Jehoash was the youngest king to mount Judah"s throne. He began reigning at age seven and ruled for40 years (835-796 B.C.). His father was Ahaziah, the most recent male ruler of Judah, and his grandmother was Athaliah.
Jehoash followed the Law of Moses and ruled well as long as his mentor Jehoiada, the high priest, lived. However when Jehoiada died, evidently shortly after Jehoash"s temple repairs were complete ( 2 Chronicles 24:15), the king began to follow the advice of certain Judean officials who led him into unfaithfulness to Yahweh. He stubbornly refused the warnings God sent him by prophets ( 2 Chronicles 24:17-19) and by Zechariah , who had replaced his father as high priest ( 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). He even executed Zechariah. In the earlier years of his reign he was faithful to God, except that he allowed the high places of worship to remain in Judah (cf. Deuteronomy 12:2-7; Deuteronomy 12:13-14).
With the beginning of Jehoash"s reign, Judah began to enjoy over100 years of consecutive leadership by four men whom the writer of Kings judged good. None of these four (Jehoash, Amaziah, Prayer of Azariah , and Jotham) was as good for Judah as Asa and Jehoshaphat had been, or as Hezekiah or Josiah would be. Nevertheless, together they provided the longest continuous span of God-approved leadership in Judah"s history. [source][source][source]
Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 11
1Jehoash, being saved by Jehosheba his aunt from Athaliah's massacre, 3is hidden six years in the house of God 13Jehoiada, giving order to the captains, in the seventh year anoints him king 17Jehoiada restores the worship of God
What do the individual words in 2 Kings 11:21 mean?