, when, et.o. (ver. 17). It is doubtful, however, whether cm, XVII, 1-41,] THE SECOND BOOK OF 'fHE KINGS. 333