2 Kings 17:33

2 Kings 17:33 Meaning and Explanation

They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.

King James Version (KJV)

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They feared the Lord and served their own gods at once, following the customs of the lands they came from.

What Does 2 Kings 17:33 Mean?

The verse names the contradiction plainly: they feared the Lord and served their own gods, keeping the manner of the nations from which they had been carried. Reverence for the Lord and devotion to idols lived side by side in the same people, an impossible marriage of opposites.

To fear the Lord and serve other gods is to try to hold what cannot be held together. Such double-mindedness is no middle path but a divided heart, and a divided heart cannot truly worship. The Lord calls for singleness of devotion, for no one can serve two masters. The peace we seek is found only when He is not one loyalty among many but the one we love above all.

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What does 2 Kings 17:33 mean?

They feared the Lord and served their own gods at once, following the customs of the lands they came from.

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