2 Kings 15:38 records the death of King Jotham of Judah and the handover of the throne to his son Ahaz. In plain terms, the verse is a brief royal notice: Jotham died, was buried with his ancestors in Jerusalem, and Ahaz became king in his place. It was written by the editor of Kings, who recorded the reigns of Judah’s rulers one after another.
Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in his father David’s city, and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
2 Kings 15:38 (WEB)
What 2 Kings 15:38 Means
The phrase “slept with his fathers” is an old Hebrew way of saying a king died. It describes death as rest among one’s ancestors, not as a dramatic event. The verse then notes that Jotham was buried in “his father David’s city,” which means Jerusalem, the capital of the Davidic dynasty. Being laid to rest there mattered, because it tied the king to the line of promise that began with David.
The last clause, “Ahaz his son reigned in his place,” shows continuity. The throne passed within one family, which was the expected pattern for Judah. The verse does not praise or criticize Jotham here. It simply closes his account and opens the next one.
What the verse does not do is offer a spiritual lesson on its own. It does not promise anything to the reader or describe God’s direct action. Its value comes from how it fits into the larger story of the kings and the people who waited to see whether those kings would walk faithfully before the LORD.
The Context of 2 Kings 15:38
Second Kings belongs to the historical books of the Old Testament and was likely compiled in its present form during or after the exile in Babylon. The author used royal records and offered an evaluation of each king based on whether he did what was right in the LORD’s eyes. Its first audience would have been the people of Judah, who needed to understand how their nation had reached such a painful point.
The surrounding verses add weight to this short notice. Verse 35 says the high places, the local shrines where people still worshiped, were not removed, and verse 37 reports that the LORD began sending Rezin and Pekah against Judah. Read in that setting, Jotham’s death is the close of a reign with mixed faithfulness and the opening of a darker chapter under Ahaz. That shift is what gives the verse its sober tone.
Key Phrases in 2 Kings 15:38
2 Kings 15:7
Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in David’s city: and Jotham his son reigned in his place.
(WEB)
This verse reports the death of Azariah, Jotham’s father, and the succession of Jotham. Reading it alongside 2 Kings 15:38 shows the same pattern repeating across generations and helps you see how the reigns connect.
2 Chronicles 27:9
Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in David’s city; and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
(WEB)
Chronicles gives its own account of Jotham’s death and burial in the city of David. Reading this parallel passage adds a second perspective on the same king and shows how the Old Testament writers told the same history with different emphases.
A Short Prayer From 2 Kings 15:38
Lord, you hold the times and the seasons of every life and every nation. When leaders come and go, and when the ones we trusted are gone, remind us that your purposes continue. Give us steady hearts in seasons of change, and help us to honor what has been faithfully handed to us. Teach us to trust you with what comes next, and to walk in your ways whatever the future holds. Amen.
