“In the ninth year of Hoshea,” writes the author of 2 Kings, “the king of Assyria … carried Israel away into Assyria.” Then, in an extended editorial note similar to Helaman 12, the author explains what led to this tragedy.
For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
2 Kings 17:7-8
And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
The chapter goes on to list their escalating infractions, including rejecting prophets whom the Lord sent to get them back on track. A particularly insightful part of this analysis is the observation that the children of Israel “followed vanity, and became vain” (2 Kings 17:15). What you do and what you think about determine what you become.
The lament is sincere but analytical in tone. Here’s what happened, and here’s what caused it. A more heartfelt editorial note by a prophet who experienced firsthand a similar tragedy appears in Mormon 6. After describing the destruction of his people, he writes:
My soul was rent with anguish, because of the slain of my people, and I cried:
Mormon 6:16-18
O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord! O ye fair ones, how could ye have rejected that Jesus, who stood with open arms to receive you!
Behold, if ye had not done this, ye would not have fallen. But behold, ye are fallen, and I mourn your loss.
Yet even as the northern kingdom of Israel collapsed, two righteous kings in the southern kingdom of Judah brought their people closer to God. Hezekiah’s reforms prompted the Lord to miraculously deliver the kingdom from the invading Assyrian army. Josiah later renewed that faithfulness for another generation. Their faithful leadership stands in marked contrast with the corrupt leadership that led to Israel’s defeat.
This week, as we study 2 Kings 14-25, let’s join Mormon and the author of 2 Kings in recognizing how rejecting God leads to tragedy. Let’s mourn the losses and suffering of the children of Israel even as we acknowledge the role of our own agency in receiving God’s blessings and protection.
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