2 Kings 17:18
in 2 Kings 17So the LORD was very angry with Israel, and He removed them from His presence. Only the tribe of Judah remained,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Therefore Jehovah was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
KJV
Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
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This verse in 2 Kings 17
Commentary
4 notes on this verseRemoved them out of his sight - Banished them from the promised land, from the temple, and from every ordinance of righteousness, as wholly unworthy of any kind of good. None left but the tribe of Judah only - Under this name all those of Benjamin and Levi, and the Israelites, who abandoned their idolatries and joined with Judah, are comprised. It was the ten tribes that were carried away by the Assyrians.
This site's exposition
none left but the tribe of Judah
The sentence falls in one verse, the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, and the phrase repeats across this chapter at verses 18, 20 and 23, a formula rather than a single remark. Only the tribe of Judah is left standing, and the text does not soften ten tribes gone in a single stroke that took generations of provocation to arrive at. Anger here is not sudden; it is the terminus of everything verses 7 to 17 have already described.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
); for, in the matter of his worship, he is a jealous God, and resents nothing more deeply than giving that honour to any creature which is due to himself only.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
And He banished them from His Presence. For they were exiled with Hoshei'a son of Eiloh. 26 I.e., He exiled them from His land.”—Metzudas Dovid
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
And they devoted themselves. They sold themselves for that [purpose].
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּתְאַנַּ֨ף | vaiyitanaf | and he was angry | H599 → | |
| יְהוָ֤ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| מְאֹד֙ | meod | very | H3966 → | 300 times |
| בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל | beyisrael | with Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| וַיְסִרֵ֖ם | vaysirem | and he removed them | H5493 → | 299 times |
| מֵעַ֣ל | meal | from on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| פָּנָ֑יו | panav | face his | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נִשְׁאַ֔ר | nishar | anyone was left | H7604 → | 133 times |
| רַ֛ק | rak | only | H7535 → | 109 times |
| שֵׁ֥בֶט | shevet | [the] tribe of | H7626 → | |
| יְהוּדָ֖ה | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| לְבַדּֽוֹ׃ | levado | to only it | H905 → | 200 times |
וַיִּתְאַנַּ֨ףand he was angry
vaiyitanafH599 →
יְהוָ֤הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
מְאֹד֙very
meodH3966 →300 times
בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔לwith Israel
beyisraelH3478 →2507 times
וַיְסִרֵ֖םand he removed them
vaysiremH5493 →299 times
מֵעַ֣לfrom on
mealH5921 →5755 times
פָּנָ֑יוface his
panavH6440 →2123 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
נִשְׁאַ֔רanyone was left
nisharH7604 →133 times
רַ֛קonly
rakH7535 →109 times
שֵׁ֥בֶט[the] tribe of
shevetH7626 →
יְהוּדָ֖הJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
לְבַדּֽוֹ׃to only it
levadoH905 →200 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Kings 12:20When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 11:32
But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Kings 11:13
Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Kings 11:32
Through
1 Kings 11:13Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I…
it leads to
- 1 Kings 12:20
When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David.
- Deuteronomy 12:11
then the LORD your God will choose a dwelling for His Name. And there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all…
- Deuteronomy 12:5
Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go.
- Psalms 132:13–14
For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His home:
- 1 Kings 12:20
Through
Hosea 11:12Ephraim surrounds Me with lies, the house of Israel with deceit; but Judah still walks with God and is faithful to the Holy One.
it leads to
- Isaiah 29:13
Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught…
- Revelation 1:6
who has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.
- Isaiah 29:13
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
On this verse
On this chapter
About 2 Kings
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; F. W. Farrar, The Second Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.