מלכים ב, פרק י״ג, פסוק י׳

The historical records of the kings of Israel and Judah serve a greater purpose than mere record-keeping; they reveal God's active hand behind political shifts. However, tracking the exact timeline of these kings often presents chronological puzzles. In this instance, the transition of power from father to son creates a mathematical problem. The father began his rule in the twenty-third year of the king of Judah and remained on the throne for seventeen years. By simple addition, the son should have taken power in the thirty-ninth or fortieth year. Yet, he actually took the throne in the thirty-seventh year. This gap is so sharp that one perspective views it as a difficulty without a satisfying solution [רש״י].

The primary approach among commentators resolves this discrepancy through the concept of a shared rule. The son was crowned while his father was still alive, and they governed together for about two years [מצודת דוד, רד״ק, חומת אנך, אברבנאל, מלבי״ם]. This early transition of power was a direct result of the father's desperate prayer to God. Facing intense military pressure from the nation of Aram, the father cried out for help. God answered by promising to send a savior, who was in fact his son. So that the father could witness the beginning of this salvation before passing away, his son was elevated to the throne during his lifetime, possibly following the explicit instructions of a prophet [רד״ק, חומת אנך, אברבנאל]. The exact timing of these events highlights God's kindness in saving Israel for the sake of His name, even as the people continued to sin [מלבי״ם]. Consequently, his recorded sixteen-year reign refers only to the period he ruled alone, after his father died [מצודת דוד].

Alternatively, another approach resolves the mathematical issue by examining how royal years were counted. Historical records often count partial years as full years. Because the father's first and last years on the throne were incomplete, and because the kingdoms of Israel and Judah may have started their calendar years in different seasons, the timelines naturally overlap. Under this calculation, the son's rise to power aligns perfectly with the thirty-seventh or thirty-eighth year of the king of Judah, resolving the timeline naturally [רלב״ג, אברבנאל].