Ahaziah reigns one year, steered to destruction by his mother’s house — 'his mother was his counselor to do wickedly' — and dies in Jehu’s purge of the house of Ahab. Then the throne devours itself: 'Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.' One infant, Joash, is stolen from among the slain by Jehoshabeath and hidden with his nurse in the house of God six years, while Athaliah reigns.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his youngest son king in his stead; for the band of men that came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the eldest. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned.
verse value 4477
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 97 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·the·eldest" (כׇל־הָרִֽאשֹׁנִים֙, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 30: for, Judah. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "the·young" (הַקָּטֹן֙), "all·the·eldest" (כׇל־הָרִֽאשֹׁנִים֙), "he·slew" (הָרַ֣ג). The root מלך appears 3 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·made·king" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "his·son" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "who·came" (root בוא, 159x in II Chronicles). First appearance of the root גדוד ("the·band") in II Chronicles. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·camp', dividing the verse into phrases of 14 and 5 words.
Metzudat David
that came with the Arabians — that came with the Arabians to the camp of the Philistines to fight against Jehoram, as was written above.
Metzudat Zion
With the Arabians (ba'Aravim) - The letter bet stands in place of a mem, as in 'and that which remains of the flesh and of the bread' (Leviticus 8:32), whose sense is 'from the flesh and from the bread' - so too here, 'from the Arabians.'
Cross-references: II Kings 8:24; II Kings 8:25; II Kings 9:27; II Kings 11:1; II Chronicles 21:17
Ahaziah was forty-two years old when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Athaliah the daughter of Omri.
verse value 4705
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 62 letters. The shortest word is "year" (שָׁנָה֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "son·of·forty" (בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִ֨ים, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·year" (וְשָׁנָ֣ה), "daughter·of·Omri" (בַּת־עׇמְרִֽי). The root שנה appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·his·reigning" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "son·of·forty" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "in·Jerusalem" (root ירושלם, 127x in II Chronicles). First appearance of the root עתליהו ("Athaliah") in II Chronicles. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·Jerusalem', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִ֨ים [son·of·forty] (375) + וּשְׁתַּ֤יִם [and·two] (756) + שָׁנָה֙ [year] (355) + אֲחַזְיָ֣הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + בְמׇלְכ֔וֹ [in·his·reigning] (98) + וְשָׁנָ֣ה [and·year] (361) + אַחַ֔ת [one] (409) + מָלַ֖ךְ [he·reigned] (90) + בִּירוּשָׁלִָ֑ם [in·Jerusalem] (588) + וְשֵׁ֣ם [and·name·of] (346) + אִמּ֔וֹ [his·mother] (47) + עֲתַלְיָ֖הוּ [Athaliah] (521) + בַּת־עׇמְרִֽי [daughter·of·Omri] (722) = 4705.
Rashi
forty two years old But in II Kings (8:26), Scripture says: “twenty-two years old.” How is this possible? Moreover, according to this, the son was two years his father’s senior, [because Joram ascended the throne at thirty-two and died eight years later, making him forty years old upon his death,] but two years before Joram his father was born, this decree was issued upon the house of David that it would end with the house of Ahab, and so Scripture states (below verse 7): “And from God was Ahaziah’s downfall, etc.” and on the day that Asa took Omri’s daughter for Jehoshaphat his son, this decree was issued. So it was taught in Seder Olam (ch. 17) and in the Tosefta of Sotah (12:3). But throughout Scripture we do not find that Jehoshaphat married Omri’s daughter, but I did find (above 18:1): “and he allied himself in marriage with Ahab,” and perhaps that was his sister that he married, and in the thirty first year of Asa he married her, as it is said in (I Kings 16:23): “And (sic) in the thirty-first year of Asa, etc. Omri reigned.” And when Asa married his daughter to Jehoshaphat his son, Omri gained importance, and they slew Tibni. Figure from the thirty-first year of Asa until Ahaziah reigned, and you will find forty two years. Further, one verse states (II Kings 8:25): “In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab, etc., Ahaziah the son of Joram reigned,” and another verse states (ibid. 9:29): “And in the eleventh year of Joram son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king.” Perforce, his father did not die until the twelfth year of Joram son of Ahab, because it is written (ibid. 8: 16f.): “In the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab, etc., Joram the son of Jehoshaphat became king, etc., and he reigned eight years.” And that which Scripture states further, “In the eleventh year of Joram,” is because he reigned one year during his father’s lifetime since his father was smitten with severe illnesses, as it is written (above 21:18.): “And after all this, the Lord plagued him, etc.” (22: 1) “And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king,” for one year during his father’s lifetime, and that is what is written: “In the eleventh year of Joram.” And where Scripture says: “In the twelfth year of Joram,” it means that after his father died, it was the twelfth year of Joram.
Metzudat David
Ahaziah was forty-two years old when he began to reign — Seder Olam teaches that this number is reckoned from the final establishment of Omri's kingship over all Israel, which came about through Jehoshaphat's marrying his [Omri's] daughter, as stated there; and it is possible that he married her one year before Omri became king over all Israel. And because Ahaziah was of his line, it befell him to be killed together with the king of Israel by Jehu; therefore his reign is reckoned from the establishment of Omri's kingship. the daughter of Omri — Above it is stated that his father Jehoram married the daughter of Ahab, while Jehoshaphat, his grandfather, married the daughter of Omri. It is possible that Omri raised her and she was called ‘his daughter,’ even though grandchildren too are called ‘children.’
Malbim
Forty-two years old - This is something utterly impossible, for all the days of Jehoram his father numbered only forty years - so how could his son have been forty-two years old when [Jehoram] died? And in Kings it is written, "Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he began to reign." Our Sages, in Seder Olam and in the Tosefta, said that it means forty-two years from the [start of the] reign of the house of Ahab - for it had been decreed that he [Ahaziah] would perish along with the offspring of Omri. But that is a derash [homiletical reading]; the reading closer to the plain sense, in my view, emerges from a further discrepancy: in Kings (II Kings 8:25) it says Ahaziah became king in the twelfth year of Joram son of Ahab, while there (9:29) it says Ahaziah became king in the eleventh year of Joram. I explained there that as soon as Jehoram [of Judah] fell severely ill, Ahaziah was made king in his father's place - and that was in the eleventh year of Joram son of Ahab; then, the following year, when Jehoram his father died, Ahaziah was crowned a second time, to rule the kingdom independently - and that was in the twelfth year of Joram son of Ahab.
Accordingly, it appears that the two verses here, verse 1 and verse 2, run on together: "And Ahaziah son of Jehoram, king of Judah, began to reign" continues into "Jehoram, king of Judah, being forty years old" - meaning that Ahaziah began to reign when his father Jehoram was forty years old, which is when he first reigned during his father's lifetime, at the time the illness had taken hold, when Jehoram was forty, and Ahaziah reigned in his stead. On this basis, the text goes on to say: "and two [years] old was Ahaziah in his reign" - "[and] he reigned one year in Jerusalem" - meaning that, on the one hand, counting from when he began to reign during his father's lifetime, he reigned two years; and on the other hand, he reigned only one year on his own, which is what he reigned a second time, after his father's death.
This is all the more plausible in light of what he stated above (I Chronicles 8:32), showing that it is the way of our author [Ezra] that a phrase begun in one verse carries forward and continues into the next - as in "and his brother, and Zecher and Mikloth, he begot," whose true sense is: "...and Zecher; and Mikloth begot..." - see there at length, with several proofs; and so, too, the Rashbam wrote regarding "and the sister of Lotan was Timna." So too here, the true sense runs: "And Ahaziah son of Jehoram, king of Judah, began to reign" - "Jehoram, king of Judah, was forty years old" - meaning that his father was forty years old at that time. And the phrase "he reigned in Jerusalem" likewise carries back to what precedes it: "and he was two years old in his reign, [he] reigned in Jerusalem" - meaning, from the perspective of the start of his reign during his father's lifetime; while "one year he reigned" refers to his reigning in his own right.
He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab; for his mother was his counselor to do wickedly.
verse value 2464
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "his·counselor" (יוֹעַצְתּ֖וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 55: also·he, he·walked. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "his·counselor" (יוֹעַצְתּ֖וֹ), "to·do·wickedly" (לְהַרְשִֽׁיעַ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles); "she·was" (root היה, 133x in II Chronicles); "for" (root כי, 131x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ahab', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: גַּם־ה֣וּא [also·he] (55) + הָלַ֔ךְ [he·walked] (55) + בְּדַרְכֵ֖י [in·ways·of] (236) + בֵּ֣ית [house·of] (412) + אַחְאָ֑ב [Ahab] (12) + כִּ֥י [for] (30) + אִמּ֛וֹ [his·mother] (47) + הָיְתָ֥ה [she·was] (420) + יוֹעַצְתּ֖וֹ [his·counselor] (582) + לְהַרְשִֽׁיעַ [to·do·wickedly] (615) = 2464.
Ralbag
'For his mother was his counselor to do wickedly' — Here it is explained that the cause of his doing evil in the eyes of Hashem was the wickedness of his mother and the wickedness of the house of Ahab, who counseled him after the death of his father.
Malbim
He also walked - Meaning, that in his own personal conduct he walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, and this was on his mother's counsel. And also, after he became king, he did evil in the eyes of Hashem in the governance of the nation, and this was on the counsel of his advisors, who were from the house of Ahab, and they counseled him toward his own destruction.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of Hashem, as did the house of Ahab; for they were his counselors after the death of his father, to his destruction.
verse value 3144
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 59 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·him" (לֽוֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "counselors" (יוֹעֲצִ֗ים, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "as·house·of" (כְּבֵ֣ית), "counselors" (יוֹעֲצִ֗ים). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 384x in II Chronicles); "as·house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles); "and·he·did" (root עשה, 159x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ahab', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיַּ֧עַשׂ [and·he·did] (386) + הָרַ֛ע [the·evil] (275) + בְּעֵינֵ֥י [in·eyes·of] (142) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + כְּבֵ֣ית [as·house·of] (432) + אַחְאָ֑ב [Ahab] (12) + כִּי־הֵ֜מָּה [for·they] (80) + הָיוּ־ל֣וֹ [they·were·to·him] (57) + יוֹעֲצִ֗ים [counselors] (226) + אַחֲרֵ֛י [after] (219) + מ֥וֹת [death·of] (446) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + לְמַשְׁחִ֥ית [to·destruction] (788) + לֽוֹ [to·him] (36) = 3144.
Metzudat David
to his destruction — as if to say, their counsel was not for his good but only to destroy him.
He walked also after their counsel, and went with Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel to war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth-gilead; and the Arameans wounded Joram.
verse value 4502
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 77 letters. The shortest word is "also" (גַּ֣ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "with·Jehoram" (אֶת־יְהוֹרָ֨ם, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "in·their·counsel" (בַּעֲצָתָם֮), "against·Hazael" (עַל־חֲזָאֵ֥ל), "the·Arameans" (הָרַמִּ֖ים). The root הלך appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·of" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "son·of·Ahab" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "Israel" (root ישראל, 140x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gilead', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Rashi
and the Arameans smote Joram - Heb. הָרַמִּים, like הָאֲרַמִּים. In many places the “aleph” is missing, as for instance (II Sam. 19:14): “And to Amasa you shall say (תֹמְרוּ).” And sometimes the “aleph” is added to a word, for instance (Ps. 89:1): “Ethan the Ezrahite (הָאֶזְרָחִי),” like הַזַּרְחִי, [descendant of Zerah], and the “aleph” of (Job 13:17): “and to my speech (וְאַחְוָתִי) in your ears.”
Metzudat David
He walked also after their counsel — they would advise him, and he indeed walked in their counsel and listened to them.
Metzudat Zion
The Arameans (haramim) - [Written without an aleph, yet] the same as 'ha'Arameans,' with an aleph.
Malbim
He walked also - His going to war against Hazael was likewise by their counsel, for he should have learned from his grandfather, who regretted having gone with Ahab to war against Aram; and even after the Arameans wounded Joram, when he should have hurried to return home, he paid no heed to this, and went down to see him and visit him in Jezreel. As for the phrase "because of the wounds" - in II Kings (8:28) it says "from the wounds." Ezra's point is that this is why he did not remain in Ramah to be healed there: the Arameans who had wounded him remained in Ramah. For although the king's officers were stationed in Ramah, as stated there (9:1), Aram was also close by there, as can be seen there in chapter 14.
And he returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which they had given him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. And Azariah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.
verse value 5876
Insights
Verse structure: 23 words, 112 letters. Notable word values: "they·struck·him" (הִכֻּ֣הוּ) = 36, double chai. Verse gematria: 5876 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "because" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·Jezreel" (בְיִזְרְעֶ֗אל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 320: in·Jezreel, in·Jezreel. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "to·be·healed" (לְהִתְרַפֵּ֣א), "they·struck·him" (הִכֻּ֣הוּ), "at·Ramah" (בָרָמָ֔ה). The root יזרעאל appears 2 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·of" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "son·of·Jehoram" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "that" (root אשר, 203x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Aram', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 11 words.
Rashi
because of the smiters who smote him כִּי הַמַּכִּים. The meaning is: מִן הַמַּכִּים, because of the smiters, and so it is in II Kings (8:29). and Azariah the son of Jehoram This is Ahaziah, and so Scripture states (ad loc.): “and Ahaziah the son of Joram went down to see Joram.”
Metzudat David
of the wounds which they had given him — this is an elliptical verse, as if it said, ‘for the wounds pained him,’ and so on, and therefore he needed healing. And Azariah — this is Ahaziah; above he was called Jehoahaz, so he was known by three names. went down to see — meaning, to visit him in his illness.
Now the downfall of Ahaziah was of God, in that he went to Joram; for when he had come, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom Hashem had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.
verse value 5148
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 85 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 5148 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "he·went·out" (יָצָ֤א, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·from·God" (וּמֵאֱלֹהִ֗ים, 7 letters). 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·from·God" (וּמֵאֱלֹהִ֗ים), "downfall·of" (תְּבוּסַ֣ת), "to·Joram" (אֶל־יוֹרָ֑ם). The root בוא appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 384x in II Chronicles); "son·of·Nimshi" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "that" (root אשר, 203x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Joram', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 11 words.
Rashi
downfall Heb. תְּבוּסַת. The meaning is confusion, like (Ezek. 16:6): “wallowing (מִתְבּוֹסֶסֶת) in your blood.”
Ralbag
'Now the downfall of Ahaziah was of God' - Meaning, the trampling down and destruction of Ahaziah; or it may mean by this his disgrace - his being defiled, wallowing in his own blood.
Metzudat David
Now the downfall of Ahaziah was of God — Ahaziah's downfall came from Hashem; that is why it was put into his heart to go to Joram, and from this came his death.
Metzudat Zion
Downfall (tevusat) - An expression of trampling and treading down, as in 'like a trampled corpse' (Isaiah 14).
Malbim
was of God - This was by [divine] providence, so that he would perish together with the house of Ahab, since his mother came from that house.
And it came to pass, when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab, that he found the princes of Judah, and the sons of the brethren of Ahaziah, ministering to Ahaziah, and slew them.
verse value 3534
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 69 letters. The shortest word is "brothers·of" (אֲחֵ֧י, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Ahaziah" (לַאֲחַזְיָ֖הוּ, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "when·executing·judgment" (כְּהִשָּׁפֵ֥ט), "upon·house·of" (עִם־בֵּ֣ית), "brothers·of" (אֲחֵ֧י). The root אחזיהו appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·sons·of" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "upon·house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles); "and·it·came·to·pass" (root היה, 133x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ahab', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 9 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֕י [and·it·came·to·pass] (31) + כְּהִשָּׁפֵ֥ט [when·executing·judgment] (414) + יֵה֖וּא [Jehu] (22) + עִם־בֵּ֣ית [upon·house·of] (522) + אַחְאָ֑ב [Ahab] (12) + וַיִּמְצָא֩ [and·he·found] (147) + אֶת־שָׂרֵ֨י [princes·of] (911) + יְהוּדָ֜ה [Judah] (30) + וּבְנֵ֨י [and·sons·of] (68) + אֲחֵ֧י [brothers·of] (19) + אֲחַזְיָ֛הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + מְשָׁרְתִ֥ים [ministering] (990) + לַאֲחַזְיָ֖הוּ [to·Ahaziah] (67) + וַיַּהַרְגֵֽם [and·he·slew·them] (264) = 3534.
Rashi
and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers He does not mention Ahaziah’s brothers because they were slain in the days of Joram their father, as it is written (above 21:17): “And they marched upon Judah and split it, etc., and no son was left to him except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.”
Metzudat David
when Jehu was executing judgment — when he was carrying out the sentence of death upon the house of Ahab. ministering to Ahaziah — who were serving Ahaziah.
Malbim
And he found - This explains what is stated there [in Kings], that he found on the road "the brothers of Ahaziah" - meaning, [really,] the sons of his brothers, since his own brothers had all already been killed, as mentioned above in verse 1.
And he sought Ahaziah, and they caught him—now he was hiding in Samaria—and they brought him to Jehu, and slew him; and they buried him, for they said: ‘He is the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought Hashem with all his heart.’ And there was none of the house of Ahaziah that had power to hold the kingdom.
verse value 6297
Insights
Verse structure: 23 words, 123 letters. Notable word values: "and·he" (וְה֧וּא) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "Ahaziah" (אֶת־אֲחַזְיָ֨הוּ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 30: and·they·brought·him, for. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·he·sought" (וַיְבַקֵּשׁ֩), "and·they·caught·him" (וַֽיִּלְכְּדֻ֜הוּ), "in·Samaria" (בְשֹׁמְר֗וֹן). The root אחזיהו appears 2 times in this verse. 21 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 384x in II Chronicles); "son·of·Jehoshaphat" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "to·house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·all·his·heart', dividing the verse into phrases of 17 and 6 words.
Ralbag
'And there was none of the house of Ahaziah that had power to hold the kingdom' - He means by this that Jehu feared him, lest he take revenge on him for Jehoram and for the house of Ahab, since he was the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought Hashem with all his heart and was successful in his wars. That is why he killed him, and killed the sons of his brothers as well, thinking that he need no longer fear the house of Ahaziah, since the house of Ahaziah had no one left who could hold power for himself and reign - and so Jehu's fear subsided. Or it may mean that the house of Ahaziah had no one left with the strength to fight for the throne.
Metzudat David
now he was hiding in Samaria — when they sought him, he was hiding in Samaria, and there they found him. and they buried him — he [Jehu] ordered that he be brought to Jerusalem to be buried in a grave befitting him, as stated in II Kings, ‘for they said,’ and so on; and for the honor of his father, he deserved an honorable burial. son of Jehoshaphat — he was actually the son of Jehoram, Jehoshaphat's son, but a grandson too is reckoned as a son. And there was none of the house of Ahaziah that had power to hold the kingdom — no one remained of Ahaziah's house with the strength to establish himself in the kingship, for all the royal offspring were young children.
Metzudat Zion
Hiding (mitchabe) - Concealing himself.
Malbim
and they caught him - now he was hiding in Samaria - This explains what is stated there [in Kings], that Jehu pursued him: he fled to Samaria and hid there; and after Jehu went to Samaria and killed the sons of Ahaziah's brothers along the way, he fled from Samaria, and they struck him in his chariot at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ibleam, near Megiddo, and he fled from there to Megiddo - Ibleam and Megiddo being adjacent to one another in the territory of Manasseh - and there they caught him; Jehu put him to death, but gave permission for him to be buried. Thus there is no contradiction between the verses. And there was none of the house of Ahaziah that had power to hold the kingdom - Meaning, no heir apparent remained to him with the strength to hold the people together and reign, for the sons of Ahaziah's brothers - Ahaziah's brothers being themselves the sons of Joram and Athaliah - had been put to death by Jehu. And especially in light of what is stated in Kings, that the men of Judah did not agree to Ahaziah's kingship, and that he was made king only by the inhabitants of Jerusalem alone - therefore his army did not come to his aid against Jehu, and so Athaliah arose to seize the kingdom for herself.
Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.
verse value 4236
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "mother·of" (אֵ֣ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·Athaliah" (וַעֲתַלְיָ֙הוּ֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 30: that, Judah. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·Athaliah" (וַעֲתַלְיָ֙הוּ֙), "she·saw" (רָאֲתָ֖ה), "dead" (מֵ֣ת). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "her·son" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "to·house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles); "that" (root כי, 131x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'her·son', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַעֲתַלְיָ֙הוּ֙ [and·Athaliah] (527) + אֵ֣ם [mother·of] (41) + אֲחַזְיָ֔הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + רָאֲתָ֖ה [she·saw] (606) + כִּ֣י [that] (30) + מֵ֣ת [dead] (440) + בְּנָ֑הּ [her·son] (57) + וַתָּ֗קׇם [and·she·arose] (546) + וַתְּדַבֵּ֛ר [and·she·destroyed] (612) + אֶת־כׇּל־זֶ֥רַע [all·the·seed·of] (728) + הַמַּמְלָכָ֖ה [the·kingdom] (140) + לְבֵ֥ית [to·house·of] (442) + יְהוּדָֽה [Judah] (30) = 4236.
Rashi
she arose and destroyed - Heb. וַתְּדַבֵּר, an expression of דֶּבֶר, pestilence. In II Kings (11:1), it is written: וַתְּאַבֵּד. Concerning this generation, David recited: (Ps. 12:1): “For the conductor on the sheminith,” for David foresaw with the holy spirit that in the eighth generation [of his dynasty] all his descendants would be slain by Athaliah, for there are eight generations from Solomon till here. And he prayed that his seed would survive for a remembrance, and said, (ibid. verse 2): “Save, O Lord, for the pious are gone, etc.” In II Kings (11:2), Scripture states that she killed them by poisoning them, for it is written: “and she stole him away from the dying (הַמְמוֹתִים) children of the king”; we read: הַמּוּמָתִים the slain. Both the traditional reading and the masoretic text have authority. הַמּוּמָתִים means that they already died, and the masoretic text in which the word used is הַמְמוֹתִים means that they were dying in agony. This is written in the continuous present tense, i.e., not all at once but continuously being crushed by illnesses, and then dying. An example is (Jer. 16:4): “Dying of (מְמוֹתֵי) sicknesses they shall die, etc. and with famine,” because they too will not die immediately.
Metzudat David
she arose and destroyed all the seed royal — she brought disaster upon them, for she fed them something poisonous, or the like. of the house of Judah — belonging to the house of Judah.
Malbim
Now Athaliah - This entire account that follows is copied from the book of Kings, chapter 11, with many changes, as we shall explain. and destroyed (vatedaber) - This explains what is stated in the parallel passage (II Kings 11:1) as "vatho'ved" ("and she destroyed"); the meaning is that she destroyed them by way of dever (pestilence) and a deadly poison.
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 slain, and put him and his nurse in the bed-chamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest—for she was the sister of Ahaziah—hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.
verse value 13639
Insights
Verse structure: 31 words, 160 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·his·nurse" (וְאֶת־מֵינִקְתּ֖וֹ, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 793: Jehoshabeath, Jehoshabeath. 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·she·took" (וַתִּקַּח֩), "Joash" (אֶת־יוֹאָ֣שׁ), "son·of·Ahaziah" (בֶּן־אֲחַזְיָ֗הוּ). The root מלך appears 3 times in this verse. 26 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "daughter·of·the·king" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "son·of·Ahaziah" (root בן, 225x in II Chronicles); "she·was" (root היה, 133x in II Chronicles). First appearance of the root יהוידע ("Jehoiada") in II Chronicles. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·beds', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 16 words.
Rashi
in the bed chamber The Targum [Jonathan to II Kings 11:2] renders: in the chamber of the beds, i.e., in the forecourt, in the room where the priests sleep, but Rabbi Solomon of blessed memory (Rashi ad loc) explained it as the attic of the Holy of Holies, as it is written in Kings (verse 3): “And he hid with her in the House of the Lord, etc.,” and concerning him, David said, (Ps. 27:5): “For He will hide me in His Tabernacle, etc.” He calls it the bed chamber based on (Song 1:13): “between my breasts he will lie,” and that is what the Kallir, Rabbi Eliezer Kara composed (in Zichronoth for the first day of Rosh Hashanah in the section devoted to the letter “nun”): If He said to cause them to totter, the smashing of the bed-chamber He will remember for an atonement. The destruction of the Temple will atone for them.
Metzudat David
the daughter of the king — she was the daughter of Jehoram, Ahaziah's sister. in the bed-chamber — which was in the Temple. Jehoiada the priest — it is possible that this is the Johanan mentioned in I Chronicles 5; see the end of [the commentary on] Kings regarding the reckoning of the generations. for she was the sister of Ahaziah — and this is why she had compassion on his son. from Athaliah — this refers back to ‘hid him,’ meaning that the hiding was on account of Athaliah.
Malbim
and put him and his nurse in the bed-chamber - There [in Kings] it is written: "from among the king's sons who were put to death, him and his nurse, in the chamber of beds." And I explained there that the place where those killed by poison lay is called "the chamber of beds," because there they lay upon their beds. Ezra relates that the place where she hid him in the Temple was also called "the chamber of beds," after that same event.
And he was with them hid in the house of God six years; and Athaliah reigned over the land.
verse value 3835
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 44 letters. Verse gematria: 3835 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "six" (שֵׁ֣שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "God" (הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in II Chronicles. Unique to this verse in II Chronicles (hapax): "and·Athaliah" (וַעֲתַלְיָ֖ה). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "reigning" (root מלך, 344x in II Chronicles); "God" (root אלהים, 202x in II Chronicles); "in·house·of" (root בית, 191x in II Chronicles). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'years', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֤י [and·he·was] (31) + אִתָּם֙ [with·them] (441) + בְּבֵ֣ית [in·house·of] (414) + הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים [God] (91) + מִתְחַבֵּ֖א [hiding] (451) + שֵׁ֣שׁ [six] (600) + שָׁנִ֑ים [years] (400) + וַעֲתַלְיָ֖ה [and·Athaliah] (521) + מֹלֶ֥כֶת [reigning] (490) + עַל־הָאָֽרֶץ [over·the·land] (396) = 3835.
Metzudat David
And he was with them — Joash was with Jehoshabeath and her husband in the house of God, for Jehoiada her husband was the high priest, and they dwelt there in the Temple continually.
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion