22:1 The people of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, Jehoram’s youngest son, king in his place, since the raiders, who came with the Arabs into the camp, had killed all the older sons. So Ahaziah son of Jehoram king of Judah began to reign.
22:2 Ahaziah was twenty-two [Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac (see also 2 Kings 8:26) Hebrew forty-two] years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for one year. His mother’s name was Athaliah, a granddaughter of Omri.
22:3 He too walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother encouraged him in doing wrong.
22:4 He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, as the house of Ahab had done, for after his father’s death they became his advisers, to his undoing.
22:5 He also followed their counsel when he went with Joram [Hebrew Jehoram, a variant of Joram also in verses 6 and 7] son of Ahab king of Israel to war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth Gilead. The Arameans wounded Joram
22:6 so he returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds they had inflicted on him at Ramoth [Hebrew Ramah, a variant of Ramoth] in his battle with Hazael king of Aram. Then Ahaziah [Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac (see also 2 Kings
22:7 Through Ahaziah’s visit to Joram, God brought about Ahaziah’s downfall. When Ahaziah arrived, he went out with Joram to meet Jehu son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab.
22:8 While Jehu was executing judgment on the house of Ahab, he found the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s 1050 relatives, who had been attending Ahaziah, and he killed them.
22:9 He then went in search of Ahaziah, and his men captured him while he was hiding in Samaria. He was brought to Jehu and put to death. They buried him, for they said, He was a son of Jehoshaphat, who sought the LORD with all his heart. So there was no-one
22:10 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family of the house of Judah.
22:11 But Jehosheba, [Hebrew Jehoshabeath, a variant of Jehosheba] the daughter of King Jehoram, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes who were about to be murdered and put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Because Jehosheba
22:12 He remained hidden with them at the temple of God for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.