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Bible Encyclopedias
Jehosheba
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
or (Heb. Yehoshe'ba, יְהוֹשֶׁבִע, Jehovah swearing; Septuag. Ι᾿ωσαβεέ, Josephus Ι᾿ωσαβέδη ), the daughter of Jehoram, sister of Ahaziah, and aunt of Joash. kings of Judah. The last of these owed his life to her, and his crown to her husband, the high priest Jehoiada (2 Kings 11:2). In the parallel passage (2 Chronicles 22:11) the name is written JEHOSHABEATH (יְהוֹשִׁבְעִת, Yehoshabath'; Sept. Ι᾿ωσαβέδ ). B.C. 882. (See JEHOASH), 1. Her name thus exactly corresponds in meaning to that of the only two other wives of Jewish priests who are known to us, viz. ELISHEBA the wife of Aaron (Exodus 6:23), and ELISABETH, the wife of Zechariah (Luke 1:7). As she is called (2 Kings 11:2) the daughter of Joram, sister of Ahaziah, it has been conjectured that she was the daughter, not of Athaliah, but of Joram by another wife (comp. Josephus, Ant. 9:7, 1, Ο᾿χοζίᾷ ὁμοπάτριος ἀδελφή ). She is the only recorded instance of the marriage of a princess of the royal house with a high priest. On this occasion it was a providential circumstance — "for she was the sister of Ahaziah" (2 Chronicles 22:11) — as inducing and probably enabling her to rescue the infant Jehoash from the massacre of his brothers. By her he and his nurse were concealed in the palace, and afterwards in the Temple (2 Kings 11:2-3; 2 Chronicles 22:11), where he was brought up probably with her sons (2 Chronicles 23:11), who assisted at his coronation. One of these was Zechariah, who succeeded her husband in his office, and was afterwards murdered (2 Chronicles 24:20). — Smith. Needless doubt has been thrown upon her marriage with Jehoiada (Newman, Heb. Monarch. p. 195), which is not expressly mentioned in Kings, as "a fiction of the chronicler to glorify his greatness." This, however, is certainly assumed in 2 Kings 11:3, and is accepted by Ewald (Geschichte, 3, 575) as perfectly authentic. (See JEHOIADA).
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McClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Jehosheba'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/j/jehosheba.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.
