Beginning

Jehu becomes king of Israel

9 The prophet Elisha told a man from the group of prophets to come to him. Elisha said to him, ‘Tie your belt around you and prepare to travel. Take this bottle of olive oil with you and go to Ramoth Gilead. ² When you arrive there, look for Jehu. He is the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Go to him and take him into a room away from his friends. ³ Pour the oil from the bottle onto his head. Say to him, “This is what the Lord says to you: I have now chosen you to be king of Israel.” Then open the door and run away quickly!’

⁴ The young prophet that Elisha had sent went to Ramoth Gilead. ⁵ When he arrived there, he found the army officers. They were sitting together. The prophet said, ‘Captain, I have a message for you.’ Jehu asked him, ‘The message is for which of us?’ The prophet replied, ‘It is for you, sir.’ ⁶ So Jehu stood up and he went into the house. The young prophet poured the oil onto Jehu's head. He said to him, ‘This is what the Lord, Israel's God, says to you: “I have now chosen you to be king of the Lord's people, Israel. ⁷ You will destroy the family of your master, Ahab. In this way I will punish Ahab's wife Jezebel, because she killed the prophets and other people who served me. ⁸ The whole family of Ahab must die. I will kill every male among his descendants in Israel, whoever they are. ⁹ I will destroy Ahab's family as I did to the family of Nebat's son Jeroboam and the family of Ahijah's son Baasha. ¹⁰ Dogs will eat Jezebel's body on the ground in Jezreel. Nobody will bury her.” ’

Then the young prophet opened the door and he ran away.

¹¹ Jehu went out to the other army officers. They asked him, ‘Is everything well? Why did that crazy man come to you?’ Jehu replied, ‘It was not important. You know what that man is like and the kind of things he says.’ ¹² But the officers said, ‘That is not true! Tell us what he said.’ So Jehu told them what the prophet had said. He told them, ‘The prophet said, “This is what the Lord says: I have now chosen you to be the king of Israel.” ’

¹³ The other officers then quickly took their coats. They put them on the stone steps for Jehu to walk on. Then they made a loud noise with a trumpet. They shouted, ‘Jehu is king!’

Jehu kills Joram

¹⁴ So Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat and grandson of Nimshi, became an enemy of King Joram.

Joram had been in Ramoth Gilead with the whole army of Israel. They were fighting against Hazael, the king of Syria, who wanted to attack Israel. ¹⁵ The Syrian soldiers had hurt King Joram in the battle against King Hazael. So he returned to Jezreel to get well again.

Jehu said to his men, ‘If you really want to help me, do not let anyone leave this city. Nobody must go to warn the people in Jezreel.’ ¹⁶ Then Jehu got into his chariot and he rode to Jezreel, because King Joram was resting there. Ahaziah, the king of Judah, had also gone to Jezreel to visit King Joram.

¹⁷ A guard was standing on the tower in Jezreel to watch for enemies. He saw Jehu's soldiers coming towards the city. He shouted, ‘I can see a group of soldiers who are coming here on horses.’

King Joram said, ‘Send out a man on a horse to meet the soldiers. Ask them. “Are you coming to us as friends?” ’ ¹⁸ The man on the horse rode out of the city to meet Jehu. He said to Jehu, ‘The king asks you, “Are you coming here as friends?” ’ Jehu replied, ‘Whether we are friends or not, turn round and ride behind me!’

The guard on the tower reported to Joram, ‘The man that you sent with the message has reached them. But he is not coming back yet.’ ¹⁹ So King Joram sent a second man out on a horse. The rider said to Jehu, ‘The king asks you, “Are you coming here as friends?” ’ Jehu replied, ‘Whether we are friends or not, turn round and ride behind me!’

²⁰ The guard reported to Joram, ‘The man has reached them, but he is not coming back yet either. Their leader is driving his chariot like Nimshi's son, Jehu. He drives like a crazy man!’

²¹ Then King Joram commanded, ‘Prepare my chariot for me.’ So they brought his chariot to him. Then King Joram of Israel and King Ahaziah of Judah rode out of the city to meet Jehu. Each king was riding in his own chariot. They met Jehu at the piece of land that had once belonged to Naboth, the man from Jezreel.^{[a] 22} When Joram saw Jehu, he asked, ‘Have you come as a friend, Jehu?’ Jehu replied, ‘We cannot be friends. Your mother Jezebel still causes people to worship idols and to use magic.’

²³ Joram turned his chariot round and he drove away quickly. He shouted to King Ahaziah, ‘Ahaziah, they have deceived us!’ ²⁴ Then Jehu used his bow to shoot an arrow at Joram. The arrow hit Joram between his shoulders and it went through his heart. He fell over in his chariot and he died. ²⁵ Jehu gave a command to his officer, Bidkar. He said to him, ‘Pick him up! Throw his body onto the field that once belonged to Naboth. Remember, you and I rode together in chariots behind Joram's father, Ahab. That was when the Lord said this about Ahab: ²⁶ “Yesterday, I saw the blood of Naboth and his sons where you murdered them. One day, I will punish you as you deserve. I will do it here on this piece of land. That is what the Lord says.” So now pick up Joram's body and throw it on this piece of land. Do what the Lord has promised he would do.’

²⁷ King Ahaziah of Judah saw what had happened to Joram. So he rode away quickly on the road towards Beth Haggan. Jehu chased after him and he shouted, ‘Kill him too!’ Jehu's men shot arrows at Ahaziah as he rode in his chariot up the hill to Gur, near Ibleam. He escaped to Megiddo and he died there.

²⁸ King Ahaziah's servants took his body back to Jerusalem in a chariot. They buried him there in a grave beside his ancestors in the City of David. ²⁹ Ahaziah had become king of Judah when Ahab's son Joram had been king of Israel for 11 years.

³⁰ After that, Jehu went to Jezreel. Jezebel heard what had happened. So she made her eyes and her hair look beautiful. Then she looked out of a window in the palace.^{[b] 31} When Jehu came through the gate of the city, Jezebel called out to him, ‘Have you come as a friend, Zimri? No, you have murdered your master!’^{[c] 32} Jehu looked up at the window and he saw her. Then he shouted, ‘Who wants to help me? Anyone there?’ Two or three eunuchs looked out though a window at him.^{[d] 33} Jehu shouted to them, ‘Throw her down!’ So they threw her down. When she hit the ground, some of her blood splashed on the wall. It also splashed on Jehu's horses as he drove them over her body.

³⁴ Jehu went into the palace and he ate a meal. Then he said, ‘Take away that evil woman's body. She was the daughter of a king, so you should bury her properly.’ ³⁵ But when they went out to bury her, not much of her body was still there. They found only her skull, her feet and her hands. ³⁶ They went back and they told Jehu. He said, ‘The Lord told his servant, Elijah from Tishbe, that this would happen. He said, “Dogs will eat Jezebel's dead body on the ground in Jezreel. ³⁷ Her dead body will lie on the ground in Jezreel like dung. Nobody will be able to recognize who it is.” ’

Jehu kills Ahab's descendants

10 Ahab had 70 sons who lived in Samaria. So Jehu wrote letters and he sent them to Samaria. He sent them to Jezreel's officers and leaders, as well as to the men who took care of Ahab's sons.^{[e] 2} This was what the letter said:

‘When this letter reaches you, your master's sons will be with you. You also have his chariots and horses in a strong city. And you have weapons. ³ Choose the best person to be king from among your master's sons. Make him your king instead of his father. Then prepare to fight on behalf of your master's family.’

⁴ But the letter made the officers in Samaria very afraid. They said, ‘Even two kings could not win against Jehu. So we can never fight against him and win!’

⁵ So these people sent a message to Jehu:

The message said, ‘We are your servants. We will do anything that you tell us. We will not make anyone king. You must do what you think is right.’

⁶ So Jehu wrote a second letter to them. It said, ‘If you are ready to help me and you will obey me, do this: Bring the heads of your master's sons here to me in Jezreel. Bring them by this time tomorrow.’^[f]

At that time, important leaders of the city were taking care of the king's 70 sons. ⁷ When the letter arrived, these men took hold of the king's sons. They killed all 70 of them. They put their heads in baskets. Then they sent them to Jehu in Jezreel. ⁸ Someone told Jehu, ‘They have brought the heads of the king's sons.’ Then Jehu said, ‘Put them in two heaps at the gate of the city. Leave them there until the morning.’

⁹ The next morning, Jehu went out to the city's gate. He stood there in front of all the people. He said to them, ‘You are not guilty of any murder. I was the one who decided to kill my master, the king. But who killed these descendants of Ahab? It was not my decision! ¹⁰ You must realize this: Every punishment that the Lord said would happen to Ahab's family must happen. The Lord has done what he told his servant Elijah he would do.’

¹¹ After that, Jehu killed everybody in Jezreel who was a descendant of Ahab. He also killed Ahab's officers, his friends and his priests. No descendant of Ahab remained alive.

¹² Jehu left Jezreel and he went towards Samaria. He came to Beth Eked, where shepherds had a camp. ¹³ He met some relatives of Ahaziah, the king of Judah. Jehu asked them, ‘Who are you?’ They said, ‘We are relatives of Ahaziah. We are going to Jezreel to visit the families of the king and his mother.’^{[g] 14} Jehu said to his men, ‘Catch them, but do not kill them!’ So they took hold of them. Then they killed them all near the well at Beth Eked. They killed 42 people, so that none of them remained alive.

¹⁵ When Jehu left Beth Eked, he met Rekab's son Jehonadab. He was coming to meet Jehu. Jehu said, ‘Hello! Do you trust me, as I trust you?’ Jehonadab answered, ‘Yes, I do!’ Jehu replied, ‘Then hold your hand out to me.’ So he did that and Jehu pulled him up into his chariot. ¹⁶ Jehu said, ‘Come with me. You will see that I want to serve the Lord faithfully.’ So Jehonadab rode with Jehu in his chariot. ¹⁷ Jehu arrived in Samaria. He killed all the descendants of Ahab who were still alive in Samaria. The Lord had told Elijah that this would happen.

Jehu removes false prophets

¹⁸ Then Jehu called all the people to come together. He said to them, ‘Ahab served Baal, but he did not do it very well. But I, Jehu, will serve Baal much better! ¹⁹ So tell all the prophets who serve Baal to come here, as well as all Baal's servants and his priests. Make sure that they all come. I want to offer a great sacrifice to Baal. If any of them does not come, I will punish him with death.’

But Jehu was deceiving them. He wanted to kill all Baal's servants. ²⁰ He gave a command, ‘Prepare a special day when we can all worship Baal.’ So Jehu's servants told everybody about it.

²¹ Jehu sent a notice to everyone in Israel. All the servants of Baal came to the meeting. There was nobody who did not come. They all went into the temple of Baal, so that it was completely full of people. ²² Then Jehu said to the man who took care of the special clothes, ‘Bring out the robes for the servants of Baal to wear.’ So the man brought out the robes for them. ²³ Then Jehu and Rekab's son Jehonadab went into the temple of Baal. Jehu said to the servants of Baal, ‘Look around carefully. Be sure that there are no servants of the Lord here with you. There must only be servants of Baal here.’ ²⁴ So they went into the temple to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. But Jehu had put 80 of his men outside the temple. He had said to them, ‘Do not let any of these men escape. If you let anyone escape, I will punish you with death.’

²⁵ When Jehu had finished offering the sacrifices, he said to the guards and the soldiers, ‘Go into the temple and kill all Baal's servants. Do not let any of them escape.’ So the guards and soldiers used their swords to cut all the people down. They threw the dead bodies out of the temple. Then they went into the inside room of the temple. ²⁶ They took out the stones from the house of Baal and they destroyed them. ²⁷ They broke the special stone pillar of Baal and they destroyed the temple. People still use it as a toilet, even today!

²⁸ That is how Jehu stopped people from worshipping Baal in Israel. ²⁹ But Jehu did not turn away from the sins of Nebat's son, Jeroboam. Jeroboam had caused Israel to worship images of calves. There were still gold calves at Bethel and Dan. ³⁰ The Lord said to Jehu, ‘You have done well. You have done the things that I say are right. You have punished Ahab's family in the way that I wanted. So your descendants will be kings of Israel for four generations.’^{[h] 31} But Jehu was not careful to obey completely the law of the Lord, Israel's God. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam which he had caused Israel to do.

³² In those days, the Lord began to make Israel's land smaller. King Hazael of Syria could attack the Israelites anywhere in their land ³³ east of the Jordan River. He took from them all the land of Gilead. That included the land that belonged to the tribes of Gad, Reuben and Manasseh. Hazael took the land all the way from Aroer, along the Arnon Valley to Gilead and Bashan.

³⁴ The other things that happened while Jehu was king are written in a book. The book is called ‘The history of Israel's kings’. It tells about all the great things that Jehu did. ³⁵ Jehu died and they buried him with his ancestors in Samaria. His son Jehoahaz became king after him. ³⁶ Jehu ruled over Israel as king in Samaria for 28 years.

Queen Athaliah and King Joash

11 Ahaziah's mother, Athaliah, heard the news that her son was dead. So she started to kill all the royal family. ² Jehosheba was the daughter of King Jehoram of Judah and the sister of Ahaziah. When Athaliah's servants had come to murder the royal sons, Jehosheba took Ahaziah's son Joash away and she hid him. She put him in a bedroom in the temple to hide him from Athaliah. So Joash stayed alive. ³ Joash and his nurse stayed safely in a room in the Lord's temple while Queen Athaliah ruled Judah for six years.

⁴ In the seventh year that Athaliah ruled Judah, the priest Jehoiada asked some of the king's officers to come to him.^[i] They were officers of army groups, the king's special guards and the palace guards.

They came to meet with Jehoiada in the Lord's temple. There, he made them promise to agree with his idea. Then he showed the king's son Joash to them.

⁵ Jehoiada said to the officers, ‘This is what you must do: The men who come to work on the Sabbath day must make three groups. One group will keep the palace safe. ⁶ Another group must stand at the Sur Gate. The third group must stand at the gate behind the special guards. ⁷ The two groups of soldiers who would not come to work on the Sabbath day must do this: They must be guards at the Lord's temple. They must keep the new king safe. ⁸ You must stand around the king. Each man must hold his weapon in his hand. If anyone comes near to you, you must kill them. You must stay near to the king everywhere that he goes.’

⁹ The officers of the army groups did what Jehoiada the priest told them to do. Each officer brought his group of men to Jehoiada. That included the men who worked on the Sabbath and those who did not. ¹⁰ Then Jehoiada gave some weapons that were in the Lord's temple to the officers. He gave them the spears and the shields that had belonged to King David. ¹¹ The guards held their weapons in their hands. They stood around the king to keep him safe. They stood in a line from the south side of the temple to the north side. They were around the altar at the front of the temple.

¹² Then Jehoiada brought the king's son out of the temple room. He put the crown onto Joash's head. He gave him a copy of the royal covenant. They poured olive oil on his head to show that he was now the king. They clapped their hands and they shouted, ‘May the king have a long life!’

¹³ Queen Athaliah heard the soldiers and the people as they were shouting. So she went to the Lord's temple where all the people were. ¹⁴ Then she saw the king! He was standing in the king's place beside the pillar in the temple.^[j] The army officers and the men with trumpets were standing beside the king. All the people of Judah were shouting with joy. Many of them made music with trumpets.

When Athaliah saw this, she was very upset. She tore her clothes. She shouted, ‘Treason! Treason!’^[k]

¹⁵ Jehoiada the priest gave a command to the army officers who had authority over groups of soldiers. He told them, ‘Bring her out of the temple to the line of guards outside. Use your swords to kill anyone who follows her.’ That was because Jehoiada had said, ‘You must not kill her inside the Lord's temple.’ ¹⁶ So they took hold of Athaliah. They took her through the gate for the king's horses into the yard of the palace. They killed her there.

¹⁷ Jehoiada prepared a covenant with the Lord. All the people and the king agreed to serve the Lord as his people. The people also agreed to serve the king faithfully.

¹⁸ Then people everywhere in the country went to the temple of Baal. They destroyed it. They completely knocked down its altars and idols. They killed Baal's priest, Mattan, in front of Baal's altars.

Then Jehoiada the priest put guards to keep the Lord's temple safe. ¹⁹ Jehoiada took with him the officers of army groups, the king's special guards, the palace guards and all the people. They went together to bring the king down from the Lord's temple into the palace. They went into the palace through the gate of the king's royal guards. Then Joash sat on his throne as king.

²⁰ All the people were very happy. There was no longer any trouble in Jerusalem now that Athaliah was dead. They had punished her with death at the palace.

²¹ And Joash was seven years old when he began to rule Judah as king.