Timeline
The Kings of Judah
A chronological walk through the Kings of Judah, from Rehoboam to Zedekiah and the fall of Jerusalem, with each king colored by the verdict of Scripture and the prophets who spoke in his day.
The Kings of Judah
Did Right
Right, Then Turned
Did Evil
Prophets
Events
The Kingdom Divided
Alliance with the House of Ahab
Recovery and Prosperity
The Assyrian Threat
Josiah's Reform
The Babylonian Period
Rehoboam (1 Kings 12:1-24; 14:21-31; 2 Chronicles 10-12)
Solomon's son answered the people harshly and lost ten tribes. Judah under him built high places, and Shishak of Egypt stripped the temple.
Family - Mother: Naamah the Ammonitess - Wives: Mahalath, Maacah the daughter of Absalom, and others: eighteen wives and sixty concubines - Children: Abijah (Abijam), Jeush, Shemariah, Zaham, Attai, Ziza, Shelomith; twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters in all
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 17 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 41 (1 Kings 14:21). - Rejected the counsel of the old men at Shechem and answered the people after the counsel of the young men, and the ten northern tribes made Jeroboam king. - Gathered an army to win the north back, but stood down when Jehovah's word came through Shemaiah the man of God. - Fortified cities across Judah and received the priests and Levites who left the north when Jeroboam set up his calves. - In his days Judah built high places, pillars, and Asherim on every high hill. In his fifth year Shishak king of Egypt came up and carried off the temple and palace treasures, including Solomon's shields of gold; Rehoboam replaced them with shields of brass. - There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually (1 Kings 14:30).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil, because he set not his heart to seek Jehovah.” > — 2 Chronicles 12:14
“And when he humbled himself, the wrath of Jehovah turned from him, so as not to destroy him altogether: and moreover in Judah there were good things found.” — 2 Chronicles 12:12
Shemaiah · 1 Kgs 12:22
Abijam (Abijah) (1 Kings 15:1-8; 2 Chronicles 13)
Walked in his father's sins, yet defeated Jeroboam after a bold speech on Mount Zemaraim. Kept on the throne for David's sake.
Family - Mother: Maacah the daughter of Abishalom (1 Kings 15:2); called Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah in 2 Chronicles 13:2 - Wives: Fourteen - Children: Asa; twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 3 years in Jerusalem (1 Kings 15:2). - Continued the war with Jeroboam that his father had fought. - Before battle, stood on Mount Zemaraim and reminded Israel of the covenant with David, the Levitical priesthood, and the golden calves they had made gods (2 Chronicles 13:4-12). - Though outflanked by an ambush, Judah cried to Jehovah and won, taking Beth-el, Jeshanah, and Ephron from Israel.
The Verdict > “And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him; and his heart was not perfect with Jehovah his God, as the heart of David his father.” > — 1 Kings 15:3
“Nevertheless for David’s sake did Jehovah his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem;” — 1 Kings 15:4
Asa (1 Kings 15:9-24; 2 Chronicles 14-16)
The first reforming king of Judah. He purged idols and deposed his own grandmother, though in later years he leaned on Syria instead of Jehovah.
Family - Mother: Maacah the daughter of Abishalom (likely his grandmother, 1 Kings 15:10) - Wives: Azubah the daughter of Shilhi - Children: Jehoshaphat
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 41 years in Jerusalem (1 Kings 15:10). - Put away the sodomites and the idols, and removed Maacah from being queen because she had made an abominable image for an Asherah. - Cried to Jehovah and routed Zerah the Ethiopian at Mareshah: “help us, O Jehovah our God; for we rely on thee” (2 Chronicles 14:11). - At the word of Azariah the son of Oded, led Judah in a great covenant to seek Jehovah. - When Baasha of Israel fortified Ramah, Asa sent the temple treasures to Ben-hadad of Syria to break the blockade. Hanani the seer rebuked him, and Asa put him in prison. - Diseased in his feet in his thirty-ninth year, “yet in his disease he sought not to Jehovah, but to the physicians” (2 Chronicles 16:12).
The Verdict > “And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, as did David his father.” > — 1 Kings 15:11
“But the high places were not taken away: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect with Jehovah all his days.” — 1 Kings 15:14
“For the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly; for from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” — 2 Chronicles 16:9 (Hanani to Asa)
Azariah son of Oded · 2 Chr 15:1
Hanani the seer · 2 Chr 16:7
Jehoshaphat (1 Kings 22:41-50; 2 Chronicles 17-20)
Sent teachers through Judah with the book of the law and won a battle by singing praise, but bound his house to Ahab's by marriage.
Family - Mother: Azubah the daughter of Shilhi - Wives: None recorded - Children: Jehoram, Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, Shephatiah; Athaliah, Ahab's daughter, became his daughter-in-law
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 25 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 35 (1 Kings 22:42). - Sent princes, Levites, and priests through the cities of Judah, “having the book of the law of Jehovah with them” (2 Chronicles 17:9), and appointed judges in every fortified city. - Formed an alliance with Ahab: he “joined affinity with Ahab” (2 Chronicles 18:1), and went with him to Ramoth-gilead, where Ahab died. Jehu the son of Hanani rebuked him on his return. - Facing Moab, Ammon, and Mount Seir, he prayed, “neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee” (2 Chronicles 20:12), and sent singers before the army. Jehovah set ambushes and the enemy was destroyed. - His ships for Ophir were broken at Ezion-geber; Chronicles ties the loss to his partnership with Ahaziah of Israel. - Later joined Jehoram of Israel and the king of Edom against Mesha of Moab (2 Kings 3).
The Verdict > “And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; He turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah: howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.” > — 1 Kings 22:43
“And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the wicked, and love them that hate Jehovah? for this thing wrath is upon thee from before Jehovah.” — 2 Chronicles 19:2
A note on dates Scripture gives Jehoshaphat twenty-five years (1 Kings 22:42). The range begins c. 872 BC, when he likely became co-regent during Asa's illness (2 Chronicles 16:12); he reigned alone from c. 869 BC.
Jehu son of Hanani · 2 Chr 19:2
Jehoram (Joram) (2 Kings 8:16-24; 2 Chronicles 21)
Married Athaliah, daughter of Ahab, and walked in the ways of Ahab's house. He murdered his brothers, lost Edom, and died unmourned.
Family - Mother: Not recorded - Wives: Athaliah, daughter of Ahab - Children: Ahaziah (also called Jehoahaz), Jehosheba (Jehoshabeath), and other sons carried off in a raid
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 8 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 32 (2 Kings 8:17). His reign began while Jehoshaphat was still king (2 Kings 8:16). - Once established, slew all his brothers with the sword, and some of the princes of Israel. - Edom revolted and made a king of its own, and Libnah revolted at the same time. - Received a writing from Elijah the prophet, condemning him for walking in the ways of the kings of Israel and for slaying brothers better than himself (2 Chronicles 21:12-15). - Philistines and Arabians broke into Judah and carried off his goods, his wives, and all his sons but the youngest. - Died of an incurable disease of the bowels, and was not buried in the sepulchres of the kings.
The Verdict > “And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife; and he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah.” > — 2 Kings 8:18
“Howbeit Jehovah would not destroy Judah, for David his servant’s sake, as he promised him to give unto him a lamp for his children alway.” — 2 Kings 8:19
“Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years: and he departed without being desired; and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.” — 2 Chronicles 21:20
A note on dates Scripture gives Jehoram eight years (2 Kings 8:17). The range begins in 853 BC, when he became co-regent with Jehoshaphat; he reigned alone from 848 BC.
Elijah's letter · 2 Chr 21:12
Obadiah? · date debated
Ahaziah (2 Kings 8:25-29; 9:27-29; 2 Chronicles 22:1-9)
Son of Athaliah, counseled by his mother to do wickedly. Visiting his wounded uncle Joram of Israel, he was caught in Jehu's purge.
Family - Mother: Athaliah, granddaughter of Omri - Wives: Zibiah of Beer-sheba (mother of Joash) - Children: Joash, and other sons slain by Athaliah
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 1 year in Jerusalem. 2 Kings 8:26 gives his age at accession as 22; the ASV of 2 Chronicles 22:2 reads 42. - The youngest son of Jehoram, and the only one left after the raid of the Philistines and Arabians. - Went with Joram king of Israel to fight Hazael of Syria at Ramoth-gilead, then went down to Jezreel to see Joram, who had been wounded. - Was there when Jehu rode in. He fled, was struck near Ibleam, and died at Megiddo (2 Kings 9:27).
The Verdict > “And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, as did the house of Ahab; for he was the son-in-law of the house of Ahab.” > — 2 Kings 8:27
“He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab; for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly.” — 2 Chronicles 22:3
Athaliah (2 Kings 11; 2 Chronicles 22:10 – 23:21)
The only woman to rule Judah, and a usurper. She destroyed the royal seed, but one infant son of Ahaziah was hidden in the temple.
Family - Father: Ahab king of Israel (2 Kings 8:18); called “the daughter of Omri” as his descendant (2 Kings 8:26) - Husband: Jehoram king of Judah - Children: Ahaziah
Key History & Reign - Ruled: 6 years (2 Kings 11:3). She is never given the usual opening and closing formula of a king of Judah. - When her son Ahaziah died, she rose up and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of David. - Jehosheba, Ahaziah's sister and the wife of Jehoiada the priest, stole away the infant Joash and hid him six years in the house of Jehovah. - Her sons had broken up the house of God and given its dedicated things to the Baalim (2 Chronicles 24:7). - In the seventh year, Jehoiada crowned Joash in the temple. Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, “Treason! treason!” (2 Kings 11:14), and was taken out and slain at the horses' entry to the king's house. - The people then broke down the house of Baal and slew Mattan its priest.
The Verdict > “Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal.” > — 2 Kings 11:1
“For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken up the house of God; and also all the dedicated things of the house of Jehovah did they bestow upon the Baalim.” — 2 Chronicles 24:7
Joash (Jehoash) (2 Kings 11:21 – 12:21; 2 Chronicles 24)
Crowned at seven, he repaired the temple while Jehoiada the priest guided him. After Jehoiada died he turned to idols and had Jehoiada's son stoned.
Family - Mother: Zibiah of Beer-sheba - Wives: Two, chosen for him by Jehoiada (2 Chronicles 24:3) - Children: Amaziah, and other sons and daughters - Guardians: Jehoiada the priest and his wife Jehosheba, the boy's aunt
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 40 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 7 (2 Kings 11:21; 12:1). - When the priests had still not repaired the temple by his twenty-third year, Jehoiada set a chest with a hole bored in its lid beside the altar, and the work was paid for. - Jehoiada died at 130 and was buried among the kings. Then the princes of Judah came to the king, he hearkened to them, and they served the Asherim and the idols. - Zechariah the son of Jehoiada rebuked the people and was stoned “at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of Jehovah” (2 Chronicles 24:21). - Bought off Hazael of Syria with the temple's hallowed things; a small Syrian army later defeated Judah's great host. - Slain on his bed by his own servants, for the blood of Jehoiada's sons, and not buried in the sepulchres of the kings.
The Verdict > “And Jehoash did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.” > — 2 Kings 12:2
“Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them. And they forsook the house of Jehovah, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols: and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guiltiness.” — 2 Chronicles 24:17-18
“Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he said, Jehovah look upon it, and require it.” — 2 Chronicles 24:22
Joel? · date debated
Zechariah son of Jehoiada stoned · 2 Chr 24:20-22
Amaziah (2 Kings 14:1-22; 2 Chronicles 25)
Obeyed the law in sparing his father's murderers' children and beat Edom, then bowed to Edom's gods and picked a disastrous war with Israel.
Family - Mother: Jehoaddin of Jerusalem - Wives: None recorded - Children: Uzziah (Azariah)
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 29 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 25 (2 Kings 14:2). He lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash of Israel (2 Kings 14:17). - Executed the servants who had killed his father, but not their children, “according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses” (2 Kings 14:6). - Hired a hundred thousand soldiers of Israel for a hundred talents, then sent them home at the word of a man of God: “Jehovah is able to give thee much more than this” (2 Chronicles 25:9). - Slew ten thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt and took Sela. - Brought home the gods of Seir and bowed down before them. When a prophet rebuked him, he silenced the prophet. - Challenged Jehoash of Israel, who answered with the parable of the thistle and the cedar. Amaziah was taken at Beth-shemesh, Jerusalem's wall was broken down, and the temple treasures and hostages were carried to Samaria. - Fled a conspiracy to Lachish and was slain there.
The Verdict > “And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, yet not like David his father: he did according to all that Joash his father had done.” > — 2 Kings 14:3
“And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, but not with a perfect heart.” — 2 Chronicles 25:2
“Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.” — 2 Chronicles 25:14
Uzziah (Azariah) (2 Kings 15:1-7; 2 Chronicles 26)
Judah's strongest king since Solomon. Prosperity made him proud, he burned incense in the temple, and he died a leper. Isaiah saw the Lord the year he died.
Family - Mother: Jecoliah of Jerusalem - Wives: None recorded - Children: Jotham
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 52 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 16 (2 Kings 15:2). Called Azariah in Kings and Uzziah in Chronicles and Isaiah. The 52 years begin in 792 BC, when he became co-regent with Amaziah; he reigned alone from 767 BC, and Jotham governed for him from 750 BC. - Sought God in the days of Zechariah, “who had understanding in the vision of God: and as long as he sought Jehovah, God made him to prosper” (2 Chronicles 26:5). - Broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod; God helped him against the Arabians and the Meunim; the Ammonites paid tribute. - Built towers in Jerusalem and in the wilderness, dug many cisterns, “for he loved husbandry” (2 Chronicles 26:10), and fitted the walls with engines to shoot arrows and great stones. - Lifted up by his strength, he went into the temple to burn incense. Azariah the priest and eighty priests withstood him; while he raged at them, leprosy broke out in his forehead. - Lived in a separate house until he died, while Jotham judged the people of the land. - Amos and Hosea prophesied to the north in his days; the earthquake “in the days of Uzziah” was remembered for centuries (Amos 1:1; Zechariah 14:5). Isaiah wrote the acts of his reign (2 Chronicles 26:22).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that his father Amaziah had done.” > — 2 Kings 15:3
“But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up, so that he did corruptly, and he trespassed against Jehovah his God; for he went into the temple of Jehovah to burn incense upon the altar of incense.” — 2 Chronicles 26:16
The Year Uzziah Died > “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and his train filled the temple.” > — Isaiah 6:1
Amos & Hosea (to Israel) · Amos 1:1; Hos 1:1
Isaiah's call · 740 BC · Isa 6
Jotham (2 Kings 15:32-38; 2 Chronicles 27)
Governed for his leprous father, then reigned in his own right. He did right without repeating Uzziah's sin, but the people still did corruptly.
Family - Mother: Jerusha the daughter of Zadok - Wives: None recorded - Children: Ahaz
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 16 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 25 (2 Kings 15:33). Much of it overlapped Uzziah's last years, when Jotham “was over the household, judging the people of the land” (2 Kings 15:5). - Did right as his father had done, “howbeit he entered not into the temple of Jehovah” (2 Chronicles 27:2): he did not repeat Uzziah's trespass. - Built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah, cities in the hill country of Judah, and castles and towers in the forests. - Subdued the Ammonites, who paid him tribute three years running. - Isaiah and Micah were both prophesying in his days (Isaiah 1:1; Micah 1:1). - In his last days Jehovah began to send Rezin of Syria and Pekah of Israel against Judah (2 Kings 15:37), the threat that would break over Ahaz.
The Verdict > “And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that his father Uzziah had done: howbeit he entered not into the temple of Jehovah. And the people did yet corruptly.” > — 2 Chronicles 27:2
“So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before Jehovah his God.” — 2 Chronicles 27:6
A note on dates Scripture gives Jotham sixteen years (2 Kings 15:33). The range begins in 750 BC, when he became co-regent with Uzziah; from 735 BC Ahaz shared the throne with him.
Micah · Jotham to Hezekiah · Mic 1:1
Ahaz (2 Kings 16; 2 Chronicles 28; Isaiah 7)
Besieged by Syria and Israel, he refused Isaiah's sign and bought Assyria's help instead. He burned his son, copied a pagan altar, and shut the temple doors.
Family - Mother: Not recorded - Wives: None recorded - Children: Hezekiah; Maaseiah, “the king’s son,” slain in battle by Zichri of Ephraim (2 Chronicles 28:7); and a son made to pass through the fire
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 16 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 20 (2 Kings 16:2). - Made his son to pass through the fire and burned incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom. - Rezin of Syria and Pekah of Israel came up to besiege Jerusalem to force Judah into their alliance against Assyria. Pekah slew a hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day; a prophet named Oded persuaded Samaria to send the captives home. - Isaiah met him with his son Shear-jashub at the conduit of the upper pool: “Take heed, and be quiet; fear not” (Isaiah 7:4). Told to ask a sign, Ahaz answered, “I will not ask, neither will I tempt Jehovah” (Isaiah 7:12), and the Lord gave the sign of Immanuel. - Sent the temple's silver and gold to Tiglath-pileser: “I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me” (2 Kings 16:7). Assyria took Damascus and slew Rezin. - Saw an altar at Damascus and had Urijah the priest build a copy for the temple. In his distress “did he trespass yet more against Jehovah” (2 Chronicles 28:22), sacrificing to the gods of Damascus, cutting up the temple vessels, and shutting the doors of the house of Jehovah. - Not brought into the sepulchres of the kings.
The Verdict > “Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and he did not that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah his God, like David his father.” > — 2 Kings 16:2
“But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel.” — 2 Kings 16:3
Isaiah's Word to Ahaz > “and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.” > — Isaiah 7:9
“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” — Isaiah 7:14
A note on dates Scripture gives Ahaz sixteen years (2 Kings 16:2). The range begins in 735 BC, when he became co-regent with Jotham.
Isaiah meets Ahaz · Isa 7:3
Fall of Samaria · 722 BC · 2 Kgs 17:6
Hezekiah (2 Kings 18-20; 2 Chronicles 29-32; Isaiah 36-39)
Opened the temple his father had shut, kept a great Passover, and broke even the brazen serpent. None of the kings of Judah trusted Jehovah like him.
Family - Mother: Abi the daughter of Zechariah (Abijah in 2 Chronicles 29:1) - Wives: Hephzibah - Children: Manasseh
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 29 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 25 (2 Kings 18:2). - “He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of Jehovah, and repaired them” (2 Chronicles 29:3), and had the Levites cleanse the temple. - Kept a great Passover and sent letters to the remnant of the north, now under Assyria. Many laughed the couriers to scorn, but some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came. - Removed the high places, broke the pillars, cut down the Asherah, and broke in pieces the brazen serpent Moses had made, which the people had been burning incense to; he called it Nehushtan. - Rebelled against Assyria, refused tribute, and struck the Philistines as far as Gaza. - Stopped the upper spring of Gihon and brought its water down to the west side of the city of David (2 Chronicles 32:30). His men copied out proverbs of Solomon (Proverbs 25:1). - Faced two great tests: Sennacherib's invasion, and his own sickness and the envoys from Babylon (the next two cards).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that David his father had done.” > — 2 Kings 18:3
“He trusted in Jehovah, the God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among them that were before him. For he clave to Jehovah; he departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which Jehovah commanded Moses.” — 2 Kings 18:5-6
A note on dates This chart uses Thiele's 715 BC, which fits 2 Kings 18:13: Sennacherib's invasion (701 BC) in Hezekiah's fourteenth year. It does not fit 2 Kings 18:1, 9-10, which put Hezekiah's first six years in Hoshea's reign, before Samaria fell in 722 BC.
Sennacherib's Invasion (2 Kings 18:13 – 19:37; 2 Chronicles 32:1-23; Isaiah 36-37)
Assyria took Judah's fortified cities and mocked Jehovah at Jerusalem's wall. Hezekiah spread the letter before Jehovah, and in one night the Assyrian camp was struck.
The Account - In Hezekiah's fourteenth year, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them (2 Kings 18:13). - Hezekiah sent to Lachish, saying, “I have offended” (2 Kings 18:14), and paid three hundred talents of silver and thirty of gold, cutting the gold even from the temple doors. - Assyria came on anyway. Rabshakeh stood by the conduit of the upper pool, where Isaiah had once met Ahaz, and called on the people on the wall not to let Hezekiah make them trust in Jehovah. - Hezekiah rent his clothes and sent to Isaiah. Isaiah answered, Be not afraid. - When a threatening letter came, Hezekiah went up to the house of Jehovah and spread it before Jehovah, and prayed. - That night the angel of Jehovah smote 185,000 in the Assyrian camp. Sennacherib went home to Nineveh, where his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer later slew him in the house of his god Nisroch.
Scripture > “Now therefore, O Jehovah our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art Jehovah, even thou only.” > — Isaiah 37:20
“For I will defend this city to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.” — 2 Kings 19:34
“And the angel of Jehovah went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.” — Isaiah 37:36
Bible Study Hezekiah's Tests and Deliverance (Isaiah 36–39)
Hezekiah's Sickness and the Babylonian Envoys (2 Kings 20; 2 Chronicles 32:24-31; Isaiah 38-39)
Healed and given fifteen more years, Hezekiah showed his treasures to envoys from Babylon. Isaiah foretold that all of it would be carried to Babylon.
The Account - Hezekiah was sick unto death, and Isaiah told him, “Set thy house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live” (2 Kings 20:1). - He turned his face to the wall and wept. Before Isaiah had gone out into the middle part of the city, Jehovah sent him back with an answer: fifteen years added, and the city to be delivered from Assyria. - As a sign, the shadow went back ten steps on the dial of Ahaz. Hezekiah's own psalm of thanksgiving is preserved in Isaiah 38:9-20. - Merodach-baladan king of Babylon sent letters and a present. Hezekiah showed the envoys everything in his treasure-houses: “there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah showed them not” (2 Kings 20:13). - Chronicles adds that his heart was lifted up, that he humbled himself, and that in the matter of the ambassadors “God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart” (2 Chronicles 32:31).
Scripture > “Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years.” > — Isaiah 38:5
“Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in thy house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith Jehovah.” — Isaiah 39:6
“Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of Jehovah which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.” — Isaiah 39:8
A Note on Order Kings and Isaiah tell this after the deliverance from Sennacherib, introduced only with the words “In those days” (2 Kings 20:1). But the promise that Jehovah would deliver the city from Assyria (2 Kings 20:6; Isaiah 38:6), and the fifteen years counted back from Hezekiah's death, place the sickness before or during the Assyrian crisis.
Bible Study Hezekiah's Tests and Deliverance (Isaiah 36–39)
Manasseh (2 Kings 21:1-18; 2 Chronicles 33:1-20)
Judah's longest and most wicked reign. He rebuilt the high places, set an Asherah in the temple, and filled Jerusalem with innocent blood. Taken to Babylon in chains, he humbled himself.
Family - Mother: Hephzibah - Wives: Meshullemeth the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah - Children: Amon, and children he made to pass through the fire
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 55 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 12 (2 Kings 21:1). The range begins in 697 BC, when he became co-regent with Hezekiah; he reigned alone from 686 BC. - Built again the high places his father had destroyed, raised altars for Baal, and made an Asherah, as Ahab had done. - Built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the temple, and set a graven image of Asherah in the house of Jehovah. - Made his children pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and practiced augury, enchantments, and sorcery. - He “shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another” (2 Kings 21:16). - Jehovah's prophets announced that He would “wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish” (2 Kings 21:13). - The captains of the king of Assyria took him in chains to Babylon. There he humbled himself greatly and prayed; Jehovah brought him back to Jerusalem. He removed the foreign gods from the temple and built an outer wall for the city of David, but the people still sacrificed in the high places. - Kings names the sins of Manasseh as the reason Judah would go into exile (2 Kings 23:26; 24:3-4).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, after the abominations of the nations whom Jehovah cast out before the children of Israel.” > — 2 Kings 21:2
“And when he was in distress, he besought Jehovah his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. And he prayed unto him; and he was entreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that Jehovah he was God.” — 2 Chronicles 33:12-13
Nahum · c. 663–612 BC
Amon (2 Kings 21:19-26; 2 Chronicles 33:21-25)
Followed his father's idolatry without his father's repentance, and was murdered in his own house after two years.
Family - Mother: Meshullemeth the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah - Wives: Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath - Children: Josiah
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 2 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 22 (2 Kings 21:19). - Served the idols his father had served and forsook Jehovah. - His servants conspired against him and killed him in his own house. The people of the land killed the conspirators and made his eight-year-old son Josiah king.
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, as did Manasseh his father.” > — 2 Kings 21:20
“And he humbled not himself before Jehovah, as Manasseh his father had humbled himself; but this same Amon trespassed more and more.” — 2 Chronicles 33:23
Josiah (2 Kings 22:1 – 23:30; 2 Chronicles 34-35)
Became king at eight. When the book of the law was found in the temple, he tore his robes, renewed the covenant, and purged the land from Jerusalem to Bethel.
Family - Mother: Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath - Wives: Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah; Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah - Children: Johanan, Jehoiakim (Eliakim), Zedekiah (Mattaniah), Shallum (Jehoahaz)
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 31 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 8 (2 Kings 22:1). - In his eighth year he began to seek the God of David; in his twelfth he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 34:3). - In his eighteenth year (622 BC), Hilkiah the high priest found the book of the law while the temple was being repaired. When it was read to the king, he rent his clothes and sent to Huldah the prophetess, who confirmed the coming judgment and promised that he would not see it. - Read the book to all the people and made a covenant before Jehovah at the pillar. - Burned the vessels of Baal, defiled Topheth so no one could pass a child through the fire to Molech, and broke down Jeroboam's altar at Bethel, as a man of God had foretold by name three centuries before (1 Kings 13:2). - Kept a Passover like none since the days of the judges (2 Kings 23:22). - Went out against Pharaoh Neco at Megiddo, not heeding the words of Neco “from the mouth of God” (2 Chronicles 35:22), and was slain. Jeremiah lamented for him.
The Verdict > “And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.” > — 2 Kings 22:2
“And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to Jehovah with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.” — 2 Kings 23:25
“Notwithstanding, Jehovah turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations wherewith Manasseh had provoked him.” — 2 Kings 23:26
Zephaniah · Zeph 1:1
Jeremiah's call · 627 BC · Jer 1:2
Huldah · 622 BC · 2 Kgs 22:14
Jehoahaz (Shallum) (2 Kings 23:31-34; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4)
Made king by the people after Josiah fell. Pharaoh Neco deposed him after three months and carried him to Egypt, where he died.
Family - Mother: Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah - Wives: None recorded - Children: None recorded
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 3 months in Jerusalem, beginning at age 23 (2 Kings 23:31). Jeremiah calls him Shallum (Jeremiah 22:11). - The people of the land anointed him in his father's place, passing over his older brother Eliakim. - Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath and laid a tribute on the land of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. - Taken to Egypt, where he died. Jeremiah: “He shall not return thither any more” (Jeremiah 22:11).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that his fathers had done.” > — 2 Kings 23:32
Jehoiakim (Eliakim) (2 Kings 23:34 – 24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:4-8)
Egypt's appointee, then Babylon's vassal after 605 BC. He cut up and burned Jeremiah's scroll and rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.
Family - Mother: Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah - Wives: None recorded - Children: Jehoiachin (Jeconiah)
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 11 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 25 (2 Kings 23:36). - Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim king in place of Jehoahaz and changed his name to Jehoiakim. He taxed the land to pay Egypt's tribute. - In 605 BC Nebuchadnezzar defeated Egypt at Carchemish (Jeremiah 46:2) and came to Jerusalem; Daniel and his companions were carried to Babylon (Daniel 1:1-6). - Served Nebuchadnezzar three years, then rebelled. Bands of Chaldeans, Syrians, Moabites, and Ammonites were sent against Judah. - When Jeremiah's scroll was read to him, he cut it with a penknife and cast it into the fire, a few leaves at a time (Jeremiah 36:23). - Killed the prophet Uriah, who had fled to Egypt (Jeremiah 26:20-23). Jeremiah foretold that he would have the burial of a donkey, dragged and cast out beyond the gates (Jeremiah 22:19).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that his fathers had done.” > — 2 Kings 23:37
“And it came to pass, when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, that the king cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.” — Jeremiah 36:23
Habakkuk · c. 609–598 BC
Daniel taken to Babylon · 605 BC · Dan 1:1
Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) (2 Kings 24:8-17; 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10)
Surrendered Jerusalem to Nebuchadnezzar after three months and went into exile with ten thousand captives. Thirty-seven years later he was released from prison.
Family - Mother: Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem - Wives: Unnamed; carried to Babylon with him (2 Kings 24:15) - Children: Shealtiel and others (1 Chronicles 3:17); listed as Jechoniah in the genealogy of Jesus (Matthew 1:11-12)
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 3 months in Jerusalem, beginning at age 18 (2 Kings 24:8). The ASV of 2 Chronicles 36:9 reads “eight years old” and adds ten days to the reign. - Also called Jeconiah, and Coniah by Jeremiah. - Went out to Nebuchadnezzar with his mother, servants, princes, and officers, and was carried to Babylon in 597 BC. - With him went the temple treasures and “ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths” (2 Kings 24:14); Ezekiel was among the exiles (Ezekiel 1:2). - Jeremiah declared that no man of his seed would prosper “sitting upon the throne of David” (Jeremiah 22:30). - In the thirty-seventh year of his captivity, Evil-merodach king of Babylon brought him out of prison and gave him a place at the king's table for the rest of his life (2 Kings 25:27-30).
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that his father had done.” > — 2 Kings 24:9
Ezekiel among the exiles · 597 BC · Ezek 1:2
Zedekiah (Mattaniah) (2 Kings 24:17 – 25:7; 2 Chronicles 36:10-21; Jeremiah 37-39)
Placed on the throne by Babylon, he asked Jeremiah for a word in secret but would not obey it. He broke his oath to Nebuchadnezzar and saw his sons slain before he was blinded.
Family - Mother: Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah (full brother of Jehoahaz) - Relation: A son of Josiah and the uncle of Jehoiachin - Children: Sons slain at Riblah; daughters left at Mizpah (Jeremiah 41:10)
Key History & Reign - Reigned: 11 years in Jerusalem, beginning at age 21 (2 Kings 24:18). - Nebuchadnezzar made Mattaniah king and changed his name to Zedekiah, after making him swear by God (2 Chronicles 36:13). - Rebelled against Babylon. In his ninth year, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar's army encamped against Jerusalem. - During the siege the princes cast Jeremiah into a miry dungeon. Zedekiah had him brought out and asked him in secret, “Is there any word from Jehovah?” (Jeremiah 37:17), but he would not surrender as the word told him. - In his eleventh year the famine was sore, and the wall was breached. He fled by night toward the Arabah and was overtaken in the plains of Jericho. - At Riblah, the king of Babylon slew his sons before his eyes, put out his eyes, and carried him to Babylon in fetters.
The Verdict > “And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.” > — 2 Kings 24:19
“and he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah his God; he humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of Jehovah.” — 2 Chronicles 36:12
“And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon.” — 2 Kings 25:7
Jeremiah in the dungeon · Jer 38:6
Jerusalem Destroyed (2 Kings 25; 2 Chronicles 36:15-21; Jeremiah 39; 52)
Nebuzaradan burned the temple, the palace, and every great house, broke down the walls, and carried the people to Babylon. The line of David's kings in Jerusalem came to an end.
The Account - In the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard came to Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:8; Jeremiah 52:12). - He burned the house of Jehovah, the king's house, and every great house, and the Chaldean army broke down the walls round about. - The rest of the people were carried away to Babylon. Only the poorest were left to be vinedressers and husbandmen. - The bronze pillars, the bases, and the bronze sea were broken up and carried to Babylon, with the vessels of the temple. - Seraiah the chief priest and other leaders were put to death at Riblah. - Gedaliah was made governor at Mizpah; Ishmael, of the seed royal, murdered him, and the remaining people fled to Egypt for fear of the Chaldeans.
Scripture > “And he burnt the house of Jehovah, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, burnt he with fire.” > — 2 Kings 25:9
“And Jehovah, the God of their fathers, sent to them by his messengers, rising up early and sending, because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling-place: but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until the wrath of Jehovah arose against his people, till there was no remedy.” — 2 Chronicles 36:15-16
“to fulfil the word of Jehovah by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths: for as long as it lay desolate it kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.” — 2 Chronicles 36:21
Where the Books End Kings closes with Jehoiachin, the exiled heir of David, lifted out of prison and eating at the king of Babylon's table (2 Kings 25:27-30). Chronicles closes with Cyrus king of Persia stirred up by Jehovah to proclaim the return (2 Chronicles 36:22-23).