2 Kings 21:19-26

2 Kings 21:19-26

[19] Amon  was twenty  and two  years  old  when he began to reign,  two  years  in Jerusalem.  And his mother's  name  was Meshullemeth,  the daughter  of Haruz  of Jotbah.  [20] And he did  that which was evil  in the sight  of the LORD,  as his father  Manasseh  did.  [21] in all the way  that his father  walked in,  and served  the idols  that his father  served,  and worshipped  them: [22] And he forsook  the LORD  God  of his fathers,  and walked  not in the way  of the LORD.  [23] And the servants  of Amon  conspired  against him, and slew  the king  in his own house.  [24] And the people  of the land  slew  all them that had conspired  against king  Amon;  and the people  of the land  made Josiah  his son  king  [25] Now the rest  of the acts  of Amon  which he did,  are they not written  in the book  of the chronicles  of the kings  of Judah?  [26] And he was buried  in his sepulchre  in the garden  of Uzza:  and Josiah  his son  reigned  in his stead.

What does 2 Kings 21:19-26 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Amon reigned two years (642-640 B.C.). Rather than continuing to follow the Lord, which his father"s repentance encouraged, Amon reverted to the policies of Manasseh"s earlier reign and rebelled against Yahweh completely. This provoked some of his officials to assassinate him ( 2 Kings 21:23). Again we see that rebellion against God often leads to one"s premature personal destruction (cf. 1 John 5:16). To their credit, the leaders of Judah executed the king"s assassins and so prevented anarchy.
Amon may have been the only king of either Israel or Judah who bore the name of a foreign god. Amon-Re was the sun god of Egypt. His father may have named him in honor of this god. However, the Hebrew word amon means "faithful," so his name may not connect with Amon-Re.