Amaziah

Biblical Account

Amaziah was a king of the southern kingdom of Judah. He succeeded to the throne after his father Joash was murdered by his servants (2 Kings 12:21; 2 Chronicles 24:27). The principal accounts are found in 2 Kings 14:1-22 and 2 Chronicles 25. His name is commonly interpreted to mean "the LORD is strong."

• Accession: He became king at the age of twenty-five and reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem (2 Kings 14:2). Scripture assesses him as having done what was right in the sight of the LORD, "but not with a perfect heart" (2 Chronicles 25:2). He also did not remove the high places (local altars).
• Punishment of his father's assassins: He executed the servants who had killed his father but did not put their children to death. Scripture explains that this was in accordance with the law of Moses (2 Kings 14:5-6, citing Deuteronomy 24:16).
• Campaign against Edom: He hired one hundred thousand mercenaries from the northern kingdom of Israel for one hundred talents of silver. When a man of God warned him against it, however, he sent them home. On their way back, the mercenaries plundered cities of Judah (2 Chronicles 25:6-13). Amaziah won a great victory over Edom in the Valley of Salt, captured Sela, and renamed it Joktheel.
• Idolatry and defeat: After his victory, he brought back the idols of Edom and worshiped them. He refused to heed the prophet who rebuked him for this (2 Chronicles 25:14-16). He then challenged Joash, king of Israel, to battle. Joash tried to dissuade him with the parable of the thistle and the cedar, but Amaziah would not back down. He was ultimately defeated and captured at the battle of Beth-shemesh. Joash broke down four hundred cubits of the wall of Jerusalem and carried off the treasures of the temple and the royal palace, along with hostages.
• Death: When a conspiracy arose in Jerusalem, he fled to Lachish, but he was killed there. His body was buried in Jerusalem, in the city of David. His son Uzziah (called Azariah in 2 Kings) succeeded him at the age of sixteen.

Significance Within Scripture

The book of 2 Chronicles records that the conspiracy against Amaziah began from the time he turned away from the LORD (2 Chronicles 25:27). His life is thus portrayed as an example of a king who obeyed at first but failed to persevere to the end.

Amaziah is not mentioned by name in the New Testament. Notably, the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:8 passes directly from Joram to Uzziah, omitting the three intervening kings: Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah.

Interpretations and Issues

• Reason for the omission from the genealogy: Interpretations differ. One explanation holds that the list was shortened to fit the pattern of fourteen generations. A traditional explanation holds that the kings linked by marriage to the house of Ahab were deliberately omitted. The text itself gives no reason.
• Chronological questions: Scholars differ in how they reconcile the statement that Amaziah outlived Joash, king of Israel, by fifteen years (2 Kings 14:17) with the lengths of the reigns. Some posit a coregency with Uzziah.
• Others of the same name: Amaziah the priest of Bethel in the book of Amos (Amos 7:10-17) is a different person. He sought to drive out Amos. Individuals bearing the same name also appear in the genealogies of 1 Chronicles and elsewhere.
• Kings of the same name: Amaziah's father and the king of Israel who defeated him are both rendered "Joash" in the New Korean Revised Version. As a result, the two are easily confused.

In the Korean Church

Sermons on the Amaziah narrative typically focus on two passages. One is the assessment that "he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart" (2 Chronicles 25:2). The other is the counsel to send the mercenaries away, along with the words "The LORD is able to give thee much more than this" (2 Chronicles 25:9). His pride after victory and his idolatry are also cited as cautionary examples. He is rarely treated as a standalone subject in Sunday school curricula or in hymns and worship songs.