Joram

Technical Profile

• Name Meaning: Hebrew Yehôrām (“Yahweh is exalted”)
• Period/Era: Divided Kingdom
• Main References: 2 Kings 3; 2 Kings 6–9
• Key Connections: Son of Ahab and Jezebel; brother of Ahaziah (Israel); allied with Jehoshaphat of Judah; interactions with the prophet Elisha; conflict with Hazael of Aram

Who was Joram?

Joram (also called Jehoram) was king of Israel in the Northern Kingdom, ruling after his brother Ahaziah.
He belonged to the Omride dynasty and is evaluated in Kings as continuing Jeroboam’s cultic sins while reducing Baal practices.
His reign is narrated alongside Elisha’s prophetic activity and Israel’s regional wars.

Key Events & Achievements

• Moabite revolt campaign: Joined Jehoshaphat of Judah and the king of Edom against Moab, receiving guidance through Elisha (2 Kings 3).
• Aramean conflict and deliverance: Faced repeated Aramean pressure, including the siege conditions in Samaria during the Ben-hadad narratives (2 Kings 6–7).
• Downfall and assassination: Was wounded in battle and later killed in Jezreel by Jehu, ending his rule (2 Kings 8–9).

Life Lesson & Legacy

Joram’s reign shows how Israel’s kingship was repeatedly assessed by covenant faithfulness and by responsiveness to prophetic word in the Divided Kingdom.

Key Verse

"Nevertheless, he clung to the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them." — 2 Kings 3:3, ESV