The Princess Who Preserved the Promise: The Unsung Faith of Jehosheba
The biblical narrative is full of well-known heroes—Abraham, Moses, David, and Paul—whose stories are recounted with great frequency. Yet, tucked away in the books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles is a woman whose single act of faith and courage was so vital that it literally preserved the future of the Messiah’s lineage: Jehosheba. She is one of the Bible’s most impactful, yet rarely known, figures of faith.
The Prophetic Hotspot: Crisis in the House of David
Jehosheba lived in the tumultuous Kingdom of Judah during a period of deep spiritual decline. After the death of her brother, King Ahaziah, her mother (or possibly stepmother), the utterly ruthless Queen Mother Athaliah, seized control. Athaliah was the daughter of the infamous Jezebel, and she inherited her mother’s murderous ambition.
The crisis struck when Athaliah decided to secure her power by wiping out the entire royal family. The scriptural account is chilling: “When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal” (2 Kings 11:1, KJV).
This was more than political maneuvering; it was an existential threat to God’s covenant promise. The survival of the Davidic line was essential, as it was the promised lineage through which the King of the Lord’s Return would eventually come. If the “seed royal” was destroyed, the covenant was broken, and the hope of the world was extinguished.
The Journey: A Princess’s Unprecedented Daring
Jehosheba, a princess of the royal family and the daughter of King Jehoram, refused to stand by. Her act of faith required not only courage but a calculated, life-threatening gamble.
The Rescue:
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. (2 Kings 11:2, KJV)
Jehosheba did not save an army; she saved one, one-year-old infant, Joash. She and his nurse snatched the child from the royal chambers just before the massacre, risking execution if they were caught. This was a private resistance to a public atrocity, driven by a deep conviction that God’s promise to David could not fail.
The Sanctuary:
Jehosheba was married to Jehoiada the High Priest. This crucial relationship enabled the second part of the rescue: hiding the infant king in the safest, most sacred place in the entire kingdom—The House of the LORD (the Temple).
And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years: and Athaliah did reign over the land. (2 Kings 11:3, KJV)
For six years, while the wicked Athaliah ruled, Jehosheba and her husband faithfully protected the secret of the true king within the Temple walls. They sustained the covenant promise in secret, knowing that the smallest spark of light can overcome overwhelming darkness.
The Return Question: The Certainty of the King
Jehosheba’s journey of faith culminates in the restoration of the Davidic throne. In the seventh year, Jehoiada the High Priest staged a righteous coup, presenting the now-seven-year-old Joash to the captains, guards, and the people for coronation. The usurpation of Athaliah was overthrown, and the rightful king was seated on the throne of Judah.
Jehosheba’s story offers profound encouragement for all those focused on the Lord’s Return:
- The Assurance of the Covenant: Jehosheba’s faith was an absolute conviction in God’s stated purpose. Her actions affirm the truth that no matter how desperate the spiritual or political situation may seem—even if all the “seed royal” appears to be destroyed—God always preserves the line of His King.
- The Power of Hidden Faith: The most impactful faith is often executed in private, sacrificial, and unnoticed acts. Jehosheba’s life teaches that the quiet, committed faithfulness of a few can literally determine the course of salvation history. She preserved the seed that would ultimately blossom into the eternal King, Jesus, who is coming again. Her courage gives assurance that the return of the Lord is a settled matter of divine decree, which no human or demonic force can stop.