“Jehoram his brother began to reign in his place in the second year of Jehoram.” King Ahaziah did not have any sons, so when he died his brother Jehoram began to reign over Israel (2 Kings 3:1). The words “his brother” were likely original but dropped by a copyist's haplography from the Hebrew text. The phrase “his brother” is the Lucianic recensions of the Septuagint, the Latin Vulgate, and the Syriac OT.

At this time in history, the kings of Israel and Judah can be confusing. In the northern kingdom of Israel, King Ahab’s son was King Ahaziah, and the line of kings in Israel in the dynasty of Omri which lasted four generations was: Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, and Ahaziah’s brother, Joram (also called “Jehoram” in the Bible). In the southern kingdom, Judah, at almost the same time, the lineage was Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joram (also called “Jehoram”), and Ahaziah. As can be seen, within the reigns of four kings of both Israel and Judah, two of the kings were called by the same name (Ahaziah and Jehoram of Israel and Ahaziah and Jehoram of Judah), and the two kings who were named “Jehoram” are also both called “Joram” in the Bible, making things very confusing indeed. It takes some diligence on the part of the reader to keep the kings straight.

At the time of 2 Kings 1:17, Joram (Jehoram), the son of Ahab and brother of the previous king, Ahaziah, was the king of Israel. At that same time, Joram (Jehoram) the son of Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah. Both kings are mentioned here in 2 Kings 1:17, and both kings have the same name, the longer one, “Jehoram,” in the Hebrew text.