II Kings 11:4,17,18

II Kings 11:4,17,18 And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and shewed them the king's son.  And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and (Joash) the king and the people, that they should be the LORD'S people ... And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and brake it down; his altars and his images brake they in pieces thoroughly … Jehoiada was a godly priest and followed the Lord. He knew that Queen Athaliah was a wicked woman. But Jehoiada had to be patient. Queen Athaliah’s daughter-in-law, Jehosheba, had secretly rescued her baby nephew, Joash, from Queen Athaliah, who had ordered the death of anyone and everyone who might be a threat to her throne. Jehoiada and Jehosheba had hidden little Joash in one of the back rooms of the Temple for seven years. They taught Joash and made preparations for the day when good people would once again be in charge of Judah. Wicked Queen Athaliah promoted idolatry and Baal worship, but Jehoiada preached the truth of God. So when Joash was seven years old, Jehoiada made his move. He secretly organized loyal soldiers and godly political leaders and when everything was ready, Jehoiada anointed Joash the rightful king of Judah. When wicked Athaliah heard the news, she flew into a rage and rushed to the Temple. But Jehoiada was ready. Soldiers dragged Athaliah away and executed the wicked queen. Under Jehoiada’s careful eye, Joash became a great king for Judah and for the Lord!

II Kings 11:1-3

II Kings 11:1-3 And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king's sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. Ahaziah was a wicked king and God removed him from his throne. When Jehu shot Joram in the back as he fled, the soldiers took out after Ahaziah as well. They injured him such that he dids and his body was taken back to Jerusalem to be buried in the family tomb. When his mother saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to take over in his place. Queen Athaliah ordered her soldiers to kill all of her grandchildren, nieces and nephews - absolutely anyone who had any claim to the throne. She was a wicked woman and God’s priest, Jehoiada, knew she was bad. But there wasn’t much that he could do - not just yet. Queen Athaliah’s daughter-in-law, Jehosheba, rescued one of her baby nephews from the murderous soldiers and Jehoiada hid him in the Temple. They couldn’t stop Athaliah’s rampage, but they did what they could. They rescued little baby Joash and prayed to the Lord in heaven for safety - for them and for him. And God granted their request. God watched over little Joash for the next six years and blessed the faithfulness of Jehosheba and Jehoiada.

II Kings 10:26-28

II Kings 10:26-28 And they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them. And they brake down the image of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and made it a draught house unto this day. Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel. Jehu not only rid the country of Israel of wicked Queen Jezebel, he removed all of the wicked prophets of Baal from the land. When Jehu became king, he devised a clever plan to get rid of all of the prophets of Baal at one time. Jehu announced that he wanted to have a meeting only with the men who were loyal to the idol Baal. He sent word throughout Israel that there was going to be a big “Baal” meeting and everyone needed to be there. Everyone not true worshipers or priests of Baal were forbidden. But once he had everyone present, he locked all exits and commanded 80 hand-picked soldiers to execute all of the wicked idol-worshipers. Then Jehu proceeded to destroy all the images of Baal and tear down all the temples to Baal. He made the temple grounds a place where everyone in Israel brought their trash. Jehu turned the temples of Baal into garbage dumps! Good for him!