Bible Strands
2 Kings 8:26
Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem one year. His mother’s name was Athaliah, the granddaughter of Omri king of Israel.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Ahaziah succeeds his father Jehoram as king of Judah during the twelfth year of Joram’s reign over Israel, establishing a brief, one-year rule in Jerusalem.
The words — The Hebrew term בֶּן (ben) literally means "son of," clarifying that Athaliah was the daughter of Omri rather than his granddaughter. The numerical phrases עֶשְׂרִים וּשְׁתַּיִם (esrim ushtayim) and אַחַת (achat) record his accession age as twenty-two and his reign as one year.
The thread — This accession record parallels 2 Chronicles 22:2, while his short reign and dynastic ties to Ahab’s line directly precede the military campaigns in 2 Kings 9:21 and the succession crisis in 2 Kings 11:1.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that a single year of rule and a maternal link to Omri’s house establish the immediate historical and theological context for Judah’s subsequent decline.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri king of Israel.
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 22:2 Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem one year. His mother’s name was Athaliah, the granddaughter of Omri.
- 2 Kings 9:21 “Harness!” Joram shouted, and they harnessed his chariot. Then Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah set out, each in his own chariot, and met Jehu on the property of Naboth the Jezreelite.
- 2 Kings 11:1 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to annihilate all the royal heirs.
- 2 Kings 11:13 When Athaliah heard the noise from the guards and the people, she went out to the people in the house of the LORD.
- 2 Chronicles 22:5 Ahaziah also followed their counsel and went with Joram son of Ahab king of Israel to fight against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth-gilead. But the Arameans wounded Joram.