2Ch 22 | EE | STEP | The people who lived in Jerusalem chose Jehoram’s youngest son, Ahaziah to be king of Judah instead. Enemies that came in with the Arabs had killed all Jehoram’s older sons. So Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah began to rule over Judah.

2 Chronicles 22

Ahaziah is king of Judah

1 The people who lived in Jerusalem chose Jehoram’s youngest son, Ahaziah to be king of Judah instead. Enemies that came in with the Arabs had killed all Jehoram’s older sons. So Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah began to rule over Judah.

2 Ahaziah was 22 years old when he started to rule. And he ruled for one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, who was a granddaughter of Omri.

Ahaziah does not do what gives pleasure to God

3 Ahaziah’s mother taught him to do what was wrong. So he did the things that Ahab and his descendants had done. 4 He did very wrong things that the LORD did not like. They were like the things that Ahab and his descendants had done. Ahab’s officers had taught Ahaziah to do those wrong things after his father had died. And those things caused his death. 5 Ahab’s officers told him that he should go with Jehoram to fight Hazael, king of Syria at Ramoth-Gilead. Jehoram was the son of Ahab and he was the king of Israel. He did as they said and the soldiers from Syria hurt Jehoram. 6 So he went to Jezreel to get better after what had happened at Ramah. While he was fighting against Hazael, the king of Syria there, Hazael’s soldiers had hurt him. Then Jehoram’s son Ahaziah, the king of Judah went to Jezreel to see Ahab’s son Jehoram because he was ill.

Jehu kills Ahaziah and his people

7 God used this visit to Jehoram to cause Ahaziah’s death. When Ahaziah arrived, he went with Jehoram to meet Nimshi’s son Jehu. But the LORD had decided to use Jehu to kill all Ahab’s family. God’s prophet had put oil on Jehu to show him that God would use him. 8 While Jehu was punishing Ahab’s family he found the leaders of Judah. He also found some sons of Ahaziah’s relatives who had been servants of Ahaziah. And Jehu killed them too. 9 Then he went to find Ahaziah. Jehu’s men found him where he was hiding in Samaria. And they caught him. They took him to Jehu. Then they killed him. They buried him because they said, ‘He was the grandson of Jehoshaphat. And Jehoshaphat obeyed the LORD as well as he could.’ But now there was nobody in Ahaziah’s family who could become king.

Athaliah tries to kill all the family of Judah’s king

10 Then Athaliah, Ahaziah’s mother, knew that her son was dead. So she started to kill everyone in the king’s clan in Judah.

Jehoshabeath saves Ahaziah’s son, Joash

11 But Jehoshabeath, King Jehoram’s daughter, took Ahaziah’s son Joash away from the other sons that Athaliah was killing. And she hid him. She was the wife of Jehoiada the priest. She put Joash in a bedroom in the house with his nurse. She hid the child from Athaliah because she was Ahaziah’s sister. So Athaliah did not kill him. 12 He stayed secretly with them in the house of God for 6 years. During that time, Athaliah ruled the country.