Both levels of postexilic commentaries, added to the Dtr basic text in 2 R 17,24-41 concerning the provincial population of Samaria, seem to belong to contradictory ideological trends among the leaders of the Judeans back from exile. For one of these trends, only Judeans having exilic experience should be considered as the « true Israel » ; for the other, the people who remained in the country should also be treated as Israelites if conforming to the religious prescriptions of the Second Temple community.