2 Kings 14:1-7 | The Way of Scripture

2 Kings 14:1-7

Why does Amaziah spare the children of his father’s murderers?

Berean Standard Bible

1 In the second year of the reign of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz over Israel, Amaziah son of Joash became king of Judah. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan; she was from Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not as his father David had done. He did everything as his father Joash had done. 4 Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away, and the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places. 5 As soon as the kingdom was firmly in his grasp, Amaziah executed the servants who had murdered his father the king. 6 Yet he did not put the sons of the murderers to death, but acted according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the LORD commanded: “Fathers must not be put to death for their children, and children must not be put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.” 7 Amaziah struck down 10,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. He took Sela in battle and called it Joktheel, which is its name to this very day.

What is the context?

Amaziah succeeds his father Joash as king of Judah. His reign receives a qualified favorable judgment: he does right, but not as David had, and the high places remain.

Once his rule is secure, he executes the servants who murdered his father. He does not kill their children, explicitly following the law that each person is to die for his own sin rather than for a parent’s or child’s act.

The account then records his victory over Edom and the capture of Sela. His restraint toward the children is not a minor omission: the narrator identifies it as obedience to a stated limit on royal punishment.

How is this passage commonly understood?

Wesley sees the decision to spare the children as obedience even where a king might fear later revenge. The rule quoted here is also found in Deuteronomy 24:16. The passage addresses judicial punishment and should not be expanded into a claim that one person’s actions can never cause suffering for a household.

What is our position?

We don't have a position on this passage yet. When our study reaches a conclusion the text supports, it will appear here.

Where can I study this further?

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