Joash

Biblical Account

The story of Joash appears in 2 Kings 11–12 and 2 Chronicles 22:10–24:27. He was the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah. When Ahaziah died, his mother Athaliah killed the royal family and seized the throne. Athaliah came from the house of Ahab of the northern kingdom of Israel. At that time Jehosheba, daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah, hid the infant Joash, and he was raised in the temple for six years. In 2 Chronicles, Jehosheba appears as "Jehoshabeath."

In the seventh year, the priest Jehoiada stationed the guards and the Levites and made Joash king. Athaliah was executed, and the house of Baal was torn down (2 Kings 11). Joash came to the throne at the age of seven and reigned in Jerusalem for forty years. In the middle of his reign, when repairs to the temple had been delayed, he had a chest with a hole bored in its lid placed beside the altar to collect offerings, and the money was used to repair the temple (2 Kings 12:4–16).

The two books evaluate Joash differently. Second Kings records that he "did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him" (2 Kings 12:2), and that when Hazael king of Aram (Syria) invaded, Joash sent him away by giving him the temple treasures. Second Chronicles records that after Jehoiada died at the age of 130, Joash listened to the princes and served the Asherah poles and idols. When Jehoiada's son Zechariah rebuked him for this, Joash had him stoned to death in the court of the temple (2 Chronicles 24:17–22). Afterward Joash was defeated by the Aramean army and was killed when his servants conspired against him. Second Chronicles adds that he was buried in the city of David but not in the sepulchres of the kings (2 Chronicles 24:25). His son Amaziah succeeded him.

Significance in Scripture

Joash's survival is read as the averting of a crisis in which the Davidic line nearly came to an end. For this reason it is cited as an instance of the Davidic covenant being kept. The New Testament does not mention Joash by name. The genealogy in Matthew 1:8 lists Uzziah (Ozias) after Joram, passing over Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah. Many interpreters identify the Zacharias whom Jesus said was slain "between the temple and the altar" (Matthew 23:35; Luke 11:51) with the Zechariah who died in the time of Joash. In this saying Jesus mentions him together with Abel.

Interpretation and Issues

• Matthew calls this Zacharias "son of Barachias." Various explanations have been offered, including the view that this reflects a problem in scribal transmission and the view that links him with the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 1:1).
• The difference in evaluation between 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles is commonly explained as reflecting the perspective of the Chronicler, who emphasizes faithfulness to God and its consequences.
• In preaching, Joash is often cited as an example of "faith that leaned on a mentor." The text itself, however, does not evaluate him in these terms; this is an interpretation that applies the text.
• Scripture also includes other figures with the same name. Joash (Jehoash), king of the northern kingdom of Israel, was present at the deathbed of Elisha (2 Kings 13). There is also Joash the father of Gideon (Judges 6).

In the Korean Church

The story of Joash is frequently treated in Sunday school lessons and children's sermons as "the baby king hidden in the temple." In sermons for adults, it is used as a text on passing faith down to the next generation and as a warning against spiritual decline after the loss of a good mentor in the faith. The account of the offering chest for the temple repairs is also cited in sermons on offerings and the transparent management of church finances.