2 Kings 11:1-3·~1 min
Athaliah and Joash
Athaliah moves to destroy the royal heirs, but Jehosheba rescues Joash and hides him with his nurse in the house of the LORD for six years. The child lives there unseen while Athaliah rules the land.
W1hen Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to annihilate all the royal heirs. 2But Jehosheba daughter of King Joram, the sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the sons of the king who were being murdered. She put him and his nurse in a bedroom to hide him from Athaliah, and he was not killed. 3And Joash remained hidden with his nurse in the house of the LORD for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.
Section summaryAthaliah answers her son’s death with a violent attempt to destroy the royal line. Joash alone is taken away and hidden in the house of the LORD, where the threatened line quietly survives while Athaliah rules.
Role in the chapterThis opening crisis establishes how near Judah comes to losing its royal house. It also places the temple at the center of preservation before it becomes the center of public restoration.