· Translation: KJV

2 Kings 13:1In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.

The setting

Samaria, ~814 BC. The northern kingdom of Israel. Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, takes the throne as the divided kingdoms continue their separate paths...

The emotion here: carefully documenting royal succession with archival precision

The original word

šānâ (שָׁנָה) — year, indicating the careful chronological record keeping of ancient scribes

Why it matters

This precise dating system allows modern historians to coordinate biblical events with Assyrian records

Read with care

What most readers miss in 2 Kings 13:1

The 23rd year synchronism shows both kingdoms still existed simultaneously

Common misconceptionModern readers skip these genealogies as boring, but they proved legitimacy and showed God's sovereignty over political transitions.

Bible Genome reading

2 Kings 13:1 — Bible Genome reading

SpeakerNarrator
EraDivided Kingdom
Primary emotionstarting
Literary typenarrative

Emotional genome

Comfort power30%
Quotability20%
Memorability40%
Crisis relevance30%
Standalone40%
Themes:successionchronologynorthern kingdom

In context

No verse stands alone.

Read the conversation around it.

Open 2 Kings 13

2 Kings 13:1 comes from the book of 2 Kings, written during the Divided Kingdom period. These words are attributed to Narrator. The dominant emotion in this verse is starting, with a comfort power of 30% and a tone that is reflective. It belongs to the narrative genre of biblical literature. Key themes include succession, chronology, northern kingdom. Notable phrases: twenty-third year; began to reign; over Israel.

Your reflection

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