2 Kings 17:28

2Ki 17:28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.

Ver. 28. And taught them how they should fear the Lord.] Timore cultus, non culpae; fear him at least as the idolatrous Israelites did Servile fear materially is not evil, but formally and eventually, because joined with a hatred of him we fear, saith Ribera.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Ki 17:28. Then one of the priests whom they had carried away came, &c. — A prophet would have done them more good, especially as it appears this was but one of the priests of the calves, who therefore chose to dwell at Beth-el. And taught them how they should fear the Lord — That is, the manner of God’s worship as it had been practised in Israel: for as to any thing further, whether respecting their duty to God or man, though he might possibly teach them to know more than they knew before, and to do better than they did, it is not likely he should teach them to know the truth, or to do well, unless he had taught his own people better.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

(28) And taught.—And was teaching, implying a permanent work.

In Bethel.—Because he was a priest of the calfworship.

Fear the Lord.—Not in the modern ethical but in the ancient ceremonial sense.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

28. Then [R.V. So] one of the priests whom they had carried away] We can see from this that the events here spoken of took place within a very limited time. The priest who had been taken away from Samaria was still alive, and in vigour enough to be selected to go back again and to undertake the office of a teacher among the heathen colonists.

came and dwelt in Beth-el] The place where one of the golden calves had been set up. The worship of these objects would be what the priest taught as the national worship of the ten tribes.

how they should fear the Lord] For the worship of the ten tribes was professedly a worship of Jehovah, though performed in a manner contradictory to His express commandment.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Then one of the priests whom, they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel,.... According to an Arabic writer (r), his name was Uzziah; but Epiphanius (s) says his name was Esdras; but he wrongly makes him to be sent by Nebuchadnezzar, thirty years after the captivity of the Jews in Babylon: this priest was, doubtless, one of the priests of the calves; for there were none else in the kingdom of Israel carried captive, and as seems also by his choosing to dwell in Bethel, where probably he formerly dwelt, and officiated in the service of the calf there, and by teaching to make priests of the lowest order of the people, as Jeroboam's priests were, Kg2 17:32.

and taught them how they should fear the Lord; serve and worship him; he might not teach them the worship of the calves, that being a political business, and now no end to be answered by it; and besides, they were now carried out of the land. This priest taught, no doubt, according to the law of Moses, but was not the author of the Pentateuch; which ridiculous conceit of Le Clerc is sufficiently exposed by Witsius (t).

(r) Abulpharag. Hist. Dynast. Dyn. 3. p. 65. (s) Contr. Haeres. l. 1. Haer. 8. (t) Miscellan. tom. 1. l. 1. c. 14. sect. 7. 28.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The priest sent to the colonists was not a true Yahweh-priest, but one of those who had been attached to the calf-worship, probably at Bethel. Hence, he would be willing to tolerate the mixed religion, which a true Yahweh-priest would have unsparingly condemned.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Bethel. Garizim was not then honoured with the temple, as the Samaritans would pretend. (Chronicles) They wished to join in building that at Jerusalem, under Esdras. (Calmet) --- Lord. Collins would make us believe, that the Samaritans continued "for a long time" without the Pentateuch, and all "heathens for many ages." But the first supposition "is to me incredible," says Kennicott; and Hottinger himself allows, that the priests did bring back a copy of the law "exactly corresponding with the autograph of Moses." (Exert. p. 8.) And as for the Samaritans being heathens, Prideaux, whom this infidel writer quotes, (Haydock) says, "consistently with his Bible, that they continued in that gross idolatry of worshipping other gods in conjunction with the True; which last words are very unfairly omitted." (Kennicott, Diss. ii. p. 115.) --- This was the true origin and state of this mixture of nations, who were sent to cultivate the lands of Samaria. (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

i.e. The manner of God’s worship, as it was practised in Israel; as may be gathered both from the quality of this person, who was all Israelitish priest; and from the place of his residence, Beth-el, a place infamous for the worship of the calves, and from the manner of their making priests by this man’s direction, 2Ki 17:32.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

28. One of the priests… from Samaria — Probably one of the priests of Jeroboam’s calf-worship, and therefore not Levitical. Compare 2Ki_17:32, note. As was natural with one of those priests, he came and dwelt in Bethel, which had been the principal seat of the calf-worship, (1Ki_12:28-33,) and perhaps, as Bahr supposes, he erected there images like the golden calves which had been taken away.

Taught them how they should fear the Lord — But taught them very imperfectly, as the sequel shows. As Jeroboam’s attempt to identify or associate the golden calves with the God of the Exodus (1Ki_12:28) became a sin to Israel, so this priest’s teaching by means of images, or from the standpoint of the old calf-worship, resulted, as the following verses show, in a mixed and confusing system of religion.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria the country, not the city, as in vers. 24 and 25came and dwelt in Bethel. Bethel from a very early time greatly eclipsed Dan. While the allusions to Bethel, commonly called "Bethaven" ("House of nothingness" for "House of God"), are frequent in the Israelitish prophets (Hos_4:15 Hos_5:8 Hos_10:5, Hos_10:8, Hos_10:15; Amo_3:14 Amo_4:4 Amo_5:5, 6 7:10-13) there is but a single distinct allusion to Dan. (Amo_8:14) Bethel was "the king"s chapel" and "the king"s court". (Amo_7:13) The priest selected by Sargon"s advisers was a Bethelite priest, and, returning thither, took up the worship familiar to him. And taught themi.e. , the new settlers how they should fear the Lord. This worship could only be that of the calf-priests instituted by Jeroboam, which was, however, most certainly a worship of Jehovah, and an imitation or travesty of the temple worship at Jerusalem. Whether the returned priest set up a new calf-idol to replace the one which had been carried off to Assyria, (Hos_10:5) is doubtful.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Taught them - The manner of God's worship, as it was practiced in Israel; as may be gathered both from the quality of this person, who was an Israelitish priest; and from the place of his residence, Beth-el, a place infamous for the worship of the calves, and from the manner of their making priests by this man's direction.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.