2 Chronicles
Chapter 22
1 The people of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king after him because the group that came with the Arabians to the camp had killed all the older sons. So Ahaziah, son of Jehoram king of Judah, became king.
2 Ahaziah was 42 years old when he started to rule, and he ruled for one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, Omri’s daughter.
3 He followed the bad example of Ahab’s family because his mother advised him to do wrong.
4 So he did bad things in God’s view, just like Ahab’s family did, because they advised him badly after his father died, leading to his downfall.
5 He followed their advice and joined Jehoram, Ahab’s son and the king of Israel, to fight Hazael, the king of Syria, at Ramoth-gilead. The Syrians defeated Joram.
6 He went back to get better in Jezreel because of the injuries he got at Ramah, when he battled Hazael, the king of Syria. And Azariah, son of King Jehoram of Judah, visited Jehoram, son of Ahab, at Jezreel, because he was ill.
7 Ahaziah’s downfall was caused by God when he visited Joram. As he arrived, he joined Jehoram to fight Jehu, whom God chose to destroy Ahab’s family.
8 When Jehu was punishing Ahab’s family, he met the leaders of Judah and Ahaziah’s brothers’ sons who served Ahaziah, and he killed them.
9 He looked for Ahaziah and they found him hiding in Samaria, and took him to Jehu. After they killed him, they buried him because they said he was Jehoshaphat’s son, who followed God with all his heart. So Ahaziah’s family had no strength to hold onto the kingdom.
10 When Athaliah, Ahaziah’s mother, knew her son was dead, she got up and killed all the royal family of Judah.
11 But Jehoshabeath, the king’s daughter, took Joash, Ahaziah’s son, and rescued him from the princes who were killed. She hid him and his nurse in a bedroom. Jehoshabeath, daughter of King Jehoram and wife of Priest Jehoiada, and sister to Ahaziah, kept him safe from Athaliah so she did not kill him.
12 He stayed hidden in God’s house for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.