2 Kings 17:1

2 Kings 17:1 says, In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years.  Hoshea began to reign over Israel in the twelfth year of Ahaz's rule in Judah.  The reign of these two kings overlapped, but the reign of Jesus Christ has always been the only one to really matter, and it is eternal.  There was never an overlap with any other king or person in power and there never will be.  Verse two adds, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him.  Hoshea continued to do evil in God's sight, even though he wasn't as bad as the kings of Israel who went before him.  Unfortunately, this did not make him okay in God's eyes.  Likewise, we are not going to be judged based on whether we are better than other sinners but are only to be judged on our relationship with Jesus Christ.  Verse three continues, Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.  Shalmaneser the king of Assyria came against Hoshea, and even though he was the king of the most powerful God there is, Hoshea became the servant of Shalmaneser.  If we don't put our faith in Jesus Christ totally and live by the guidance and under the power of the Holy Spirit, we will find ourselves subjected to the power of sin once more.  Verse four states, And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.  At some point, Hoshea attempted to form an alliance with So the king of Egypt and didn't send his normal gifts to Shalmaneser, who found out about this proposed alliance and put Hoshea in prison.  It is strange how many times God's people looked to other rulers, even the king of Egypt, for help instead of repenting and looking to God for help.  As Christians, we should never be guilty of this.  Verse five adds, Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.  Then, Shalmaneser besieged Samaria for three years.  If we as followers of Christ turn away from Him, we will be besieged by sin once more, and if we have never put our faith in Him, we will always be besieged by sin.  Verse six continues, In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.  In the ninth year of Hoshea's reign, though he had been imprisoned in Assyria for at least three of those years, the people of Israel were taken away captive.  When God's chosen people continued to turn away from Him in sin, they lost His protection and were carried away captive.  If we reject God, and salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, we will be taken away captive to sin, even if we call ourselves Christians.