House of Jehu

Jehoram retreated to the city of Jezreel in order to recover from his wounds, but Jehu attacked and killed him there.

Jehu continued the worship of the golden calves at the holy places of Bethel and Dan (2 Kings 10:28-31).

He was reportedly a poor administrator, and the Book of Kings associates his reign with "great suffering" for his kingdom.

He dominated the Arameans of Syria and reclaimed territories that the Kingdom of Israel had lost in previous conflicts.

[1] Jehu is mentioned in the inscriptions of Shalmaneser III, King of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (reigned 859–824 BCE).

[4] One modern interpretation of the Assyrian inscriptions is that Jehu was a descendant of a cadet branch of the House of Omri, which would explain his high-ranking position in the army of Israel.

[4] Shalmaneser's inscriptions describe as usurpers the kings Hazael of Aram-Damascus, Surri of Patina, and Marduk-bêl-usâte of Karduniaš.

Surri's ancestry is unknown, Hazael was apparently a descendant of a previous royal dynasty, and Marduk-bêl-usâte had revolted against his brother Marduk-zakir-shumi I.

Jehu's predecessors Ahab and Jehoram were enemies of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, and had repeatedly participated in the military coalitions against Shalmaneser himself.

Shalmaneser had every reason to favorably depict Jehu and to acknowledge him as a "son" of the previous dynasty.

Narratives concerning previous kings of Israel depict them appointing their own kinsmen in positions requiring such a high level of trust.

David had appointed his nephews (sister's sons) Joab and Amasa as the generals of his own army.

The tribute of Northern Kingdom King " Jehu of the people of the land of Omri " ( Akkadian : 𒅀𒌑𒀀 𒈥 𒄷𒌝𒊑𒄿 ) as depicted on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III , 841-840 BCE. [ 2 ] This is "the only portrayal we have in ancient Near Eastern art of an Israelite or Judaean monarch". [ 3 ]
Black Obelisk, part of the gift-bearing Jewish delegation. [ 5 ]