This is a difficult, and not-too-pretty story to tell. Let us begin by identifying some of the principle characters: Athaliah, daughter of Jezebel, married Jehoram the king of Judah. Like her mother, she was a fanatical champion of Baal worship. She was directly responsible for the desecration of the Jerusalem Temple, the conversion of its sacred vessels into articles used for Baal worship, inciting a general massacre, and seizing the royal throne which she occupied for six years. Ahaziah, son of Athaliah and father of Joash. Joash, who had been rescued as an infant from an attempt to exterminate the royal line by Jehoshabeath, who cared for him secretly for six years. Joash became king at age seven, served well until the death of Jehoiada, then c…