He too followed the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother
encouraged him to act wickedly. 2 Chronicles 22:3
When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she
proceeded to destroy the whole royal family of the house of Judah. 2 Chronicles
22:10
Athaliah
was the second most corrupt woman in the Bible (behind Jezebel, who she was
related to). She encouraged her son
Ahaziah, the king of Judah, to do evil, probably idol and god worship. Then when Ahaziah was killed, Athaliah killed
all of her family and Ahaziah’s family, including her grandsons. How could a woman do this?
Power. She wanted to be in control and make all the
decisions.
Wealth. She wanted all the money that comes with the
kingdom.
Mental
instability. Her worship of idols turned
her into a self-inclusive ego-maniac.
It’s
unbelievable that a woman would do this (also horrible if a father does
too). Women are maternal, family-minded
and have powerful instincts to protect the one’s they birthed inside them. However, sin is powerful too, sometimes more
powerful than the maternal instinct. At
moments like this, we realize how powerful and overwhelming sin can be.