Inquiry:
Which Jehoram began to reign first? 2 Kings 8:16 says Jehoram of Judah began to reign in the 5th year of Joram, king of Israel. 2 Kings 1:17 says Jehoram of Israel began to reign in the 2nd year of Jehoram, king of Judah. Is there a contradiction?
Response:
An excellent question. As we look at those two texts, it certainly does seem that the writer of 2 Kings has contradicted himself. However, there is an explanation which is adequate and sensible to demonstrate both statements true.
An important text we must consider, though not mentioned in the question, is 2 Kings 3:1. There we find that Jehoram of Israel began to reign in the 18th year of Jehoshaphat. With that in mind, Clarke’s Commentary says:
Jehoram king of Israel began to reign in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, which was the second year after this same Jehoshaphat had given the viceroyalty to his son Jehoram…
Though a surface look at 2 Kings 1:17; 3:1 and 8:16 seems to indicate an error in the record, the existence of a viceroyalty in Judah would explain the variance. Jehoram of Israel came to the throne in the 2nd year of the viceroy in Judah, the 18th year of his father’s reign. Then in the 5th year of Jehoram of Israel, Jehoram of Judah was given full authority by his father.
There is no contradiction.
Links: YouVersion | GROW magazine
Return to the article archive
