Athaliah Reigns in Judah
Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family of the house of Judah. But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were about to be put to death, and she put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Thus Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram and wife of Jehoiada the priest, because she was a sister of Ahaziah, hid him from Athaliah, so that she did not put him to death. And he remained with them six years, hidden in the house of God, while Athaliah reigned over the land.
Sometimes when you read these stories all the names can make the text hard to understand. The above verses are taken right in the middle of a number of events and we need to know the people that are included in the story or have been part of the story prior. Here are some characters that will help us better grasp a truth from the above passage:
1. King Ahaziah. Just prior to the above verses Ahaziah was the king of Judah (the southern tribe). His father, Jehoram, was not a good king. Jehoram married a daughter of King Ahab, who was the wicked king of Judah. King Ahaziah was killed while visiting King Ahab’s son, Joram in the north.
2. Athalia was King Ahaziah’s mother. Therefore, she, too, was a descendant of wicked King Ahab. Her goal in life was to keep the wickedness system that her son, Ahaziah, had started, still in place.
3. Joash was King Ahaziah’s son. He was young and needed someone to protect him. Athalia, to keep the wicked system in place, had to kill anyone who might want to change her power. Joash would eventually become king, only because he was protected.
4. Jehoshabeath was the sister of the deceased King Ahaziah. But to a different mother than Athalia. Jehoshabeth hide Joash to protect him from wicked Athalia. She was also the wife of the Priest Jehoiada, who would eventually keep Joash safe. And here comes our point of the story.
Because God put into place Jehoshabeth and Jehoiada, the next king in the line for the throne, Joash, would be protected. All the names can be confusing. But the truth that God puts people into place, when He needs the, where He needs them and how He needs them is a lesson that can’t be ignored. God puts people where He wants them to be. The Scriptures are full of these examples.
1. Mordecai in the book of Esther was in the right spot for God to use him later (Esther 2)
2. Paul’s nephew heard a plot against Paul and told the captain of the guard (Acts 23)
God always puts people in the right place to do His work. No matter how confusing their name might be.
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