The exile of the Kingdom of Israel did not happen in a vacuum. It was the direct result of a shattered covenant, standing as a stark contrast between God's saving grace and the people's deep betrayal. The Israelites bore direct responsibility for their spiritual failure. In earlier times, they were somewhat coerced into idolatry, as previous kings posted guards to prevent them from traveling to Jerusalem and forced them into transgression. However, during the reign of Hoshea son of Elah, these guards were removed, granting the people complete free will. Despite this newfound freedom, they willingly chose to avoid Jerusalem and continued to worship the golden calves, placing the blame entirely upon their own shoulders [מצודת דוד]. Yet, even in the face of such severe and widespread rebellion, God's immense mercy is still evident, as He refers to their massive offenses using the relatively gentle concept of a basic sin [חומת אנך].
The gravity of their betrayal is magnified by the specific history they shared with God, who personally brought them out of Egypt and freed them from Pharaoh's grip. This history explains why Israel's idolatry was far worse than the pagan practices of other nations. While other nations are bound by the laws of nature and astrology—making their worship of these elements somewhat less severe—the Israelites were entirely removed from that natural order. The Exodus was a profound act of direct, personal providence. God separated Israel from all other peoples and extracted them from the control of nature so they could become His exclusive inheritance [מלבי״ם].
To achieve this, God personally descended into the deep impurity of Egypt to rescue the souls of the Israelites from Pharaoh's rule, elevating the sparks of holiness that had sunk there. This rescue was performed with a single condition: that the people would accept His divinity and serve Him alone [חומת אנך]. Because they were placed under God's direct care without any intermediaries, the Israelites had absolutely no reason to fear the forces of nature or astrology, much less worship them [מלבי״ם]. Turning to fear other gods was an act of ultimate ingratitude, a choice that completely contradicted the purpose of the Exodus and violated the very foundation of their redemption [חומת אנך].