Then the king of Assyria commanded, 'Send there one of the priests whom you exiled from there; let him go and live there, and teach them the law of the god of the land' — Shalmaneser's response is pragmatic: he orders the Assyrian administration to bring back one of the priests exiled from Samaria to teach the imported peoples "the law of the god of the land." This represents a striking compromise: Assyrian imperial administration, seeking to eliminate rebellion and stabilize the region, sanctioned the religious instruction of replacement populations in Yahwism. The priest is instructed to teach the "law" (תּוֹרַת, *torat*) of the god of the land, suggesting instruction in cultic requirements and practices necessary to avoid divine punishment.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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