“Then the people of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, Jehoram’s youngest son, their next king, since the marauding bands who came with the Arabs had killed all the older sons. So Ahaziah son of Jehoram reigned as king of Judah. Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem one year. His mother was Athaliah, a granddaughter of King Omri. Ahaziah also followed the evil example of King Ahab’s family, for his mother encouraged him in doing wrong. He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, just as Ahab’s family had done. They even became his advisers after the death of his father, and they led him to ruin. Following their evil advice, Ahaziah joined Joram, the son of King Ahab of Israel, in his war against King Hazael of Aram at Ramoth-gilead. When the Arameans wounded Joram in the battle, he returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he had received at Ramoth. Because Joram was wounded, King Ahaziah of Judah went to Jezreel to visit him. But God had decided that this visit would be Ahaziah’s downfall. While he was there, Ahaziah went out with Joram to meet Jehu grandson of Nimshi, whom the Lord had appointed to destroy the dynasty of Ahab. While Jehu was executing judgment against the family of Ahab, he happened to meet some of Judah’s officials and Ahaziah’s relatives who were traveling with Ahaziah. So Jehu killed them all. Then Jehu’s men searched for Ahaziah, and they found him hiding in the city of Samaria. They brought him to Jehu, who killed him. Ahaziah was given a decent burial because the people said, “He was the grandson of Jehoshaphat—a man who sought the Lord with all his heart.” But none of the surviving members of Ahaziah’s family was capable of ruling the kingdom.”
2 Chronicles 22:1-9 NLT
By this time in the history of Israel and Judah’s rulers, there are plenty of examples to choose from. Each of these serves as a case study of what type of ruler to be, or not. Success seems to be largely based upon the orientation of that choice. Do you choose to follow God or do you choose to follow men? Though Jehoshaphat was largely a good king, by the end of his reign, he had loosened the reign on how he chose these things. This led to alliances with Israel’s rulers. Here we see the effect of that union. Ahaziah’s mother was from the other kingdom and highly influenced by their wicked ways. She became a strong factor in ruining Jehoshaphat’s legacy in Ahaziah. As seen before many times, Ahaziah could’ve been a great king even if his father. Was not. But he chose poorly because his heart was not aligned with God. It wasn’t a fated decision. It was a present one. Interestingly, the scripture records that Jehoshaphat’s legacy still covered Ahaziah. They buried him mercifully for his grandfather’s sake. Ungodly people can ruin a legacy instantly, but the memory of a godly legacy, it would seem, bears goodwill and offers choice for generations to come.
Ruler’s Choice: Success of a ruler depends on whether they choose to follow God or men.
Ahaziah’s Reign: Ahaziah’s reign was negatively influenced by his mother’s wicked ways, leading to poor choices and a departure from God.
Legacy of Jehoshaphat: Jehoshaphat’s godly legacy provided mercy and goodwill for Ahaziah, even after Ahaziah’s ungodly choices.
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