Who is King Jehoahaz of Israel?

Quick Facts

Father: King Jehu, 2 Kings 13:1
Length of reign: 17 years, 2 Kings 13:1
Reign:  814 BC–798 BC
Succession: 11th King
Predecessor: King Jehu, 2 Kings 10:35
Successor: Joash of Israel, 2 Kings 13:9
Kingdom: North Israel, 2Ki 13:1
Morality: evil king, 2Ki 13:2
Biblical history: 2 Kings 13:1-9

Disambiguation

Jehoahaz reigns in Israel

The name Jehoahaz means Jehovah-seized. Jehoahaz’s ascension to the throne happened because, during King Jehu’s reign, God promised him unconditionally that his descendants would reign as kings of Israel up to the fourth generation (2Ki 10:30).

Therefore, after King Jehu, though many power-thirsty people were lurking around, none was able to usurp the throne from the house of Jehu, and the throne was peacefully passed to King Jehu’s son, Jehoahaz. King Jehoahaz was the 11th king to reign over North Israel (2Ki 13:1). He reigned for 17 years in Samaria from the year 814 BC to 798 BC.  He was the first to enjoy God’s promise to King Jehu and was the first-generation descendant of King Jehu to ascend the throne.

As it was, the kings of North Israel were uniformly evil, and King Jehoahaz was no different. All the kings before him were idolatrous and paid the price, but that did not teach Jehoahaz to do otherwise for he also perpetuated the sins of Jeroboam – the worship of the golden calves (2Ki 13:2). God was displeased with him. Therefore, He delivered them into the hands of the Syrians. King Hazael of Syria embarked on successful war campaigns against North Israel during the reign of King Jehoahaz (2Ki 13:3).

Israel’s suffering at the hands of the Syrians was a pending issue since the reign of King Jehu. During the reign of King Jehu, God began to deliver His people Israel into the hands of their enemies, the Syrians. King Hazael led the Syrian army to defeat Israel in many battles and took large territories belonging to the Kingdom of Israel such as all the land of Gilead, etc. (2 Kings 10:32-33)

Jehoahaz did not only inherit a throne but also, warfare. King Jehoahaz continued this warfare with the Syrians with the hope of defending his kingdom. However, it appears that the Syrian tyranny against Israel was very sore in the days of Jehoahaz to such an extent that the idolatrous king bypassed his idols and beseech the Lord for help (2Ki 13:4).

God showed mercy and stepped in to help by sending them a savior whose name was not mentioned. By the hand of this savior, God delivered Israel from the Syrians (2Ki 13:5). But by the time the Lord was through with saving Israel, He had allowed the Syrian army to destroy much of Israel’s military strength, reducing Israel’s military to fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen (2Ki 13:7). Even after the Lord had saved them from the Syrians, the Israelites did not turn to Him but continued in idolatry (2Ki 13:6).

Because of God’s promise to King Jehu, Jehoahaz reigned as king for life, and he was not assassinated and dethroned like other kings. After 17 years of ruling, he died of natural causes and his throne was given to his son Jehoash (2Ki 13:9).

Contemporaries of Jehoahaz

  • Joash of Judah had reigned for 23 years when Jehoahaz became a king. There was little chance of friendship between them. (2 Kings 13:1)
  • King Hazael of Syria. Jehoahaz both became king and died during Hazael’s reign. They were enemies for life and fought many wars. (2 Kings 13:3)

Major events during Jehoahaz’s reign

  • The Syrians, through war and conquest, severely oppressed the Israelites during King Jehoahaz’s reign. (2 Kings 13:22)
  • There were several events of war between King Jehoahaz and King Hazael. Though much was not written about these wars, they were very bloody. (2 Kings 13:3)
  • God sent Israel a savior to deliver them out of the hands of the Syrians because King Jehoahaz beseeched Him for help. (2 Kings 13:4)

Achievement of Jehoahaz

The only thing we can credit Jehoahaz for is that he did well to turn to God for help in a critical time when the kingdom was at the mercy of its Syrian enemies. Because Jehoahaz turned to God for help, God saved the kingdom from the oppression of the Syrians. (2 Kings 13:4)

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