Zechariah Son of Jehoiada

After the death of Jehoiada the priest, King Joash listened to the misguided advice of Judah’s leaders and reinstated idol worship. He disregarded the LORD’s warnings delivered through the prophets and strayed from the right path. He refused to repent, ignoring the stern warnings of Zechariah, Jehoiada’s son. Instead, he ordered Zechariah to be stoned to death in the courtyard of the temple. As Zechariah was dying, he said, “May the LORD see this and call you to account.” In stark contrast to Jehoiada, who commanded his soldiers not to kill Athaliah inside the temple to avoid defiling it, Joash now ordered the stoning of Jehoiada’s son Zechariah “in the courtyard of the house of the LORD.” Jehoiada had saved Joash and helped him ascend to the throne, yet Joash repaid good with evil. Thus, Zechariah prayed, “May the LORD see this and call you to account.”

In the Hebrew original, the words for “call to account” and “seek” are the same, meaning “to look for.” This is the only place in the Book of Chronicles where God is described as “seeking” someone.

*This Zechariah is not the author of the Old Testament Book of Zechariah.