2 Kings 18:10
And at the end of three years they took it: even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. And at the end of three years they took it: even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
After a three-year siege Samaria was taken, in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel. This happened in the earlier portion of Hezekiah's reign, a few years after he began to reign, while he was still strengthening Jerusalem's defenses. Many Israelites of the northern kingdom had already been carried captive before this final capture. At this capture the Assyrians took the city and exiled Israel to Assyria, scattering the ten tribes, the shattered remnant of the northern kingdom, among the provinces and nations of their empire.
Israel's fall and exile came because the people disobeyed the Lord and broke His covenant, with the Assyrians acting as instruments to carry out God's purpose. The fall and scattering made Israel's God appear powerless to the surrounding nations, leading many to question His power and emboldening Assyria in defiant opposition to Heaven. The emboldened Ninevites had long since set aside the message of Jonah.
Judah's border lay only a few miles distant and Jerusalem less than fifty miles away. With Judah and Jerusalem nearby, the rich spoils within the temple could tempt the enemy to return against Judah. A few years after Samaria's fall the victorious Assyrian armies reappeared in Palestine against the fenced cities of Judah with some measure of success, then withdrew for a season because of difficulties in other parts of their realm. The final demonstration before the nations as to whether the gods of the heathen would prevail did not come until some years later, toward the close of Hezekiah's reign, when remarkable providences would reveal that the God of Israel was with His people.