Last updated on August 6th, 2026 at 11:03 pm
King Ahab and his wife Jezebel were the parents of Ahaziah, whose name is commonly understood to mean “Yahweh has grasped.” After Ahab was killed in battle, Ahaziah succeeded him as king of the northern kingdom of Israel. He appears on the Biblical Timeline during the period of the Divided Kingdom.
Ahaziah reigned in Samaria for two years. Like his parents, he did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served and worshiped Baal.
Ahaziah Continues Israel’s Idolatry
After Israel divided into two kingdoms, Jeroboam, the northern kingdom’s first king, established centers of worship featuring golden calves at Bethel and Dan. Ahab later promoted the worship of Baal. Ahaziah continued in the practices of Jeroboam, Ahab, and Jezebel rather than leading Israel back to the Lord.
The Bible says that Ahaziah served and worshiped Baal and provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, just as his father had done.
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Ahaziah’s Injury and Elijah’s Prophecy
After Ahab’s death, Moab rebelled against Israel. Around this time, Ahaziah fell through the lattice of an upper room in his palace at Samaria and was seriously injured. He sent messengers to Ekron to ask Baal-Zebub whether he would recover.
The angel of the Lord instructed the prophet Elijah to intercept the messengers. Elijah asked why the king was consulting the god of Ekron as though there were no God in Israel. He then announced that Ahaziah would not leave the bed on which he was lying and would die from his injuries.
When the messengers returned sooner than expected, Ahaziah learned that Elijah had stopped them. The king sent a captain with fifty men to bring Elijah to him. Fire came down and consumed the first group, as well as a second captain and his men. A third captain approached Elijah humbly and pleaded for his life and the lives of his men. At the Lord’s direction, Elijah accompanied him to the king and personally repeated the prophecy.
King Ahaziah of Israel
Ahaziah’s Death and Successor
Ahaziah died just as the Lord had declared through Elijah. Because he had no son, his brother Joram, also called Jehoram, succeeded him as king of Israel. Joram was another son of Ahab and continued the dynasty until Jehu’s revolt.
Two Different Kings Named Ahaziah
Ahaziah king of Israel should not be confused with the later Ahaziah king of Judah. The Ahaziah killed during Jehu’s revolt was Ahaziah of Judah, the son of Jehoram king of Judah—not Ahab’s son Ahaziah.
When Jehu revolted, Joram was king of Israel and Ahaziah of Judah was visiting him at Jezreel. Jehu killed Joram and then pursued and mortally wounded Ahaziah of Judah.
Jehu is identified in Scripture as the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Jehu’s father was not King Jehoshaphat of Judah, who was the son of Asa.
Therefore, Jehu did not kill Ahaziah king of Israel and did not immediately succeed him. Ahaziah of Israel was succeeded by Joram, and Jehu later overthrew Joram and became king.
- 1 Kings 22:40, 51–53 — Ahaziah succeeds Ahab and continues the worship of Baal.
- 2 Kings 1:1–18 — Ahaziah’s injury, his consultation of Baal-Zebub, Elijah’s prophecy, his death, and Joram’s succession.
- 2 Kings 3:1–3 — Joram son of Ahab becomes king of Israel.
- 2 Kings 8:25–29 — Ahaziah king of Judah visits Joram king of Israel.
- 2 Kings 9:1–29 — Jehu’s ancestry and his killing of Joram of Israel and Ahaziah of Judah.
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I am afraid there is a mix up. King Ahab died as you described for King Ahaziah. Ahaziah died in his bed. 2 Kings 1:16-17 after a fall. King Ahab died as a result of an arrow and the dogs kicked up his blood as God foretold. 1 Mings 22:29-40.
Regards
Rick thank you for reading and we’ve made some updates.
There are two King Ahaziah’s and you need to fix your references to separate/distinguish this. One is king of Israel and dies, then another is king of Judah and dies later. Your references should indicate which you are referring to (and there are more and better references IMHO)
Thank you for the feedback Erin. In this the article refers to the King of Israel as the title indicates. It is certainly easy to mix up the two.