Jehoram Rules in Judah

¹⁶ Jehoram son of King Jehoshaphat of Judah began to rule over Judah in the fifth year of the reign of Joram son of Ahab, king of Israel. ¹⁷ Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. ¹⁸ But Jehoram followed the example of the kings of Israel and was as wicked as King Ahab, for he had married one of Ahab’s daughters. So Jehoram did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. ¹⁹ But the Lord did not want to destroy Judah, for he had promised his servant David that his descendants would continue to rule, shining like a lamp forever.

²⁰ During Jehoram’s reign, the Edomites revolted against Judah and crowned their own king. ²¹ So Jehoram^[a] went with all his chariots to attack the town of Zair.^[b] The Edomites surrounded him and his chariot commanders, but he went out at night and attacked them^[c] under cover of darkness. But Jehoram’s army deserted him and fled to their homes. ²² So Edom has been independent from Judah to this day. The town of Libnah also revolted about that same time.

²³ The rest of the events in Jehoram’s reign and everything he did are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah. ²⁴ When Jehoram died, he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Then his son Ahaziah became the next king.