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

And when they worshipped the Lord, they served also their own gods according to the custom of the nations out of which they were brought to Samaria:

They feared Jehovah, and served their own gods after the manner of the nations, whence they had been carried away.

Jehovah they are fearing, and their gods they are serving, according to the custom of the nations whence they removed them.

They gave worship to the Lord, but they gave honour to their gods like the nations did from whom they had been taken as prisoners.

And they worshiped the LORD, yet served their own gods, after the ways of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.

And though they worshipped the Lord, they also served their own gods, according to the custom of the nations from which they had been transferred into Samaria.

Understand the passage thus: "They (the colonists) served their own gods after the manner of the nations from which they (the government) removed them," i. e., after the manner of their own countrymen at home.

They feared the Lord, and served their own gods - They did not relinquish their own idolatry but incorporated the worship of the true God with that of their idols. They were afraid of Jehovah, who had sent lions among them; and therefore they offered him a sort of worship that he might not thus afflict them: but they served other gods, devoted themselves affectionately to them, because their worship was such as gratified their grossest passions, and most sinful propensities.

They (r) feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.
(r) That is, they had a certain knowledge of God, and feared him because of the punishment, but they continued to be idolaters as do the papists who worship both God and idols: but this is not to fear God, as appears in (2-Kings 17:34).

They feared the Lord, and served their own gods,.... Worshipped both:
after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence; the Israelites, whom they had carried captive from Samaria; they worshipped the Lord in their idols, as they did, who pretended to worship God in the calves; so they worshipped the supreme God in and by their idols, and made use of them as mediators with him.

2-Kings 17:33 sums up by way of conclusion the description of the various kinds of worship.

They feared - They worshipped God externally in that way which the Israelites used. But every nation made gods of their own besides.