BIBLE PEOPLE | AHAZIAH, KING OF ISRAEL

1. Bible People

a) The Bible is an historic record of real people and places. 

b) Here is a brief biography of such a person during Bible times.

2. Ahaziah, King of Israel

a) Ahaziah, King of Israel, was the uncle of Ahaziah, King of Judah. Israel's Ahaziah was the eighth king of the northern kingdom of Israel. He was the son of Ahab and Jezebel. He reigned for two years (852-851 BC).

b) After Ahab's death, the country of Moab, which had earlier been subjugated by Israel, declared its independence, and refused to continue paying tribute to Israel. Ahaziah suffered other losses, including his health. He fell off the balcony of his palace in Samaria and was seriously injured. Instead of turning to the Lord, he sent messages to the temple of a pagan god, Baalzebub, at Ekron, to ask whether he would recover from his injuries.

c) But the prophet Elijah intercepted the messengers and told that them that because Ahaziah had chosen to inquire of a pagan god, rather than the Lord, that he would not leave the bed that he was lying on and that he would die. Ahaziah did die, just as Elijah had said. Ahaziah's brother, Jehoram, became the new king, because Ahaziah did not have a son to succeed him. The name Ahaziah means "Yah holds firm." The story of Ahaziah is found in 1 Kings 22:40-53 and in 2 Kings, chapter 1.