Ancient Babylonia - God's Warning
But the Lord had always reminded them of why judgment came and how He would
have loved to be in relationship with them. Here are some passages that show the
Lord pleading with them and giving them exact details of why He was so angry:
II Ki 17:7-23 "The children of Israel secretly did against the LORD their God things that
were not right, and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves sacred pillars
and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. There they
burned incense on all the high places, like the nations whom the LORD had carried
away before them; and they did wicked things to provoke the LORD to anger, for they served idols, of which the LORD had
said to them, "You shall not do this thing."
Yet the LORD testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His
prophets, every seer, saying, "Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and
My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which
I sent to you by My servants the prophets." Nevertheless they would not hear,
but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the LORD their God.
And they rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their
fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them; they followed
idols, became idolaters, and went after the nations who were all around them, concerning whom the
LORD had charged them that they should not do like them.
So they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, made for themselves a
molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshiped all the host of
heaven, and served Baal. And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft
and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to
anger.
Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His
sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone. And the LORD rejected all
the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast them from His sight…as He had said by all His servants the
prophets. So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is
to this day."
Ancient Babylonia
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