17 June 2022
Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, that they should be the Lord’s people; also between the king and the people. Then all the people of the land went to the house of Baal, and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, before the altars. The priest posted guards over the house of the Lord. So all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been killed with the sword at the king’s house.
From 2 Kings 11:1-4,9-18,20, NRSV
In today’s Old Testament reading we hear the lengthy story of a coup which restored the kingdom of Judah to the line of David. In a previous coup, Athaliah, used the occasion of the death of her son (King Ahaziah) to mount her own claim to the throne. Athaliah’s own family had previously been destroyed and she saw this as an opportunity to reclaim something for them. Athaliah was unscrupulous in her dealings and set out to do away with all those of “royal stock”. Unknown to her, King Ahaziah’s son was spared and kept in hiding. Athaliah laid claim to the throne and during her six year reign she imposed the worship of idols on the people. In the seventh year of her reign, Jehoiada, one of the Temple priests arranged a coup during which the young boy Joash (Athaliah’s grandson) was anointed king. Athaliah was put to death and Jehoiada immediately set about destroying all signs of idolatry and restoring the covenant between the people, the king and God.
- Was it necessary for Athaliah to be put to death?
- Is it important for us as Christians to know this story – why?
You may find it interesting to read the entire reading from which the extract above has been taken and to think about why the events unfolded as they did.
