Southern Kingdom Of Judah
After Josiah there was no hope for Judah, the last 3 kings
were all evil. The Babylonians swept down upon Jerusalem in
597 B. C. and captured it. A second attack led to
Jerusalem`s second defeat in 586 B. C. Captives from both
campaigns were taken to Babylonia to mark the captivity of
the Southern Kingdom....
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Judah was left suddenly independent when Rehoboam flatly
refused to lighten the heavy load of forced labor and high
taxation imposed on the Israelites by his father Solomon (1
Kin. 12:1-24). Upon Rehoboam`s refusal, the ten tribes
living north of Bethel promptly declared their
independence....
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Something else occurred along with this Division--an
entirely unexpected blow that devastated Judah. Shishak,
Pharaoh of Egypt, invaded the country, plundered the
treasures of the Temple and the royal palace, and destroyed
a number of newly built fortresses (2 Chr. 12:1-12). Judah
never recovered from the sudden loss of her national
wealth. B...
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Rehoboam wanted to attack Israel and reunite the kingdom by
force, but a Word from the Lord came to Shemaiah the
prophet saying,
I Kings 12:24 "Thus says the LORD: "You shall not go up nor
fight against your brethren the children of Israel."...
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Judah had somewhat of a better record. Only 8 of Judah`s
kings served God. These were: Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash,
Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham, Hezekiah, and Josiah. The rest of
the 20 kings were wicked. In the southern kingdom there was
only one dynasty, that of king David, except usurper
Athaliah from the northern kingdom, who by marriage, broke
i...
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Jehoshaphat`s son Jehoram (about 848-841 B.C.) married
Athaliah, daughter of king Ahab and the wicked Queen
Jezebel; and their marriage led to Baal worship also being
established in Jerusalem (2 Kin. 8:18)....
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Jehoram`s son Ahaziah reigned only for one year (841 B.C.)
before he was killed. The pagan queen-mother Athaliah then
seized the throne and nearly brought the Davidic line to
extinction....
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The pagan queen-mother Athaliah seized the throne and
nearly brought the Davidic line to extinction by killing
most of Ahaziah`s sons. Only the infant Joash escaped; he
was rescued by his aunt Jehoshabeath and her husband
Jehoiada, the godly high priest (2 Chr. 22:10-12). After
six years Joash was proclaimed the lawful king, and
Athaliah was ...
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The pagan queen-mother Athaliah seized the throne and
nearly brought the Davidic line to extinction by killing
most of Ahaziah`s sons. Only the infant Joash escaped; he
was rescued by his aunt Jehoshabeath and her husband
Jehoiada, the godly high priest (2 Chr. 22:10-12). After
six years Joash was proclaimed the lawful king, and
Athaliah was ...
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Baal worship climaxed in Judah during the reign of Ahaz (2
Ki 16). Ahaz (about 732-715 B.C.), was faced with Assyria`s
rise to power under TiglathPileser III; but Ahaz resisted
the urgings of Rezin of Syria and Pekah of Israel to join
an alliance against Assyria. Instead, Ahaz sought help from
Assyria, against the prophet Isaiah`s advice, and ...
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