26 1, 5 Uzziah obeying the Lord, prospereth in his enterprises. 16 He waxeth proud and usurpeth the Priests’ office. 19 The Lord plagueth him. 20 The Priests drive him out of the Temple, and exclude him out of the Lord’s house. 23 His burial, and his successor.

Then all the (A)people of Judah took [a]Uzziah which was sixteen years old, and made him king in the stead of his father Amaziah.

He built [b]Eloth, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers.

(B)Sixteen years old was Uzziah, when he began to reign, and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem, and his mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.

And he did uprightly in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah did.

And he sought God in the days of [c]Zechariah (which understood the visions of God) and when as [d]he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper.

For he went forth and fought against the Philistines and brake down the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod, and built cities in Ashdod, and among the Philistines.

And God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians that dwelt in Gur Baal and Hammeunim.

And the Ammonites gave [e]gifts to Uzziah, and his name spread to the entering in of Egypt: for he did most valiantly.

Moreover Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the corner gate, and at the valley gate, and at the (C)[f]turning, and made them strong.

10 And he built towers in the wilderness, and dug many [g]cisterns: for he had much cattle both in the valleys and plains, plowmen, and dressers of vines in the mountains, and in [h]Carmel: for he loved husbandry.

11 Uzziah also had an host of fighting men that went out to war by bands, according to the count of their number under the hand of Jeiel the Scribe, and Maaseiah the ruler, and under the hand of Hananiah, one of the King’s captains.

12 The whole [i]number of the chief of the families of the valiant men were two thousand and six hundred.

13 And under their hand was the army for war, three hundred and seven thousand, and five hundred that fought valiantly to help the King against the enemy.

14 And Uzziah prepared them throughout all the host, shields, and spears, and helmets, and brigandines, and bows, and stones to sling.

15 He made also very [j]artificial engines in Jerusalem, to be upon the towers and upon the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones: and his name spread far abroad, because God did help him marvelously till he was mighty.

16 ¶ But when he was strong, his heart [k]was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the Lord his God, and went into the Temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the altar of incense.

17 And Azariah the Priest went in after him, and with him fourscore Priests of the Lord, valiant men.

18 And they withstood Uzziah the King, and said unto him, (D)It pertaineth not to thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the Lord, but to the Priests the sons of Aaron, that are consecrated for to offer incense: [l]go forth of the Sanctuary: for thou hast transgressed, and thou shalt have none honor of the Lord God.

19 Then Uzziah was wroth, and had incense in his hand to burn it: and while he was wroth with the Priests, the leprosy rose up in his forehead before the Priests in the house of the Lord beside the incense altar.

20 And when Azariah the chief Priest with all the Priests looked upon him, behold, he was leprous in his forehead, and they caused him hastily to depart thence: and he was even compelled to go out, because the Lord had smitten him.

21 (E)And Uzziah the King was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt as a leper in an [m]house apart, because he was cut off from the house of the Lord: and Jotham his son ruled over the King’s house, and judged the people of the land.

22 Concerning the rest of the acts of Uzziah, first and last, did Isaiah the Prophet the son of Amoz write.

23 So Uzziah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of the burial, which pertained to the Kings: for they said, He [n]is a leper. And Jotham his son reigned in his stead.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 26:1 Called also Azariah.
  2. 2 Chronicles 26:2 He fortified it and made it strong: this city was also called Elath and Elanon near to the red Sea.
  3. 2 Chronicles 26:5 This was not that Zechariah that was the son of Jehoiada, but some other Prophet of that name.
  4. 2 Chronicles 26:5 For God never forsakes any that seeketh unto him, and therefore man is the cause of his own destruction.
  5. 2 Chronicles 26:8 That is, they paid tribute in sign of subjection.
  6. 2 Chronicles 26:9 Whereas the wall or tower turneth.
  7. 2 Chronicles 26:10 Or, pits.
  8. 2 Chronicles 26:10 That is, in mount Carmel, or as the word signifieth in the fruitful field: it is also taken for a green ear of corn, when it is full, as Lev. 2:14.
  9. 2 Chronicles 26:12 Of the chief officers of the king’s house, or of the captains and sergeants for war.
  10. 2 Chronicles 26:15 Hebrew, engines by the invention of an inventive man.
  11. 2 Chronicles 26:16 Thus prosperity causeth men to trust in themselves, and by forgetting him which is the author thereof, procure their own perdition.
  12. 2 Chronicles 26:18 Though his zeal seemed to be good and also his intention, yet because they were not governed by the word of God, he did wickedly, and was therefore both justly resisted and also punished.
  13. 2 Chronicles 26:21 According to the commandment of the Lord, Lev. 13:46.
  14. 2 Chronicles 26:23 And therefore was buried apart in the same field, but not in the same sepulchers with his predecessors.

Uzziah King of Judah(A)(B)

26 Then all the people of Judah(C) took Uzziah,[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors.

Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah; she was from Jerusalem. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Amaziah had done. He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear[b] of God.(D) As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.(E)

He went to war against the Philistines(F) and broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh and Ashdod.(G) He then rebuilt towns near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabs(H) who lived in Gur Baal and against the Meunites.(I) The Ammonites(J) brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful.

Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate,(K) at the Valley Gate(L) and at the angle of the wall, and he fortified them. 10 He also built towers in the wilderness and dug many cisterns, because he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain. He had people working his fields and vineyards in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil.

11 Uzziah had a well-trained army, ready to go out by divisions according to their numbers as mustered by Jeiel the secretary and Maaseiah the officer under the direction of Hananiah, one of the royal officials. 12 The total number of family leaders over the fighting men was 2,600. 13 Under their command was an army of 307,500 men trained for war, a powerful force to support the king against his enemies. 14 Uzziah provided shields, spears, helmets, coats of armor, bows and slingstones for the entire army.(M) 15 In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.

16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride(N) led to his downfall.(O) He was unfaithful(P) to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense(Q) on the altar of incense. 17 Azariah(R) the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the Lord followed him in. 18 They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests,(S) the descendants(T) of Aaron,(U) who have been consecrated to burn incense.(V) Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the Lord God.”

19 Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy[c](W) broke out on his forehead. 20 When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the Lord had afflicted him.

21 King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house[d](X)—leprous, and banned from the temple of the Lord. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land.

22 The other events of Uzziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah(Y) son of Amoz. 23 Uzziah(Z) rested with his ancestors and was buried near them in a cemetery that belonged to the kings, for people said, “He had leprosy.” And Jotham his son succeeded him as king.(AA)

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 26:1 Also called Azariah
  2. 2 Chronicles 26:5 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac; other Hebrew manuscripts vision
  3. 2 Chronicles 26:19 The Hebrew for leprosy was used for various diseases affecting the skin; also in verses 20, 21 and 23.
  4. 2 Chronicles 26:21 Or in a house where he was relieved of responsibilities