Athaliah(Hebrew:עֲתַלְיָה,Modern:ʻAtalya,Tiberian:ʿĂṯalyā,Greek:ΓοθολίαGotholía;Latin:Athalia) was the daughter of either kingOmri,or ofKing AhabandQueen JezebelofIsrael;she wasqueen consortofJudahas the wife ofKing Jehoram,a descendant of KingDavid,and was laterqueen regnantc. 841–835 BCE.
| Athaliah | |
|---|---|
 Athaliah fromGuillaume Rouillé'sPromptuarii Iconum Insigniorum,1553 | |
| Queen regnant of Judah | |
| Reign | c. 841 – 835 BCE |
| Predecessor | Ahaziah |
| Successor | Joash |
| Queen mother of Judah | |
| Tenure | c. 842 – 841 BCE |
| Queen consort of Judah | |
| Tenure | c. ? – 842 BCE |
| Born | Samaria,Kingdom of Israel |
| Died | c. 836 BCE Jerusalem,Kingdom of Judah |
| Spouse | Jehoram |
| Issue | Ahaziah |
| House | House of Omri |
| Father | OmriorAhab |
Biblical narrative
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Accounts of Athaliah’s life are found in2 Kings8:16–11:16 and2 Chronicles22:10–23:15 in theHebrew Bible.According to thechroniclers,she was the daughter of kingOmriofIsrael;[1]however, she is usually considered to have been the daughter of KingAhab– the son of Omri – and his wife, QueenJezebel.[2]Some scholars are of the opinion that Athaliah was indeed the daughter of Omri, but that she grew up as an orphan in the court of Ahab.[3][4]
Athaliah was married toJehoram of Judahto seal atreatybetween the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and to secure his position Jehoram killed his six brothers.[5]Jehoram became king of Judah in the fifth year ofJoram of Israel's reign (2 Kings 8:16). Depending on her paternity, Joram of Israel was either Athaliah's brother or her nephew.
Jehoram of Judah reigned for eight years. His fatherJehoshaphatand grandfatherAsahad been devout kings who worshipedYahweh,theone true God,and "walked in His ways". However, Jehoram chose not to follow their example, and rejected Yahweh, and his rule over Judah was subsequentlycursed.Edomrevolted, and he was forced to acknowledge their independence.[6]A raid byPhilistines,ArabsandEthiopianslooted the king's house, and carried off all of his family except for Jehoram and Athalia's youngest son,Ahaziah.
After Jehoram's death, Ahaziah became king of Judah, and Athaliah becamequeen mother,orgebirah.One year after taking the throne (2 Kings 8:26), Ahaziah and Joram of Israel were killed byJehu,a general in Joram’s army acting on Yahweh's secret command to take vengeance against the impious kings. Afterwards, Jehu killed Jezebel and the rest of Athaliah’s extended family. Ahab was already killed in battle before Jehu’s massacre.
Upon hearing of Ahaziah’s death, Athaliah seized the throne of Judah and killed all possible claimants to the throne,[7][8]which included Ahaziah's sons and his relatives[9]and, possibly, Jehoram's children from his other wife.[10]Some believe that the killings were to preventDavid's descendants from outliving Athaliah's kin, most of whom were already killed by Jehu. Others believe that they were divine judgment against Jehoshaphat's decision to marry his son to Athaliah.[10]
However,Jehosheba,Ahaziah's sister, managed to rescue an infant from the purge:Jehoash,the son of Ahaziah and his wife Zibiah. Jehoash was raised in secret by Jehosheba's husband, the priestJehoiada.
As "usurper queen",[11]Athaliah used her power to establish theBaalistcult in Judah. Six years later, Athaliah was astonished when Jehoiada crowned Jehoash as king inSolomon's Temple.She rushed to stop the rebellion but, under Jehoiada’s orders, was killed by the captains outside the Temple, since her blood “would defile it”.[12][13][14]
Dating of reigns
editWilliam F. Albrighthas dated her reign to 842–837 BCE, whileEdwin R. Thielein the third edition of hismagnum opusdates her reign from 842/841 to 836/835 BCE.[15]: 104 However, a starting date of 842/841 for Athaliah is one year before the date of 841/840 that Thiele gave for the death of her son,Ahaziah,[15]: 101 a conflict which Thiele never resolved.
In literature
editAthaliah is discussed in Boccaccio'sDe Mulieribus Claris( "On Famous Women" ), as well asThe Book of the City of Ladies,by Christine de Pizan.
In 1691, French tragedianJean Racinewrote a play about this biblical queen, entitledAthalie.The German composerFelix Mendelssohn,amongothers,wroteincidental music(hisop. 74) to Racine's play, first performed in Berlin in 1845. One of the most frequently heard excerpts from the Mendelssohn music is titled "War March of the Priests" ( "Kriegsmarsch der Priester" ).[16]
In 1733, the musician and composerHandelcomposed an oratorio based on her life, calledAthalia,calling her a "Baalite Queen of Judah Daughter of Jezebel".Baalwas the fertility god of theCanaanites,whom the ancientIsraelitesoften fell into worshipping in theTanakh/Old Testament.
References
edit- ^2 Kings 8:26
- ^"2 Kings 11:1 Multilingual: Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family".mlbible.com.
- ^Katzenstein, H. J. (1955)."Who Were the Parents of Athaliah?".Israel Exploration Journal.5(3): 194–197.JSTOR27924621.
- ^Klein, Reuven Chaim (2014)."Queen Athaliah: The Daughter of Ahab or Omri?"(PDF).Jewish Bible Quarterly.42(1): 11–20.
- ^Jewish Encyclopedia,"Jehoram"
- ^Platts, J. (1825).A New Universal Biography: First series, from the creation to the birth of Christ.Sherwood, Jones, and Company. p. 156.RetrievedDecember 7,2020.
- ^2 Kings 11:1
- ^"Athaliah: Bible".Jewish Women's Archive.
- ^"2 Kings 11:1 Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers".Biblehub.2023.
- ^ab"2 Kings 11:1 Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary".Biblehub.2023.
- ^Mathys, H. P.,1 and 2 Chroniclesin Barton, J. and Muddiman, J. (2001),The Oxford Bible CommentaryArchived2017-11-22 at theWayback Machine,p. 297
- ^2 Kings 11:14–16
- ^2 Chronicles 23:12–15
- ^See alsojwa.org/
- ^abEdwin R. Thiele,The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings(3rd ed.; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan/Kregel, 1983).
- ^Classical Archives' All Music Guide[1],accessed May 30, 2011.
External links
edit- Josephus,Jewish Antiquities9.7.1-5.
- Virginia Brown's translation ofGiovanni Boccaccio'sFamous Women,pp. 102–106; Harvard University Press 2001;ISBN0-674-01130-9
- Athalia,byHandel;The New Oxford Annotated Bible,third edition(2001), page 582.
Media related toAthaliahat Wikimedia Commons