Athaliah Must Die!

Athaliah Must Die!

2 Kings 11:20 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was peaceful because Athaliah had been killed at the king’s palace. (NLT)

            Wickedness ran rampant throughout much of Israel and Judah. Most of it was contributed to rebellious leaders. As did the leaders, so followed the rest of the nation. Therefore, God punished the leaders who defied Him and led His people astray by raising up another leader, Jehu, to deal with the wicked leaders of both Israel and Judah.

2 Kings 9:6-7 ⁽⁶⁾ So Jehu left the others and went into the house. Then the young prophet poured the oil over Jehu’s head and said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anoint you king over the Lord’s people, Israel. ⁽⁷⁾ You are to destroy the family of Ahab, your master. In this way, I will avenge the murder of my prophets and all the Lord’s servants who were killed by Jezebel. (NLT) King Ahaziah of Judah was assassinated after reigning for only a year, but his mother, Queen Athaliah, took to the throne. She was a very wicked woman for she was the daughter of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. In an attempt to rid herself of any competition to the throne, she decided to kill the remaining members of the royal family. Jehosheba, King Ahaziah’s half-sister, however, took his baby son, Joash and hid in the temple for six years along with his nurse. She knew that Athaliah would never enter the temple.

            When Joash turned seven, Jehoiada, the temple’s priest, made arrangements to have Joash crowned as king to overthrow his wicked grandmother. He ordered the guards to safeguard Joash and not allow any harm to come to him. On the day that the declaration of his kingship was made known, the people cheered for they too wanted to overthrow their wicked queen. The celebration was so loud that she heard the cheers from inside her palace, so she went to the temple to see what was taking place. Upon seeing the newly appointed King Joash, she tore her garments in shock and outrage. Little did she know that she was about to meet her doom for the commanders took hold of her and killed her outside the palace grounds. The wickedness of Athaliah finally met its demise.

            There are times when we too must put an end to the Athaliahs in our lives. The enemy attempts to have us live contrary to the will of the Potter. Unfortunately, once we submit to his schemes, we find ourselves broken and in need of mending. Nevertheless, the Potter is there to help restore our broken pieces. Sin crumbles us, but the Potter can heal us. All we have to do is make the Athaliahs of sin such as greed, lust, witchcraft, blasphemy, unforgiveness, and other iniquities die in our lives, with the help of the Potter, and allow Him to make us whole. Never allow Athaliah to reign supreme in your life. Put her to the sword for Athaliah must die! James 4:7  So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (NLT)