Jehoram

The name "Jehoram" is commonly interpreted to mean "the LORD is exalted." During the same period, Judah and the northern kingdom of Israel each had a king by this name. The New Korean Revised Version uses both forms, "Jehoram" and "Joram," interchangeably for the two men. A priest of the same name also appears in 2 Chronicles 17:8.

Biblical Account

Jehoram, King of Judah

Jehoram was the firstborn son of Jehoshaphat. He became king at the age of thirty-two and reigned eight years in Jerusalem (2 Kings 8:16-24; 2 Chronicles 21). He married Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab, and Scripture records that he walked in the way of the house of Ahab. Once his throne was secure, he killed his six brothers and some of the princes (high officials) (2 Chronicles 21:4). During his reign Edom and Libnah revolted from Judah.

Second Chronicles also reports the following:

• A written warning sent by Elijah (21:12-15)
• Invasions by the Philistines and the Arabians
• His painful death from a disease of the bowels
• His burial outside the sepulchres of the kings

His son Ahaziah succeeded him. His daughter Jehosheba later hid Joash and saved his life.

Jehoram (Joram), King of Israel

The son of Ahab, he succeeded his brother Ahaziah and reigned twelve years in Samaria (2 Kings 3:1). Although he put away the image (sacred pillar) of Baal that his father had made, he is judged not to have departed from the sins of Jeroboam. Together with Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, and the king of Edom, he campaigned against Moab, and on that occasion Elisha prophesied that the valley would be filled with water (2 Kings 3). Wounded in battle against the Arameans, he was recovering at Jezreel when he was shot and killed by an arrow from Jehu. His body was cast into the field of Naboth (2 Kings 9:14-26).

Significance Within Scripture

Kings and Chronicles portray Jehoram of Judah as a king who embraced evil after being bound to the royal house of northern Israel through marriage. Yet they also record that God did not destroy Judah because of His promise to give David a light (2 Kings 8:19). This passage is therefore read as showing the Davidic covenant continuing unbroken. In the New Testament, he appears as "Joram" in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:8.

The death of Joram, king of Israel, is recorded as part of the fulfillment of the prophecy against the house of Ahab (2 Kings 9:25-26).

Interpretations and Issues

• Chronology: The accession dates given in 2 Kings 1:17, 3:1, and 8:16 appear inconsistent with one another. Conservative scholars often harmonize them by positing coregencies (periods in which a father and son reigned together). Other scholars attribute the differences to distinct source traditions.
• Elijah's letter: Elijah's ascension in 2 Kings 2 appears to take place before Jehoram reigned alone, which raises the question of when the letter was sent. Proposed explanations include the view that Elijah wrote it in advance, before his ascension, and the view that the actual order of events differs from the order of the narrative.
• Matthew's genealogy: Matthew moves from Joram directly to Uzziah, omitting Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah. Many regard this as part of a structure designed to produce sets of fourteen generations. Some interpreters also connect the omission to the marriage alliance with the house of Ahab.
• Distinguishing text from tradition: The "king of Israel" in 2 Kings 5–7 (the account of Naaman and the siege of Samaria) is commonly identified as Joram, but the text itself does not name him.

In the Korean Church

Jehoram is not often treated as the subject of a sermon in his own right. He is mentioned mainly in programs of reading through the Bible or in expository preaching on Kings and Chronicles. In sermons, his marriage to Athaliah is sometimes cited as an example of the influence that faith, marriage, and the family have on the next generation. Second Chronicles 21:20, which says that he "departed without being desired," is often cited in the same connection.