أخزيا ملك يهوذا
(2مل 8:25-29؛ 2مل 9:27-29)1 فأقامَ سُكَّانُ أورُشليمَ أخَزْيا بنَ يورامَ الأصغَرَ مَلِكا مكانَ أبـيهِ، لأنَّ الغُزاةَ الّذينَ جاؤُوا معَ العربِ إلى المُعَسكرِ قتَلوا جميعَ بَنيهِ الكِبار. 2 وكانَ أخَزْيا ابنَ عِشرينَ سنَةً حينَ ملَكَ، وملَكَ سنَةً واحدَةً بِأورُشليمَ، وكانَ اسمُ أُمِّهِ عثَلْيا بِنتَ عَمري. 3 وسلَكَ هوَ أيضا طُرُقَ نَسلِ أخابَ السَّيِّئَةَ، لأنَّ أمَّهُ كانَت تُشيرُ علَيهِ بارْتِكابِ المَعاصي. 4 ففعَلَ الشَّرَّ في نظَرِ الرّبِّ كنَسلِ أخابَ، الّذينَ كانوا مُستَشاريهِ بَعدَ موتِ أبـيهِ، مِمَّا أدَّى إلى هلاكِهِ. 5 فسَلَكَ بِـحسَبِ مَشورَتِهِم حينَ خرَجَ معَ يورامَ بنِ أخابَ مَلِكِ إِسرائيلَ لِقِتالِ حَزائيلَ مَلِكِ آرامَ في راموثَ جِلعادَ. وهُناكَ أصابَ الآراميُّونَ يورامَ بِـجِراحٍ، 6 فرجَعَ إلى يزرَعيلَ ليَتَعالَجَ مِنْ جِراحِهِ، فزارَهُ أخَزْيا هُناكَ في مرَضِهِ.
7 فكانَت مشيئَةُ اللهِ أنْ تكونَ هذِهِ الزِّيارةُ إلى يورامَ سبَبا في هلاكِهِ، لأنَّهُ بَعدَها خرَجَ معَ يورامَ لِقِتالِ ياهو بنِ نَمْشي الّذي مسَحَهُ الرّبُّ مَلِكا ليُبـيدَ نَسلَ أخابَ. 8 وبـينَما كانَ الرّبُّ يستَخدِمُ ياهو لِتَنفيذِ قضائِهِ على نَسلِ أخابَ، لَقيَ ياهو جماعَةً مِنْ أعيانِ يَهوذا وبَني إخوَةِ أخَزْيا المُرافِقينَ لَه فقَتَلَهُم. 9 وأمرَ ياهو رِجالَهُ بِالبَحثِ عَنْ أخَزْيا، فأمسَكوهُ وهوَ مُختَبِـئٌ في السَّامِرةِ وجاؤُوا بهِ إلى ياهو، فقَتَلوهُ ودفَنوهُ إكراما لِجَدِّهِ المَلِكِ يوشافاطَ الّذي عبَدَ الرّبَّ بكُلِّ قلبِهِ. فلم يَبقَ مِنْ نَسلِ أخَزْيا مَنْ يَقدِرُ على ضَبْطِ شُؤونِ المَملَكةِ.
عثليا ملكة يهوذا
(2مل 11:1-3)10 فلمَّا رَأت عثَلْيا أنَّ ابنَها أخَزْيا ماتَ، قتَلَت جميعَ النَّسلِ المَلَكيِّ مِن أهلِ يَهوذا. 11 لكِنَّ يوشَبْعَةَ بِنتَ المَلِكِ يورامَ وزَوجةَ يُوياداعَ الكاهنِ سرَقَت يوآشَ بنَ أخَزْيا أخيها مِنْ بَينِ سائِرِ الأُمَراءِ المَقتولينَ ووَضَعَتهُ معَ مُرضعَتِهِ في إحدى غُرَفِ النَّومِ في هَيكلِ اللهِ، وبِذلِكَ أنقَذَتهُ مِنْ عثَلْيا. 12 فأقامَ هُناكَ سِتَّ سِنينَ مُختَبِئا، وعثَلْيا تَملِكُ على البلادِ.
King Ahaziah of Judah
(2 Kings 8.25-292 9.212 272 28)1 Earlier, when the Arabs led a raid against Judah, they killed all of Jehoram's sons, except Ahaziah, the youngest one. So the people of Jerusalem crowned him their king. 2 He was 22 years old at the time, and he ruled only one year from Jerusalem.
Ahaziah's mother was Athaliah, a granddaughter of King Omri of Israel, 3 and she encouraged her son to sin against the Lord. He followed the evil example of King Ahab and his descendants. 4 In fact, after his father's death, Ahaziah sinned against the Lord by appointing some of Ahab's relatives to be his advisors.
Their advice led to his downfall. 5 He listened to them and went with King Joram of Israel to attack King Hazael and the Syrian troops at Ramoth in Gilead. Joram was wounded in that battle, 6 and he went to the town of Jezreel to recover. And Ahaziah later went there to visit him. 7 It was during that visit that God had Ahaziah put to death.
When Ahaziah arrived at Jezreel, he and Joram went to meet with Jehu grandson of Nimshi. The Lord had already told Jehu to kill every male in Ahab's family, 8 and while Jehu was doing that, he saw some of Judah's leaders and Ahaziah's nephews who had come with Ahaziah. Jehu killed them on the spot, 9 then gave orders to find Ahaziah. Jehu's officers found him hiding in Samaria. They brought Ahaziah to Jehu, who immediately put him to death. They buried Ahaziah only because they respected Jehoshaphat his grandfather, who had done his best to obey the Lord.
There was no one from Ahaziah's family left to become king of Judah.
Queen Athaliah of Judah
(2 Kings 11.1-3)10 As soon as Athaliah heard that her son King Ahaziah was dead, she decided to kill any relative who could possibly become king. She would have done just that, 11 but Jehosheba rescued Joash son of Ahaziah just as the others were about to be murdered. Jehosheba, who was Jehoram's daughter and Ahaziah's half sister, was married to Jehoiada the priest. So she was able to hide her nephew Joash and his personal servant in a bedroom in the Lord's temple where he was safe from Athaliah. 12 Joash hid in the temple with them for six years while Athaliah ruled as queen of Judah.