Texts · 7 · Hezekiah and Isaiah
The lions of Samaria
Kings claims Assyria replaced all of Samaria's people with foreigners, and that God sent lions until a priest taught them to worship him.
Smear campaigns are as old as rivalry.
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The tale is southern polemic: Assyria deported only part of the population, and Samaria's worship wasn't foreign-born. Judean writers wanted to deny the North's claim to be true Israel. Yet the Bible as a whole champions North-South unity.
Bible reference: 2 Kings 17:24–41
Source: Why the Bible Began, pp. 112–114
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