2 Kings 10:1-36

10:1-5 | Jehu wrote his first letter to identify which of Ahab’s remaining seventy sons was most likely to challenge him for the throne. Because he had recently killed two kings, Joram (9:14-26) and Ahaziah (9:27-28), the leaders were afraid of Jehu.

10:6 | Jehu’s second letter asked others to kill for him. Killing the descendants of the previous dynasty was a common practice. Often the new king would take the heads of their rivals to intimidate the citizenry and discourage rebellion.

10:7-11 | The killing of Ahab’s household was sanctioned, but Jehu overstepped the bounds of God’s judgment in killing his close acquaintances and his priests. He used his God-given power to meet his own selfish desires.

10:12-17 | Jehu also killed some of Ahaziah’s relatives who had come from Judah to see Israel’s royal family (presumably the 70 sons of Ahab). The writer offers no motive for the slaughter. Perhaps Jehu attempted to wipe out a potential heir because the house of Ahaziah and the house of Ahab were related (8:16-18) or because of his ongoing effort to eliminate Baal worship (2 Chron. 22:8).

10:18-29 | The temple of Baal was built by Ahab (1 Kgs. 16:32). What Elijah began (1 Kgs. 18:40), Jehu finished. However, Jehu’s reform was incomplete: he did not turn away from the worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan, which were meant to represent Yahweh.

10:25-26 | The sacred pillars represented Baal’s presence. Jehu made the temple of Baal a refuse dump (a latrine) to not only degrade Baalism but to render the site ritually unclean. Baalism had no place in Israelite culture.

10:32-36 | Jehu’s reign was tumultuous. He came to power through conspiracy and murder, and his legacy was bloody. Though he had been anointed by God and torn down the pillars of Baal, he did not complexly walk in God’s ways, so parts of Israel were given to Hazael.