Death of Jehu.

Joash hidden.

of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.

the ends.

were.

kingdom.

(32) In those days. As a vassal and ally of Assyria (see Notes on chap. ix. 2), Jehu drew upon himself the active hostility of Hazael. (See Note on chap. viii. 15.) Schröder remarks that it was quite natural for the Israelite sovereign to "throw himself into the arms of distant Assyria, in order to get protection against his immediate neighbour Syria, Israel's hereditary foe." Comp. the similar conduct of Ahaz as against Pekah and Rezin (chap. xvi. 7). From the point of view of the sacred writer, this verse states the consequence of Jehu's neglect of "walking in Jehovah's instruction with all his heart" (verse 31).

The Lord began. - Through Hazael and the Syrians. (Comp. Isa. vii. 17, 20, x. 5, 6.)

To cut Israel short.-Literally, to cut off in Israel-i.e., to cut off part after part of Israelite territory. (The verb means to cut off the extremities, Prov. xxvi. 6.) This refers to the conquests of Hazael. The Targum explains, "The wrath of the Lord began to be strong against Israel; " and the Vulg. has, "tædere super Israel." Thenius conjectures from this that we should read, " to be wrathful with Israel;" but the construction would not then be usual.

In all the coasts.-Rather, on the whole borderscil., conterminous with Syria.

(33) From Jordan eastward.-This verse defines the border land which Hazael ravaged, and, in fact, occupied. It was the land east of the Jordan, that is to say, all the land of Gilead, which was the territory of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manassch.

From Aroer.-Aroer, now 'Arâîr, on the Arnon, was the southern limit of Gilead, which extended northward to Mount Hermon, and included Bashan. "Even (both) Gilead and Bashan," is added to make it clear that the whole of the land east of the Jordan, and not merely Gilead in the narrower sense, was conquered by Hazael. These conquests of Hazael were characterised by great barbarity. (Comp. Amos i. 3-5, and Elisha's prediction of the same, chap. viii. 12, supra.) Ewald thinks Hazael took advantage of the internal troubles at the outset of the reign to effect his conquests. But

sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bed

ATHALIAH USURPS THE THrone of Judah, but IS DEPOSED AND SLAIN, AND HER GRANDSON JOASH CROWNED, THROUGH THE INSTRUMENTALITY OF THE HIGH PRIEST JEHOIADA. (Comp. 2 Chron. xxii. 10, xxiii. 21.)

(1) And when Athaliah saw.-Rather, Now Athaliah . . . had seen. (The and, which the common Hebrew text inserts before the verb, is merely a mistaken repetition of the last letter of Ahaziah. Many MSS. omit it.)

As to Athaliah and her evil influence on her husband Jehoram, see chap. viii. 18, 26, 27. By her ambition and her cruelty she now shows herself a worthy daughter of Jezebel.

Her son.-Ahaziah (chap. ix. 27). The history of the Judæan monarchy is resumed from that point.

Destroyed all the seed royal.-"The seed of the kingdom" (see margin) means all who might set up claims to the succession. Ahaziah's brothers had been slain by the Arabs (2 Chron. xxi. 17); and his "kinsmen by Jehu (chap. x. 14). Those whom Athaliah slew would be for the most part Ahaziah's own sons, though other relatives are not excluded by the term.

(2) But Jehosheba . . . sister of Ahaziah.By a different mother (see Josephus). Athaliah would not have allowed her daughter to marry the high priest of Jehovah. (Comp. verse 3 with 2 Chron. xxii. 11.) This marriage with a sister of the king shows what almost royal dignity belonged to the high priest's

And they hid him.-This clause is out of its place here. The Hebrew is, him and his nurse in the chamber of the beds; and they hid him from Athaliah, and he was not put to death. Clearly the word, "and she put," supplied in Chronicles, has fallen out before this. The Targum and Syriac read, "and she hid him and his nurse," &c.

In the bedchamber.-In the chamber of beds, i.e., the room in the palace where the mattresses and the coverlets were kept, according to a custom still prevalent in the East. This chamber being unoccupied was the nearest hiding-place at first. The babe was afterwards secretly conveyed within the Temple precincts.

(3) And he was with her-i.e., with Jehosheba his aunt. The words "in the house of the Lord" should immediately follow. The word "hid" is connected with "six years in the Hebrew, and relates to the infant prince only. Joash was with his aunt "in the house of the Lord"-i.e., in one of the chambers allotted to the priests, perhaps even in the high priest's residence, which may have been within the sacred precincts. Thenius assumes that the statement of Chronicles, that Jehosheba was wife of the high priest, has no other ground than a traditional interpretation" of these words; and asserts that Jehosheba was herself obliged to share the asylum of the infant prince in order to escape the vengeance of Athaliah. But it is certain that the chronicler had better authority than mere tradition for his important additions to the history of the kings. (See Note on 2 Chron. xxii. 11.) Did reign.-Was reigning.

(4) And the seventh year.-When perhaps discontent at Athaliah's tyranny had reached a climax.

Jehoiada.-The high priest (verse 9). The curious fact that his rank is not specified here upon the first mention of his name, suggests the inference that in the original authority of this narrative he had been mentioned as high priest, and husband of Jehosheba, at the outset of the story, as in 2 Chron. xxii. 11.

The rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard. - Rather, the centurions of the Carians and the Couriers-i.e., the officers commanding the royal guard. The terms rendered "Carians" and "Couriers are obscure. Thenius prefers to translate the first "executioners." (Comp. Notes on 1 Kings i. 38; 2 Sam. viii. 18, xv. 18, xvi. 6; 1 Chron. xviii. 17.) Thenius argues against the idea that so patriotic and pious a king as David could have employed foreign and heathen soldiers as his body-guard. But did not David himself serve as a mercenary with Achish, king of Gath, and commit his parents to the care of the king of Moab? And would not the mercenaries who enlisted in the guard of the Israelite sovereigns adopt the religion of their new country? (Comp. the case of Uriah the Hittite.) The apparently gentilic ending of the words rendered "Cherethites and Pelethites" in

to the Rulers and Captains.

them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and shewed them the king's son. (5) And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the watch of the king's house; (6) and a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the

Samuel, and that rendered "captains" in this place, Thenius explains as marking an adjective denoting position or class. It may be so, but sub judice lis est.

Made a covenant with them.-The chronicler gives the names of the centurions. His account of the whole transaction, while generally coinciding with that given here, presents certain striking differences, of which the most salient is the prominence assigned to the priests and Levites in the matter. These deviations are explicable on the assumption that the chronicler drew his information from a large historical compilation somewhat later than the Books of Kings, and containing much more than they contain, though mainly based upon the same annalistic sources. The compilers of the two canonical histories were determined in their choice of materials and manner of treatment by their individual aims and points of view, which differed considerably. (See the Introductions to Kings and Chronicles.) At the same time, it must not be forgotten that the account before us is the older and more original, and, therefore, the more valuable regarded as mere history.

(5, 6) Three companies of the guards to be stationed at the three approaches to the palace.

...

(5) A third part of you king's house.— Rather, the third of you who come in on the Sabbath shall keep the ward of the king's house. (Reading wʻshām rû, as in verse 7.) The troops of the royal guard regularly succeeded each other on duty just as they do in modern European capitals. That the Sabbath was the day on which they relieved each other is known only from this passage; but the priestly and Levitical guilds did the same, and their organisation in many ways resembled that of an army.

The watch of the king's house.-There were two places to be occupied for the success of the present movement-viz., the royal palace and the Temple, "the king's house" and "the house of the Lord." In the former was Athaliah, the usurping queen, whose movements must be closely watched, and whose adherents must be prevented from occupying and defending the palace; in the latter, the young heir to the throne, who must be protected from attack. That "the king's house" here means the palace proper is evident from verses 16 and 19, and, indeed, from the whole narrative. The LXX. adds, "at the entry" (v TÊ TUX@VI) -i.e., the grand entrance to the palace itself. is at least a correct gloss, and may be part of the original text.

This

(6) And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur.-Or, and the third (shall be on guard) at the gate of Sur. Instead of Sûr (“ turning aside") Chronicles has Jesûd ("foundation"). The gate Sur was apparently a side exit from the court of the palace, such as may be seen in the old Egyptian palaces at

ing up.

Medinat-Abú and Karnak. "Jesod " is another name for the same side-door, or, as is far more likely, a textual corruption of "Sur."

And a third part at the gate behind the guard.-Literally, and the third at the gate behind the Couriers. In verse 19 "the gate of the Couriers is mentioned, apparently as the principal entrance to the palace enclosure. That gate and this one are probably the same. It is here called "the gate behind the Couriers" because a guard was usually stationed in front of it. Perhaps the word "behind " has originated in a mere echo of the word "gate ('ahar, sha'ar), and should be omitted as an error of transcription.

So shall ye keep the watch of the house.Thus shall ye the three divisions of the guards, entering on duty on the Sabbath-guard the entrances and exits of the royal palace.

That it be not broken down.-The Hebrew is only the one word massah, which occurs nowhere else. It appears to mean "repulse," "warding off," and is probably a marginal gloss on "watch" (mishmèreth), explaining its nature-viz., that the guards were to keep back any one who tried to enter the palace buildings. Gesenius paraphrases, "ad depellendum populum" (zum Abwehren). Thenius suggests the reading "and repel"! scil., "all comers" (ûn'sōah for massāh). He should have written wenāsôah.

(7, 8) The whole body of guards relieved on the Sabbath are to guard the Temple and the young prince.

وو

(7) And two parts of all you ... sabbath.Rather, and the two branches among you, all that go out on the Sabbath. The two "branches means the two fundamental divisions-viz., Carians (or executioners) and Couriers. The troops relieved on the Sabbath were not to be posted in three companies at three different points, like those who came on duty in their place; but they were to form in two ranks-Carians on one side and Couriers on the other-for the purpose of guarding the Temple, and especially the king's

Joash Crowned.

in on the sabbath, with them that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. (10) And to the captains over hundreds did the priest give king David's spears and shields, that were in the temple of the LORD. (11) And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple. (12) And he brought forth the king's son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him the testimony; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they

The ranges. - Rather, the ranks-scil., the two lines of the guard formed for the protection of the king. If any one attempted to force his way through the ranks in order to attack the king he was to be slain. Be ye with the king . . . cometh in.-When he leaves the Temple, and when he enters the palace. (9, 10) The preparations for carrying out the above arrangements.

(9) The captains over the hundreds-i.e., the centurions of the royal guard (verse 4). So in verse 10. Commanded.-Had commanded.

66

(10) King David's spears and shields. - The Hebrew has spear, but Chronicles has the plural, which appears correct. Shields" should perhaps be arms. (Comp. 2 Sam. viii. 7; 2 Chron. xxiii. 9.) The arms which David had laid up in the Temple as spoils of war were now to be used, appropriately enough, for the restoration of David's heir to the throne. Possibly, as Bähr suggests, the guards who came off duty at the palace had left their weapons there.

(11) The guard.-Literally, the Couriers; not therefore the Levites.

Corner. Rather, side.

Along by.-At.

And the temple. - And at the Temple. The guard formed in two lines, extending from the south wall to the north wall of the court, one line standing at the altar of burnt offering, which was near the entrance, the other at the sanctuary itself. The words "round about the king" are anticipative.

(12) And he brought forth the king's son.When the two lines were formed, cutting off the interior of the Temple from the court, Jehoiada led forth the young prince into the protected space between them; perhaps from a side chamber, or perhaps from the sanctuary itself.

And gave him the testimony.-The Hebrew has simply and the testimony. Kimchi explains this to mean a royal robe; other rabbis think of a phylactery on the coronet. (See Deut. vi. 8.) Thenius says, the Law-i.e., a book in which were written Mosaic ordinances, and which was held in a symbolic manner over the king's head after he had been crowned. (See Note on 2 Chron. xxiii. 11.) Anointed him. The chronicler says it was "Jehoiada and his sons" who did it. It is difficult to see what objection can fairly be taken to this explanatory addition, unless we are to suppose that, although the high priest was present, the soldiers of the guard

clapped their hands, and said, 'God save the king. (13) And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the LORD. (14) And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as

is Slain.

of the host, and said unto them, Have her forth without the ranges: and him that followeth her kill with the sword. For the priest had said, Let her not be slain in the house of the LORD. (16) And they laid hands on her; and she went

the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets and Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried, Treason, Treason. (15) But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers

live.

poured the sacred oil on the king's head. Yet Thenius adduces it as an instance of the "petty spirit of the chronist," accusing him of inserting the words "for fear anybody should think of an anointing by unconsecrated hands." Surely such criticism as this is itself both "petty" and "wilful." The words probably stood in the chronicler's principal source.

God save the king.-Literally, Vivat rex. (1 Kings i. 25.)

(13) Of the guard and of the people.-This is correct. The and has fallen out of the Hebrew text.

The guard. The Aramaic form of the plural, rare in prose, occurs here. (Comp. 1 Kings xi. 33.) In 2 Chron. xxiii. 11 the words are transposed. This gives a different sense-viz., "of the people running together," to which is added, “and acclaiming the king." The chronicler may have found this in the work he followed, but the text before us seems preferable, as the word "runners" (Couriers) throughout the account means the royal guard.

The people.-See Note on verse 14.

She came

into the temple.-Evidently, therefore, the palace was hard by the Temple. (See Note on verse 16.)

(14) And when she looked.-Having entered the court, the whole scene met her astonished gaze.

The king stood by a pillar.-Rather, the king was standing on the stand. (Comp. chap. xxiii. 3.) The stand (Vulg., "tribunal ") was apparently a dais reserved for the king only, which stood before the great altar, at the entrance to the inner court (2 Chron. xxiii. 13, vi. 13). Thenius maintains that the king stood on the top of the flight of steps leading into the sanctuary. Why, then, does not the text express this meaning more exactly? (Comp. chap. ix. 13.)

As the manner was-i.e., according to the custom on such occasions.

The princes.-The chiefs of the people, not the centurions of the royal guard, who have their full designation throughout the chapter. (See verses 4, 9, 10, 15, 19.) The present account has nowhere stated that the nobles were present in the Temple; but this sudden mention of them, as if they had been present throughout the proceedings, is in striking harmony with the chronicler's express assertion that, after their conference with Jehoiada, the centurions of the guard assembled the Levites and the heads of the clans in the Temple (2 Chron. xxiii. 3). (The LXX. and Vulg. render "singers," because they read shārim," singers," instead of sarim, "princes.")

The trumpeters.-Literally, the trumpets; as we speak of "the violins," meaning the players on them.

came into the king's house: and there was she slain.

(17) And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the LORD'S people; between the king also and the

The sacred trumpets or clarions blown on solemn occasions by the priests are intended. (Comp. chap. xii. 14; Num. x. 2; 1 Chron. xv. 24.) This is an indication that the priests and Levites were present as the chronicle so conspicuously represents, and as, indeed, was to be expected on an occasion when the high priest took the lead, and when the scene of action was the Temple. The acting classes of priests and Levitical musicians, warders, and priestly attendants must certainly have participated in the proceedings.

All the people of the land.-Secrecy was no longer necessary, as Thenius supposes, when once the centurions of the guard had heartily taken up with the plot.

Rejoiced... blew.-Rejoicing . . . blowing.
Treason.-Literally, Conspiracy.

(15) The captains of the hundreds, the officers of the host.-The centurions of the royal guard are called "the officers of the host" (comp. Num. xxxi. 14) to signify that it was they who gave effect to the high priest's orders by communicating them to their troops.

Have her forth without the ranges.-Rather, Cause her to go out between the ranks-i.e., escort her out of the sacred precincts with a guard on both sides.

Him that followeth her-i.e., whoever shows any sympathy with her, or attempts to take her part. There might have been some of her partisans in the large gathering in the Temple court.

For the priest had said.-This is a parenthetic statement accounting for the order just given; and "had said" may mean "thought."

(16) They laid hands on her.-So the LXX. and Vulg. The Hebrew phrase means: and they made room for her on both sides-i.e., the crowd fell back, and a lane was formed for her exit (so the Targum and Rashi).

She went... king's house.-She entered the palace by way of the entry of the horses. Athaliah was conducted to the royal stables which adjoined the palace, and there put to death.

(17) A covenant.-Rather, the covenant. The high priest solemnly renewed the original compact between Jehovah and the king and people-a compact which had been violated by the Baal-worship of recent reigns.

That they should be the Lord's people.Comp. Deut. iv. 20; Exod. xix. 5, 6.

Between the king also and the people.— For the protection of their mutual rights and preroga. tives. (Comp. 1 Sam. x. 25.) The king was bound to govern according to the law of Jehovah-" the testimony" which had been put upon him (verse 12).

(Comp. Note on 2 Chron. xxiii. 16.) The people were to be loyal to the house of David.

(18) All the people of the land went into the house of Baal.-Immediately after the covenant had been renewed, of which the extirpation of the foreign Baal-worship was a consequence. In the fervour of their newly-awakened enthusiasm for Jehovah, the assembly may have hurried off at once to the work of demolition. It seems to be implied that the "house of Baal" stood on the Temple mount, in ostentatious rivalry with the sanctuary of Jehovah. (Comp. the introduction of idolatrous altars into the Temple itself by Manasseh, chaps. xxi. 4, 5, 7, xxiii. 12.) This house of Baal had, perhaps, been built by Athaliah. (Comp. 1 Kings xvi. 31, 32.)

His altars... his images.-Or, its (the Temple's) altars... its images.

And the priest appointed officers over the house of the Lord. The obviously close connection of this statement with what precedes, almost proves that the sanctuary of Baal had stood within the Temple precincts, probably in the outer court. After the destruction of it, Jehoiada appointed certain overseersprobably Levites of rank-to prevent any future desecration of the Temple by the practice of idolatrous rites (comp. Ezek. viii. 5-16), or by wanton attacks of the Baal-worshippers, who might be cowed, but were certainly not exterminated (comp. 2 Chron. xxiv. 7); and to see that the legitimate cultus was properly carried out. (The sentence tells us what was done some time afterwards, in consequence of the reformation; thus finishing the subject in hand at the expense of the strict order of time.)

Mattan.-Mattan is short for Mattanbaal, “gift of Baal," a Phoenician name occurring in Punic and Assyrian inscriptions (the Muthumballes of Plautus). Comp. also Mitinna and Mattén, as names of Tyrian kings (Inser. of Tig. Pil. ii.; Herod. vii. 98).

(19) And he took the rulers... the land.Jehoiada now arranges a procession to escort the king in triumph from the Temple to the palace.

The rulers. . . guard.-Rather, the captains of the hundreds (the centurions) and the Carians and the Couriers; or, as Thenius prefers, the lictors and the satellites.

They brought down the king from the house of the Lord.-Down from the Temple to the bridge connecting Moriah with Zion.

And came by the way... king's house.Rather, and entered the king's house by way of the gate of the Couriers. This gate, therefore, belonged not to

of God Restored.

of the kings. (20) And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king's house.

(21) Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign.

CHAPTER XII.-(1) In "the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash began to reign; and forty years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. (2) And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest

the Temple, but to the palace, and was probably the chief entrance thereto.

And he sat on the throne.—The proceedings ended with the solemn enthronement of the king in the palace of his fathers. (The LXX. reads more suitably:

And they seated him on the throne;" so Chronicles.) (20) All the people of the land . . . the city. -Thenius calls this an "evident contrast between the soldiery and the citizens; the former exulting in their work, the latter not lifting a finger while the idolatrous tyrant was being put to death (connecting the first half of the verse with the second; after Ewald). But his assumption that "all the people of the land,” here and in verse 14, means "the soldiery" ("die ganze in Jerusalem anwesende Kriegerische Landesmannschaft-Die Kriegsmannschaft") is certainly wrong. The people of the land" are plainly opposed to the royal guards-" the Praetorians "-who effected the revolution, as civilians to soldiers.

The city was in quiet.-The citizens of Jerusa lem accepted the revolution without attempting any counter movement. No doubt there was a strong element of Baal-worshippers and partisans of Athaliah in the capital. "The people of the land" (i.e., probably, the people whom the centurions had called together from the country, at the instance of Jehoiada, according to 2 Chron. xxiii. 2) are contrasted with the burghers of Jerusalem. The phrase, "the city was in quiet" (or had rest," Judges v. 31), may, however, possibly refer to the deliverance from the tyranny of Athaliah.

And they slew Athaliah.-Rather, and Athaliah they had slain; an emphatic recurrence to the real climax of the story (verse 16), by way of conclusion.

Beside. Rather, in, i.e., within the palace enclosure. (21) Seven years old was Jehoash.-The Hebrew editions connect this verse with chapter xii.

XII.

THE REIGN OF JEHOASH, OR JOASH. (Comp. 2 Chron. xxiv.)

(1) Forty years.-A common round number. David and Solomon are each said to have reigned forty years. His mother's name.-The author of these short abstracts generally gives this particular in regard to the kings of Judah.

Beer-sheba.-A famous Simeonite sanctuary, and resort of pilgrims (Amos v. 5, viii. 14).

(2) All his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.-The Hebrew is ambiguous, but may certainly mean this, which is the rendering of the LXX. and Vulg. (The accent dividing the verse ought