1 Kings 14:22-24 And Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill,, and under every green tree.And their were also Sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.
The Southern Kingdom of Judah did better than Israel in remaining faithful to the Lord, but they also did evil in the sight of the Lord by setting up idols of demons all over the place. It took a while, but in time they, too, were sent into Exile, though they did return after turning back to God.
In the midst of such evil, idolatry, and judgment God still kept a faithful remnant in Judah who would bring the Son of God, the Savior, into the world. While the faithful wait in faith the rest of the kingdom slips into idolatrous evil. The faithful remained wholly devoted to the Lord. It was not that the evildoers completely rejected the Lord; it was that they wanted it both ways, to have one foot in both worlds, and to limp on two opinions.
And so it is with us: the saint in us believes and follows Jesus; the sinner in us at the same time does evil and trusts in other things besides God. Somehow, we think we can do both, but we need to see that the ways we trust the world is really doing evil and setting up idols. Daily repentance and constant gospel reminders are necessary to keep us on the right track.