Jehosephat died and gave his sons all kinds of land and riches, but he made Jehoram king or Judah because Jehoram was the oldest. Jehoram then turned around and killed all his other brothers as well as anyone else who may have gotten the idea into their heads to challenge the throne and began living like Ahab. He married a descendant of Ahab and started building high places and did all the things that we're coming to find as stereotypical bad king behaviors. This included ignoring the warnings and rebukes of the prophet Elijah, which finally landed him in hot water with God, who set some foreign armies on Judah. The Arabs and the Cushites both decided to invade. They didn't take over, but just looted the palace and the countryside. After that Jehoram got sick for a long time and died, largely unmourned by his people.
Jehoram was succeeded by his youngest son Ahaziah because all the older sons were killed by the Arabs. Ahaziah wasn't a bad guy, but his mother was from Ahab's family and she gave him bad advice all the time. He only ruled for a year because he got mixed up with the family of Ahab and sort of got caught in the cross-fire as God was wiping them all out. Bad luck man.
After Ahaziah was dead, his mother set to work wiping out his whole line. I guess this was because of something to do with the family of Ahab again. Ahaziah had still been carrying the torch for the line of David though so it's no surprise that events conspired to preserve exactly one son of Ahaziah and his nurse. The boy was hidden away in the temple while the wicked grandmother ruled Judah. His name was Joash, and when he got a little older, all the priests and Levites and God-fearing men of Judah got together and made him king. There was no subterfuge this time, no raising an army up in the desert and launching a surprise attack. They just got together and held a coronation ceremony in the temple. When the queen heard the commotion and wandered down to see what was happening she shouted and made a big stink about treason, but I guess all her guards must have supported Joash too because she didn't really do anything about it. Except get killed with a sword.
Joash worked with the chief priest to rebuild and repair the temple which they funded by building a big wooden chest and setting it outside the front gate. All the officials in Judah came and put money in the chest as Moses had decreed they should do back when they were still setting up the tabernacle. The temple repairs went well and all the shrines to foreign gods were removed, but after the priest died, his son, Zachariah, spoke out against the idol worship that was starting to pick back up again and Joash had the people stone him to death. For killing that good priest, God allowed Aram to invade and wound Joash. Later the temple officials, still angry about the death of Zachariah, killed him in his bed.
Jehoram was succeeded by his youngest son Ahaziah because all the older sons were killed by the Arabs. Ahaziah wasn't a bad guy, but his mother was from Ahab's family and she gave him bad advice all the time. He only ruled for a year because he got mixed up with the family of Ahab and sort of got caught in the cross-fire as God was wiping them all out. Bad luck man.
After Ahaziah was dead, his mother set to work wiping out his whole line. I guess this was because of something to do with the family of Ahab again. Ahaziah had still been carrying the torch for the line of David though so it's no surprise that events conspired to preserve exactly one son of Ahaziah and his nurse. The boy was hidden away in the temple while the wicked grandmother ruled Judah. His name was Joash, and when he got a little older, all the priests and Levites and God-fearing men of Judah got together and made him king. There was no subterfuge this time, no raising an army up in the desert and launching a surprise attack. They just got together and held a coronation ceremony in the temple. When the queen heard the commotion and wandered down to see what was happening she shouted and made a big stink about treason, but I guess all her guards must have supported Joash too because she didn't really do anything about it. Except get killed with a sword.
Joash worked with the chief priest to rebuild and repair the temple which they funded by building a big wooden chest and setting it outside the front gate. All the officials in Judah came and put money in the chest as Moses had decreed they should do back when they were still setting up the tabernacle. The temple repairs went well and all the shrines to foreign gods were removed, but after the priest died, his son, Zachariah, spoke out against the idol worship that was starting to pick back up again and Joash had the people stone him to death. For killing that good priest, God allowed Aram to invade and wound Joash. Later the temple officials, still angry about the death of Zachariah, killed him in his bed.
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