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The House of Jehu or Jehu dynasty was a reigning dynasty of the Kingdom of Israel. They are depicted in both of the Books of Kings. Their estimated reign is placed from the 9th century to the 8th century BCE. [1]
The dynasty is named after its founder Jehu. His immediate predecessor was Jehoram of Israel of the House of Omri. Jehoram was wounded in battle during a campaign against the rival state of Aram-Damascus. Jehoram retreated to the city of Jezreel in order to recover from his wounds, but Jehu attacked and killed him there. Jehu also killed Jehoram's ally, Ahaziah of Judah. [1]
Jehu was reportedly anointed as king by the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:16). According to the Books of Chronicles, Jehu was authorized to eliminate the descendants of his predecessor Ahab and all the priests of the god Baal (2 Chronicles 22:7). Jehu continued the worship of the golden calves at the holy places of Bethel and Dan (2 Kings 10:28-31). The Book of Kings accuses Jehu of idolatry. The God Yahweh Himself proclaimed that four generations of Jehu's descendants would hold the throne of Israel, but then the dynasty would lose the throne as punishment for Jehu's idolatry (2 Kings 15:12). [1] Jehu reigned for 28 years. [1]
Jehu was succeeded by his son Jehoahaz of Israel. Jehoahaz was a vassal to the monarchs of Aram-Damascus. He was reportedly a poor administrator, and the Book of Kings associates his reign with "great suffering" for his kingdom. He reigned for 17 years. [1]
Jehoahaz was succeeded by his son Jehoash of Israel. Jehoash is credited with victories over the kingdom of Aram-Damascus, and with freeing the Kingdom of Israel from its subordination to the monarchs of Damascus. [1] Jehoash was reportedly allied to the prophet Elisha, who had promised him victory over Aram-Damascus. Jehoash is mentioned mourning Elisha's death. Jehoash reigned for 16 years. [1]
Jehoash was succeeded by his son Jeroboam II. Jeroboam is depicted as a very competent leader for Israel. He dominated the Arameans of Syria and reclaimed territories that the Kingdom of Israel had lost in previous conflicts. Israel's political power increased during his reign. Jeroboam reigned for 41 years. [1]
Jeroboam was succeeded by his son Zechariah of Israel, the last monarch of the House of Jehu. Zechariah only reigned for 6 months. He was assassinated by Shallum of Israel, who then claimed the throne of Israel for himself. [1]
Jehu is mentioned in the inscriptions of Shalmaneser III, King of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (reigned 859–824 BCE). The inscriptions identify Jehu as a "son of (the land of) Omri", an apparent member of the House of Omri. [4] In the Assyrian inscriptions, the designation "son of" is used to connect various rulers to the ancestral founders of each dynasty, not to their actual fathers, and the formula generally calls Jehu a son of the House of Omri, and not a son of Omri himself. [4]
One modern interpretation of the Assyrian inscriptions is that Jehu was a descendant of a cadet branch of the House of Omri, which would explain his high-ranking position in the army of Israel. [4] The second of the Books of Kings identifies Jehu as a son of Jehoshaphat and a grandson of Nimshi. His great-grandfather is not mentioned in the text. Nadav Na'aman concedes that Jehu could have been a kinsman of his predecessor Jehoram of Israel, but he considers likely that Shalmaneser had a different motive for apparently legitimizing Jehu as an heir to the House of Omri. [4]
Shalmaneser's inscriptions describe as usurpers the kings Hazael of Aram-Damascus, Surri of Patina, and Marduk-bêl-usâte of Karduniaš. All three of them were Shalmaneser's enemies, and their negative portrayals were used to justify the Neo-Assyrian Empire's wars against them. Surri's ancestry is unknown, Hazael was apparently a descendant of a previous royal dynasty, and Marduk-bêl-usâte had revolted against his brother Marduk-zakir-shumi I. This means that Marduk-bêl-usâte was a member of the same dynasty as his brother. [4] The royal ancestry of these usurpers was deliberately ignored by Assyrian propaganda. [4]
Shalmaneser had reasons to legitimize Jehu's regime. Jehu's predecessors Ahab and Jehoram were enemies of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, and had repeatedly participated in the military coalitions against Shalmaneser himself. On the other hand, Jehu abandoned this anti-Assyrian policy. He formally surrendered to Shalmaneser and paid tribute to Shalmaneser as his vassal. Shalmaneser had every reason to favorably depict Jehu and to acknowledge him as a "son" of the previous dynasty. [4]
Amitai Baruchi-Unna considers it likely that Jehu actually was a descendant of Omri, and that his recorded hostility towards the so-called "House of Ahab" represents a fight for the throne between rival branches of the House of Omri. [6] Both Books of Kings and the second of the Books of Chronicles consistently use the patronymic "son of Nimshi" for Jehu, suggesting that Nimshi himself was a famous figure of "high-lineage". [6]
Baruchi-Unna suggests that Nimshi was a son of King Omri and a brother of King Ahab. Jehu's father, Jehoshaphat, would consequently be a first cousin to Ahab's children: Ahaziah of Israel, Jehoram of Israel, and Athaliah, Queen regnant of the Kingdom of Judah. [6] Among the members of this extended House of Omri, the names Ahaziah, Jehoram, Athaliah, and Jehoshaphat are all theophoric names incorporating the name of Yahweh, while Omri, Ahab, and Nimshi make no reference to the deity. This may be reflective of the different religious tendencies among the first and second generations of the royal family from the Yahweh-worshipping third generation. [6]
On Jehu's background, the Book of Kings indicate that he had enjoyed the favor of his predecessors. Jehu had served as personal bodyguard under Ahab, and as a general officer under Jehoram. Narratives concerning previous kings of Israel depict them appointing their own kinsmen in positions requiring such a high level of trust. Saul had appointed his cousin Abner as the general of his army. David had appointed his nephews (sister's sons) Joab and Amasa as the generals of his own army. [6]
Ahab was the seventh king of Israel, the son and successor of King Omri and the husband of Jezebel of Sidon, according to the Hebrew Bible. The Hebrew Bible presents Ahab as a wicked king, particularly for condoning Jezebel's influence on religious policies and his principal role behind Naboth's arbitrary execution.
Jehu was the tenth king of the northern Kingdom of Israel since Jeroboam I, noted for exterminating the house of Ahab. He was the son of Jehoshaphat, grandson of Nimshi, and possibly great-grandson of Omri, although the latter notion is not supported by the biblical text. His reign lasted for 28 years.
The Kingdom of Israel, or the Kingdom of Samaria, was an Israelite kingdom of the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. The kingdom controlled the regions of Samaria, Galilee and parts of the Transjordan. Its capital, for the most part, was Samaria. The other Israelite polity, the Kingdom of Judah, lay to the south.
Shalmaneser III was king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Ashurnasirpal II in 859 BC to his own death in 824 BC.
Athaliah was the daughter of either king Omri, or of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel of Israel, the queen consort of Judah as the wife of King Jehoram, a descendant of King David, and later queen regnant c. 841–835 BCE.
Jehoram was the ninth king of the northern Kingdom of Israel. He was the son of Ahab and Jezebel, and brother to Ahaziah and Athaliah.
Jehoram of Judah or Joram, was the fifth king of Judah, and the son of king Jehoshaphat. Jehoram rose to the throne at the age of 32 and reigned for 8 years, although he was ill during his last two years.
Ahaziah of Judah or Jehoahaz I, was the sixth king of Judah, and the son of Jehoram and Athaliah, the daughter of king Ahab of Israel. He was also the first Judahite king to be descended from both the House of David and the House of Omri, through his mother and successor, Athaliah.
The Omrides, Omrids or House of Omri were a ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Israel (Samaria) founded by King Omri. According to the Bible, the Omride rulers of Israel were Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah and Jehoram. Ahab's daughter Athaliah also became queen regnant of the Kingdom of Judah.
Nimshi is a character in the Hebrew Bible. He is mentioned in the Books of Kings and the Second Book of Chronicles as father, grandfather, or possibly a forebear of Jehu, the king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
2 Kings 3 is the third chapter in the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. After a short introduction to the reign of the last king of Israel from the Omride dynasty, Jehoram the son of Ahab, this chapter records the war of the coalition of the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom, against Mesha the king of Moab with some contribution of Elisha the prophet. Another view of the events in this chapter is notably provided by the inscription on the Mesha Stele made by the aforementioned king of Moab in c. 840 BCE.
2 Kings 8 is the eighth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records Elisha's acts in helping the family of Shunammite woman to escape famine, then to gain back their land and in contributing to Hazael's ascension to the throne of Syria (Aram) in verses 7–15; then subsequently records the reigns of Joram and Ahaziah, the kings of Judah.
2 Kings 9 is the ninth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records Jehu's anointing as the next king of Israel and his assassinations of Jehoram the king of Israel, Ahaziah the king of Judah and Jezebel the queen mother of Israel. The narrative is a part of a major section 2 Kings 9:1–15:12 covering the period of Jehu's dynasty.
2 Kings 10 is the tenth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records Jehu's massacres of the sons of Ahab, the kinsmen of Ahaziah the king of Judah and the Baal worshippers linked to Jezebel. The narrative is a part of a major section 2 Kings 9:1–15:12 covering the period of Jehu's dynasty.
2 Kings 13 is the thirteenth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records the reigns of Jehu's son, Jehoahaz, and Jehu's grandson, Jehoash, in the kingdom of Israel during the reign of Jehoash, the king of Judah, as well as the events around the death of Elisha. The narrative is a part of a major section 2 Kings 9:1–15:12 covering the period of Jehu's dynasty.
2 Kings 14 is the fourteenth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records the events during the reigns of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, as well as of Joash, and his son, Jeroboam (II) in the kingdom of Israel. The narrative is a part of a major section 2 Kings 9:1–15:12 covering the period of Jehu's dynasty.
2 Kings 12 is the twelfth chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible or the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records the reign of Joash as the king of Judah.