2 Kings 17:7-9

Easy-to-Read Version

⁷ These things happened because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God. And it was the Lord who brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt! He saved them from the power of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. But the Israelites began worshiping other gods. ⁸ They began doing the same things that other people did. And the Lord had forced those people to leave their land when the Israelites came. The Israelites also chose to be ruled by kings. ⁹ The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God, and those things were wrong!

The Israelites built high places in all their cities—from the smallest town to the largest city.