2 Kings 11:13-20

2 Kings 11:13-20

[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 the manner  was, and the princes  and 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,  [15] But Jehoiada  the priest  commanded  the captains  of the hundreds,  the officers  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  by the way  by the which the horses  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 people.  [18] And all the people  of the land  went  into the house  of Baal,  and brake it down;  his altars  and his images  brake they in pieces  thoroughly,  and slew  Mattan  the priest  of Baal  before  the altars.  And the priest  appointed  over the house  of the LORD.  [19] And he took  the rulers  over hundreds,  and the captains,  and the guard,  and all the people  of the land;  and they brought down  the king  from the house  of the LORD,  and came  by the way  of the gate  of the guard  to the king's  house.  And he sat  on the throne  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. 

What does 2 Kings 11:13-20 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Though Athaliah claimed that Jehoash"s coronation was treasonous, she was the one guilty of treason. Jehoash was a legitimate heir to the throne of Judah, but Athaliah was not since she was not a descendant of David, but had married into Judah"s royal family. She evidently wanted to bring Judah under Israel"s authority. Out of disrespect, the people executed her near the gate where the horses entered the palace (not the city; cf. 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). Like her mother she died a violent death among horses, the instruments of warfare (cf. 2 Kings 9:30-37).
The covenant Jehoiada led the people in adopting was a fresh commitment to the Mosaic Law ( 2 Kings 11:17; cf. Deuteronomy 27-30; Joshua 24; 2 Samuel 5:3; 2 Kings 23:1-3). He also destroyed the temple of Baal ( 2 Kings 11:18) and killed the idolatrous priests in front of the Baal altars. Mattan was a common Phoenician name, but an Israelite with the same name appears in 2 Kings 24:17, so this priest may have been Phoenician or Israelite. [1] All of this showed contempt for the pagan worshippers" false belief that their temple area was a sacred sanctuary. The result of this return to Yahweh was joy and peace in Jerusalem ( 2 Kings 11:20).
As Jezebel had promoted Baalism in Israel, so her daughter did in Judah. During Athaliah"s six-year reign (841-835 B.C.) Baalism gained its most secure foothold in the Southern Kingdom. It was never as influential in Judah as it was in Israel, however, because of the stronger commitment to Yahweh that existed in the Southern Kingdom.
Athaliah"s history is still another proof that those who disregard God"s Word and will bring God"s discipline on themselves and on those they lead.