Ahaziah (, "
Yah has grasped"; also gr, Ὀχοζίας, ''Ochozias'' in the
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond ...
and the
Douai-Rheims translation) was the eighth king of the northern
Kingdom of Israel and the son of
Ahab
Ahab (; akk, 𒀀𒄩𒀊𒁍 ''Aḫâbbu'' 'a-ḫa-ab-bu'' grc-koi, Ἀχαάβ ''Achaáb''; la, Achab) was the seventh king of Israel, the son and successor of King Omri and the husband of Jezebel of Sidon, according to the Hebrew Bib ...
and
. Like his father, he reigned from
Samaria
Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first ...
.
William F. Albright
William Foxwell Albright (May 24, 1891– September 19, 1971) was an American archaeologist, biblical scholar, philologist, and expert on ceramics. He is considered "one of the twentieth century's most influential American biblical scholars."
...
has dated his reign to 850-849 BC, while
E. R. Thiele offers the dates 853-852 BC.
The author of the ''
Books of Kings'' criticized him for following the ways of his father Ahab and his mother Jezebel, and for making Israel sin "in the way of
Jeroboam
Jeroboam I (; Hebrew: ''Yārŏḇə‘ām''; el, Ἱεροβοάμ, Hieroboám) was the first king of the northern Kingdom of Israel. The Hebrew Bible describes the reign of Jeroboam to have commenced following a revolt of the ten northern I ...
the son of
Nebat". Biblical commentator
Albert Barnes notes that the phrase "in the way of his mother"
does not occur anywhere else in the Hebrew Bible, and demonstrates the strong feeling of the writer of the Books of Kings as to the influence of Jezebel.
Reign
During his reign the
Moabites revolted against his authority (). This event is recorded on the
Mesha stele, an extensive inscription written in the
Moabite language.
Ahaziah formed a business partnership with
Jehoshaphat
Jehoshaphat (; alternatively spelled Jehosaphat, Josaphat, or Yehoshafat; ; el, Ἰωσαφάτ, Iosafát; la, Josaphat), according to 1 Kings 22:41, was the son of Asa, and the fourth king of the Kingdom of Judah, in succession to his fathe ...
, king of Judah, in order to construct a fleet of trading ships. However, because Jehoshapat had made an alliance with Ahaziah (who was doing the same evil as Ahab and Jezebel, his father and mother, in the kingdom of Israel) the ships were wrecked and never set sail.
His messengers, sent to consult
Baal-Zebub (the god of prophecy in
Ekron
Ekron (Philistine: 𐤏𐤒𐤓𐤍 ''*ʿAqārān'', he, עֶקְרוֹן, translit=ʿEqrōn, ar, عقرون), in the Hellenistic period known as Accaron ( grc-gre, Ακκαρων, Akkarōn}) was a Philistine city, one of the five cities o ...
) regarding his recovery from the effects of a fall from the roof-gallery of his palace, were met on the way by
Elijah
Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My El (deity), God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic language, Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) w ...
, who sent them back to tell the king that, for his deeds and for seeking a god that was not the God of Israel, he would never rise from his bed (; ). According to the Second Book of Kings, he did not recover from his injuries and died.
Having no son, Ahaziah was succeeded as king of Israel by Joram,
[2 Kings 1:17] his younger brother.
Ancestors
These are ancestors of Ahaziah according to the Bible.
References
External links
{{Authority control
9th-century BC Kings of Israel
Accidental deaths from falls
Omrides
Children of Ahab