Athaliah

Athaliah (Hebrew: עֲתַלְיָה‎; died 835 BC) was queen consort and later queen dowager of the Kingdom of Judah, before becoming its seventh monarch for a period of six years. Her name, Athaliah, means “afflicted by the Lord.” She was the granddaughter of Omri, and her father was King Ahab of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, while her mother (stepmother) was Jezebel. Influenced by Jezebel, Athaliah worshipped Baal, a pagan false god. Her marriage to King Jehoram was considered a political alliance between the northern and southern kingdoms. Because of Athaliah, Jehoram also did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord and enticed the people to abandon the true God, Yahweh, leading to severe moral decay in society.

After Jehoram’s death, his son Ahaziah succeeded him. Athaliah continued to instigate the new king, Ahaziah, to do evil, leading to even greater corruption and rendering him powerless to preserve the kingdom (2 Chronicles 22:1-4, 9). A year into his reign, Ahaziah was rejected by the LORD God and died in battle. After the death of King Ahaziah of Judah, Athaliah seized the opportunity to massacre the remaining members of the Judean royal family and usurp the throne. Ahaziah’s half-sister, Jehosheba, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, hid the infant Joash, who was the only surviving heir to the throne, in her bedroom to save him from being killed. Later, Jehoiada the priest hid Joash in the Temple. During this period, Athaliah wielded royal power (2 Chronicles 22:7, 10-12).

In the seventh year, Jehoiada the priest summoned the tribal elders of Israel from all over Judah to assemble in Jerusalem. They made a covenant in the Temple, proclaiming Joash as king, and the people cheered.

When Athaliah heard the cheering of the assembled people, she came out of the royal palace to see what was happening. When she saw the young king (who was seven years old at the time) standing by the pillar at the entrance of the Temple, with officials standing beside him and the cheering crowds who supported the king, Athaliah cried out, “Treason! Treason!” Jehoiada then ordered her and her followers to be taken outside the Temple area and put to death. Athaliah’s influence over the Judean royal house thus came to an end.