Psalm 55

"For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
Then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
Then I could hide from him.
13 But it was you, a man my equal,
My companion and my acquaintance.
14 We took sweet counsel together,
And walked to the house of God in the throng." vv.12-14

Read chapter 55

It's generally easy to get away from an enemy but not so much when your friend becomes that enemy. This psalm seems to relate to David and Ahithophel.  Ahithophel was Daivd's counselor who advised Absalom of how to obliborate David infant of all Israel by sleeping with David's concubines on the roof of the palace and thus to overthrow David as king and therefore help make Absalom king over Israel (Read 2 Samuel 15 & 16).   Ahithophel was even called the king's companion in 1 Chronicles 27, how sad and hurtful that must have been for David, especially at this point in his life with all else that was going on.  So we see a type of Christ here in as Judas was to Jesus, a close companion who betrayed Him.  "Reproaches from those who have been intimate with us, and trusted by us, cut us to the quick; and they are usually so well acquainted with our peculiar weaknesses that they know how to touch us where we are most sensitive, and to speak so as to do us most damage...None are such real enemies as false friends" (Charles Spurgeon).  When have you been hurt by a friend so dear?  Have you ever been that treacherous friend that you now regret?  David turns to rejoicing in God and praising that God will never be this type of friend.  Men will fail us, but God never will.  How can you rest in that?

Psalm 54

They have not set God before them. Selah  

Behold, God is my helper;

vv.3-4

Read chapter 54

1 Samuel 23 gives the history for when and why David wrote this psalm.  First we see him plead with God because the Ziphites showed him cruelty for no reason when he was hiding from Saul but then he stops himself and shouts for joy. Spurgeon puts it, "David came quietly among them, hoping for a little rest in his many flights, but they deserted him in his solitary abode, and betrayed him. He turns to God in prayer, and so strong was his faith that he soon sang himself into delightful serenity. " 

We see again the word 'Selah' when this transition happens.  Remember it's a pause and contrast or connect.  More pauses in our life would, as a rule, improve our devotions and how we live out the fruits of the Spirit within us; we are usually too much in a hurry, a little more holy meditation would make our words more suitable and our emotions more fervent.

How can you turn your complaint to joy?  Where do you need to put to death anxiety and let the promise of Christ's security reign in your emotions?

Psalm 53

"The fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity;
There is none who does good." v. 1

Read chapter 53

The atheist.  This psalm is almost identical to psalm 14.  One is a psalm for public hearing and the other is a psalm David wrote for his own personal reflection.  It's interesting to compare the two psalms of their similarities and differences, just as the four gospels have similar and different accounts of the life of Jesus. 

When we read about the fool we can't just think this is someone "stupid."  The Hebrew word for fool here is 'Nebal' and can mean foolish or stupid but also carries the idea of wickedness or corrupt.  To say things in the heart doesn't necessarily mean one says it with their mouth.  The heart is what we refer to as the seat of emotions, where are "real you" is where our innermost thoughts, desires, beliefs are. So what this person says in their heart brings the meaning of moral corruption.  To say there is no god is what we would call atheist.  The idea also carries not so much that there is no intelligent designer but that there is no moral law or denial of government of God.  They think they won't be called to account for their wickedness of this life.  I know some atheist that are kind and good, but "the reality is that those who have given up on the idea of God, though they still might desire to be good, have cut themselves off from the only One Who can truly make anyone good" (George McDonald The Lady’s Confession). 

What do the depths of your heart say about God?

Psalm 52

"Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?
The goodness of God endures continually.
2 Your tongue devises destruction,
Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully." vv.1-2

Read chapter 52

This psalm is written by David after the deceit of Doeg that caused priests to be killed.  The story is in 1 Samuel 1 & 2.   It starts off calling Doeg a mighty man.  Might man here in the Hebrew is gibbowr and shows us that Doeg was a mighty and strong man for he personally killed the priests and also he was a powerful man as we read that he was wealthy too and at the king's aid.  Yet I love the end of this psalm when it says in Hebrew "Here is the mighty man (geber) who did not make Mighty God (EL) his strength" in verse seven.  How true of what we see today of "mighty" men that don't make God their strength yet we know their end.  Next we learn of the deceit of words Doeg used for evil gain.  The word in Hebrew for devises indicates great malignity. Doeg must have known that Saul’s disturbed mind would respond with calamity,  so devised this destruction purposefully in order to make himself look good in the eyes of the king. "His tongue had brought about this destruction purposefully, and showed how malignant he was. So it is with such men: they work for their own good, and do not care what harm or even deaths they might cause in bringing it about" (Nathan Johnson, Bible Teacher).  How have lies or deceitful words harmed you for someone else gain?  Or how have you devised your words to someone knowing to get them to respond a certain way?

Psalm 51

"Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight—...Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom."  vv.4, 6

Read chapter 51

This is a psalm of David that he prayed after Nathan the prophet called him out of his sexual sin with Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah (see 2 Samuels 12).  David says that these sinful acts of his were against God and him only.  That's not necessarily how we would see it, thinking it was against Bathsheba and Uriah that he sinned.  Yet David realizes that all sin is ultimately against God, somewhere we're not trusting or believing in Him and His perfect ways.  David was to uphold the Lord's covenant and didn't in these sins, breaking that first and hurting others along the way.  It's interesting to compare David's sin and response with Saul's sin and response.  In our eyes David's sin was far worse committing adultery and murder yet Saul's was impatience (1 Samuel 13).  David's response to the Lord's prophet was repentance whereas Saul didn't think he did anything wrong.  God forgave David because He could see that he clung to and desired truth in the inward parts.  "God did not wait for David to pull himself up by his own bootstraps in order to make himself acceptable to Him. Instead He acted in the hidden part of David to make him to know wisdom" (precepts.wordpress.org).  This psalm, while it speaks specifically to David and his situation, is the example of believers of God when they have sinned.  It shows the mercy and grace of God towards every child of His who has sinned, be it ever so terribly.   What sin is weighing you down that you need to repent of to the Lord?  Do you desire God's truth in the depths of your soul?  How can you see your sin as against God, not man, that your not trusting or believing of Him?

Psalm 50

These things you have done, and I kept silent;
You thought that I was altogether like you;
But I will rebuke you,
And set them in order before your eyes.

“Now consider this, you who forget God,

Lest I tear you in pieces,

And there be none to deliver: vv.21-22

Read chapter 50

How would you describe God? Do you know Him to be able to describe Him? Do you imagine what He's like based on movies, people in your life, dreams/hopes, yourself, etc? There has never been anything more common for men when it comes to their thoughts of God than for them to make Him out in their minds in their own image. Some view God as a old man with a long white beard just sitting or floating in the clouds, some view Him as a police offer always making rules and out to get you, some view Him as a genie in a lamp casting their wishes upon Him, oh and so many more images. Since God does not actively speak and reveal Himself, most men will simply imagine Him to be altogether like them. Romans 1:21," because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened."  The day will come when God will no longer have men live as if He doesn't exist, they will know Him and never forget God or His works again. Forgetting God or never knowing Him is danger of destruction forever. God is the Only Savior and the Only Deliverer. So if He doesn't deliver you from destruction, no one else will. Matthew 10:28: "fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna."  What are some thoughts of who God is that you don't know if are true (your thoughts verses what the Bible says)?

Psalm 47

"Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
2 For the Lord Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth." vv.1-2

Read chapter 47
Clapping your hands is a non-verbal sign for applause all over the world.  It's the most natural way to show enthusiasm or excitement.  And following that is to shout for joy with excitement.  This psalm is a picture of that future excitement when God is reigning as King over all the earth.  When He has returned and taken heaven as His throne and earth as His footstool.   The Lord Most High is called "awesome" or in other words awe-inspirinig.  "The Hebrew word now translated awesome is mowra, which means “fear,” “reverence,” or “terror.” Mowra is the noun form of the Hebrew verb yare. In the Bible, mowra and yare always refer to something or someone that inspires reverence or godly fear. KJV translators used the English words terrible, dreadful, and fearful to convey the Hebrew meaning. But modern translators decided those adjectives gave the wrong impression about God and His works, so they used awesome instead. According to an online word origin dictionary, awesome appeared in the 1670s and meant “inspiring awe.” It was used almost exclusively to describe God and His works."  How would you define the word awesome that is used today?  Do we appropriately call fresh baked cookies awesome just as we call God awesome?  See how often you use or hear that word.  Try to only use it when referring to God and give it the original meaning how God used it.  Cant wait to clap and shout for joy with you in our Awesome God's presence!

Psalm 46

"Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!" v.10

Read chapter 46
How hard is it to be still?  Not only physically but still in your mind?  I know for me my mind is always over-multitasking, even when I'm sitting this morning reading this psalm and trying to meditate on God's truths I'm thinking of what I have to do for work today, what I want to eat for breakfast, what I want to buy for a birthday present for a friend, etc.  Oh but to be able to still my mind and solely focus on God is a glorious moment; when all else fades and truth is uncovered and the overwhelming feeling of peace in His presence.  Or sometimes your "too busy" to sit down, to stop the to-dos, the activities.  How good it would be if God would tell all men to pause or stop the chaos they are involved in to just be still, reflect, realize the fact that He is God! We need a time to rest both our minds and our bodies and be refueled by God.  When God's speaks forth and all know who He is, all will pause and be in awe of our Great and Mighty God.  He will be exalted by all in the nations and earth, not just in heaven.  Let's learn to be still and stand in awe of Him now before that day (and of course even more then too).  How can you "be still"?

Psalm 45

A Contemplation of the sons of Korah. A Song of Love.

Read chapter 45
This is a song of love most likely sung at a royal wedding as obvious as we read through the psalm. We don't know exactly what king and queen this was of such a glorious and praise honoring wedding.  "The best connection to make for this psalm is with the marriage of good King Hezekiah to Hephzibah. Hezekiah was the best king Judah had after David, and, if the age of his eldest son Manasseh at his death is any indication, his marriage to Hephzibah followed two victories the LORD gave him: first, the sending away of the Assyrian invaders through the LORD’s miraculous intervention, and second his own personal salvation from the illness that but for the LORD’s intervention would have taken his life. Soon after both these triumphs, while Judah was celebrating its miraculous salvation, a glorious royal wedding takes place. The recently renewed nation turns out in droves to celebrate the nuptials of its beloved king and his bride" (precepts.wordpress.com).  Ultimately it's a beautiful wedding picture of the Lord's future union with His people.  "So the King will greatly desire your beauty;
Because He is your Lord, worship Him" v.11.  How can you be a godly husband or wife as we see in this psalm when it comes to your wedding day?

Psalm 44

"In God we make our boast all day long and we will praise Your name forever.  Selah
But now you have rejected and humbled us; you no longer go out with our armies." vv.8-9

Read chapter 44
Up and down with emotions.  In the first eight verses the psalmist is praising God for all His wonderful works He did with this forefathers, how present and loving He was to them.  Then the second part is sorrowful of how God's rejected them.  The word Selah is right at this division and is a connecting word between the two parts.  Selah means to pause and think about what was said or sung.  Contrasting wonderful stories with the sad circumstances of the present in this transition.  I wonder if in the musical instruments of when this song was played it went from the very highest key to the very lowest key between verses eight and nine.  God was who they were boasting in all day long but when things got rough did they continue to still do this?  Maybe this song was a reminder of that, that in God we make our boast all day long and praise His name forever no matter what the circumstances.  He's not just a god that we like when things are good and hate when things are bad.  They seem to have lost the favor of God and knew to expect what would be upon them. 

Take some Selah right now on your life.

Psalm 43

Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God;
For I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God. v.5

Read chapter 43
The writer of this psalm continues to speak out of sadness or depression and in to praise.  Some have said that Psalm 42 and 43 are one psalm or continuation of the first.  In verse five the writer questions his emotions.: Why do I feel so low to the ground if You God lift up the downcast?   Why do I indulge in unreasonable sorrow that benefits no one? 
Then come the words "hope in God."  Sometimes it seems like that's said without belief or just said because not sure what else to say.  In times like these there is a need for patience but ground for hope.  Hope in His promises, not for ourselves but for His will.  "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,  knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience" James 1:2-3.  "he hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel," Col. 1:5.
The Hebrew word for help here can also mean salvation.  The salvation of his countenance or his face or composure is the praise to God.
What do you do when warring against your own emotions?

Psalm 42

As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So pants my soul for You, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God? vv.1-2

Read chapter 42
I love the old hymn to these verses. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bJGFX5O6Ns 

Psalm 42 starts the second book of the psalms (there are five books).  It starts off with a lament, crying out for the need of God.  As the deer pants for water, especially at the sight or smell of water but cannot reach it, so is how our souls pant for God.  We all need water to live and when we are without it we get parched, even longer without it we get delirious, too long without water we die.  There's not a soul doesn't need water, yet many go around parched trying to quench their thirst by what does not satisfy.  The psalm is longing for God to be in their pressence, to be ruling over the world, not being able to stand the waiting any longer for the promises and hope of God's Kingdom.  Charles Spurgeon puts it, "It is the cry of a man far removed from the outward ordinances and worship of God, sighing for the long loved house of his God; and at the same time it is the voice of a spiritual believer, under depressions, longing for the renewal of the divine presence, struggling with doubts and fears, but yet holding his ground by faith in the living God." Does your soul long for God as an animal thirsts?  If you do or have, you know its sweet bitterness.  What is your soul panting for?

2 Kings 25

"Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison." v.27

Read chapter 25
The last chapter of 2 Kings and the last of the people of Israel taken in to captivity.  Captivity lasted seventy years and was under the Babylonian Empire and later the Medo-Persian Empire.  Of course during all that time there were multiple kings and here we read of the second king of Babylon son of Nebuchadnezzar named Evil-Merodaach.  Interesting name, in Babylonian Amil-marduk, “man of Merodach.” He took Jehoiachin out of prison;  not sure why.  "Influenced probably by Daniel, he showed kindness to Jehoiachin, who had been a prisoner in Babylon for thirty-seven years." (biblestudytools.com).  Sometimes in difficult places or situations one can create great bonds with others in the same situation that no matter what future comes they're never forgotten.  Do you have a relationship like that in your life?

2 Kings 24

"Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s[a] uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah." v.17

Read chapter 24

Seems strange that there's still a king of Judah even when the Israelites are in captivity under Babylon.   We read that all the strong, valiant men were taken into captivity as well and only the poorest of the land remained.  Nebuchadnezzar appointed the next king of Judah after Jehoachin was taken into captivity.  Mattaniah (Zedekiah) who was a son of Josiah and uncle to Joehachin was picked by Nebu to reign over those poor people still in the land, possibly as a show of maintaining the monarchy.  "The custom of conquerors, who changed the names of the great men they took captives in war, in token of their supremacy," Nebu gave him the new name of Zedekiah.  Zedekiah was the last of the kings of Judah and  his end is captivity after about eleven years.  All this was under the kingdom of Babylon and Zedekiah, although king as well over a smaller region, was in submission to Nebu.  It's kind of like every supervisor has a supervisor.  How do supervise differently because of how you're supervised?

2 Kings 23

"Moreover Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses; nor after him did any arise like him." vv.24-25

Read chapter 23
Josiah restores true worship.  This chapter is amazing reading all the Josiah did to tear down and destroy all the detestable things in Jerusalem that dishonored God and caused people to sin.  A lot of good kings in the past may have torn down a few things or didn't partake, but Josiah gets rid of it all not only the public forms of idolatry but the private things too.  This was all because he had found the book of the law (22:8) that showed God's righteous decrees and commands to desire him to turn to the Lord with all his heart, soul and might.  "His diligent study in God’s law, and his exact care, and unwearied industry, and fervent zeal, in rooting out idolaters, and all kinds and appearances of idolatry, not only in Judah, but in Israel also; and in the establishment of the true religion in all his dominions, and in the conforming of his own life, and his people’s too, (as far as he could,) to the holy law of God" (Benson Commentary).  How can you let the Word of God rule this way in you?

2 Kings 22

"So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe. (She dwelt in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter.) And they spoke with her. 15 Then she said to them, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Tell the man who sent you to Me, " vv.14-15

Read chapter 22
A woman prophet, a prophetess.  This is only one of six (or so) prophetess mentioned in scripture.  We don't know much about her other than what's recorded here.  "She lived in Jerusalem, and her husband, Shallum, was probably a Levite, as he had charge of what must have been the wardrobe for the vestments of the priests. The narrative here shews in what esteem she was held both by king and people, and her language in her answer has quite the prophetic character. She speaks not her own words but the message of the Lord the God of Israel" (Cambridge Bible).  Both Jeremiah and Zephaniah were prophets during this time yet here the king goes to her to hear the word of the Lord.  Perhaps because she dwelt in Jerusalem where Jeremiah and Zephaniah would have been outside of the land???
We can learn some from her character and attitude whether we're a man or a woman.  Huldah is not moved by big titles or intimidated by the power of men as she responds confidently and with authority to the high ranking government officials. She refers to the king as just any other man by saying in a manner to "Tell the man who sent you to me".  She spoke directly and to the point.  This wasn't a public show, but private, not trying to usurp Jeremiah or Zephaniah.  So women, how can you be like Huldah?  Men, how can you learn to go to women of God?

2 Kings 21

"Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hephzibah.  And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.  For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; " vv.1-3

Read chapter 21
How can one of the worst kings of Judah come from one of the best kings of Judah?  Manasseh wasn't born till after Hezekiah's illness leading to death when he was granted fifteen more years of life; perhaps this is another reason why Hezekiah didn't want to die in that he didn't have a son to succeed him as king.  Manasseh's reign was the longest of any of the kings of Judah.  He co-reigned with his father over Judah for ten years and also included in his 55 years as king was during his captivity in Babylon (2 Chronicles 33).  He rebuilt everything his father had destroyed that were abominations to the Lord and caused the people to sin more and more.  Through all this info of his wickedness, he's a king I'm intrigued and inspired by.  Not because of his wicked ways but because of how we know of a change of heart that man can't see but God can.  We read of this in 2 Chronicles 33, which is written not from man's point of view (the book of 1 & 2 Kings) but from God's point of view (1 & 2 Chronicles).  So can a king that had a horrible wicked life the majority of his reign end up right before God?  Compare the two accounts and think as God would...

2 Kings 20

"“Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord.  And I will add to your days fifteen years...So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, and He brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz."  vv.5-6,11

Read chapter 20
A pretty interesting chapter in the life of Hezekiah here.  First we see him about to die and then the Lord hears his prayer and adds 15 years of life to him.  Then the sign that this would be true is causing the shadow of the sun to go backwards ten degrees.  As we look at the first miracle of fifteen added years of life we must think more deeply about this.  Hezekiah was a good king doing right in the eyes of the Lord, so if the "typical" view of you go to heaven when you die is true then why wouldn't Hezekiah be happy and ready to depart and go there?  Perhaps this view of heaven when you die isn't exactly true...
But even if so, what a sweet gift and answer to prayer to have fifteen years of added life.  If you knew you had 15 years of life to live, how would you spend it?
How the shadow was brought backwards ten degrees we do not know.  By the shadow moving backwards it gave more time in the day just as God had just given more years of life to Hezekiah.  It seems to just have been in the land than across the whole world from 2 Chron. 32:31, "the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, whom they sent to him to inquire about the wonder that was done in the land."  Oh how I often ask for signs like this in answer to prayer request I have.  How do you see, feel, understand the sign of the Lord's response to prayer?

2 Kings 19

"Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Because you have prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard.’" v.20

Read chapter 19

This is the first we hear of Isaiah the prophet in scripture.  The book of Isaiah is well later in the Old Testament, but he prophesied over many years and among many kings. We know from the book of Isaiah of the time he prophesied,  "The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah" (1:1).    Isaiah is not present here, and may not have known of the prayer, but "in a sentence, Hezekiah’s prayer is answered, and then the prophet, in Jehovah’s name, bursts into a wonderful song of triumph over the defeated invader. ‘I have heard.’ That is enough. Hezekiah’s prayer has, as it were, fired the fuse or pulled the trigger, and the explosion follows, and the shot is sped. ‘Whereas thou hast prayed, . . . I have heard,’ is ever true, and God’s hearing is God’s acting in answer" (MacLaren's Exposition).  Recall a time you have prayed and it's been answered by someone that didn't even know your prayer? 

2 Kings 18

"Then the Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: “What confidence is this in which you trust?"  v.19

Read chapter 18
I love when a good king comes on the scene, but hate how evil and deceitful enemies can be.  Hezekiah is a king of Judah that does right in the eyes of the Lord in the ways of his father David.  We see that during Hezekiah's time he (Judah) was under Assyria rule but then frees from in (v.7).  The gift that Hezekiah offered and gave to the king of Assyria when still fearful of them as Judah's enemy didn't seem to do any help, which compromise seldom does in the long run.  The king of Assyria sends his officers to turn the people of Jerusalem against Hezekiah.  Rabshakeh is a title (not a name) for chief of the captains, possibly a political officer.  He talks in a way so that all men of Judah can hear him and tries to get them to go against their king Hezekiah by saying what he'll say to them.  It even seems like the Rabshakeh worships the Lord.  We don't see the response of the people other than they stay quiet but listen.  We'll have to wait till the next chapter to see Hezekiah's response and the people's.  How have you felt challenged in what you trust and believe?  How do you discern between the two?

2 Kings 17

"Now the king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years.  In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes." vv.5-6

Read chapter 17
There are a couple different deportations and captivities till all of Judah and Israel are in captivity.  Here we read of the a siege around Samaria for three years.  Samaria was the capitol of the Northern Kingdom (Israel).  A siege is "the act or process of surrounding and attacking a fortified place insuch a way as to isolate it from help and supplies, for the purpose oflessening the resistance of the defenders and thereby making capture possible" (dictionary.com).  So after the siege of weakening Israel, Assryria takes them way captive and places them into another land and takes over Samaria as their own.  Not only those in the capitol but those also of the surrounding 10 tribes that made up the Northern Kingdom.  This no doubt took a couple deportations as to the strongest ones first leaving the weaker ones till later as we'll continue to read about through Kings.  Reading through the rest of the chapter is this from the Lord and why/why not?