Uzziah

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All quotations are taken from the New King James Version

Uzziah and his pride

The ages of kings when their reign began are interesting. Joash and Josiah were seven and eight years old respectively, Manasseh was twelve. By comparison Ahaz, at twenty, was practically a pensioner! Uzziah was sixteen. He was very young and inexperienced. However, youth should never be a barrier to service for the Lord, ‘Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity’, 1 Tim. 4. 12.

From the start Uzziah did that which was right before the Lord, 2 Chr. 26. 4. He sought the Lord, v. 5, or he set himself to seek the Lord. He did this in several ways:

  • He took the instruction of Zechariah, v. 5.
  • He went to war with God’s enemies, v. 6.
  • He built strong cities in their land, v. 6.
  • He built towers in Jerusalem and in the wilderness for watchmen to spot threats, w. 9, 10.
  • He built wells, v. 10.
  • He built a strong military, v. 11.

There are a number of positive lessons to learn from Uzziah:

  • Experience matters - we should always be willing to learn from those who have walked this road before.
  • The world, the flesh, and the Devil are all at enmity with God. We should declare war on them. If not, we can be sure that they will defeat us.
  • We have no choice but to live in the world. We must be well-defended from its attacks.
  • Our enemies are sly and subtle - always be watchful.
  • We should never take our refreshment from the world - our source of refreshment is the One who gives’living water’.
  • The weapons of our warfare are spiritual. God has given us His armour, ‘be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil’. Eph. 6. 10, 11. Much could be said about these verses, ultimately our best defence is God Himself, a knowledge of His word, and regular communication through prayer.

Uzziah was very successful:

  • God helped him, v. 7.
  • His enemies honoured him, v. 8.
  • He became very strong.
  • He had large herds, farms, and vines.

BUT - often a terrible word in the Bible

‘But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up, to his destruction’, v. 16. He became ‘full of himself, entering the temple to burn incense - that was a job for the priest. When the priests withstood him, Uzziah became angry. As they watched, leprosy entered his forehead. He was banished from the temple, the palace, even the city. Uzziah died a leper. He was buried, not in the kings’ tomb, but in the kings’ field. What a fall from grace, all because of pride.

Pride is listed as one of the great causes of sin in the world, 1 John 2. 6, the Lord says it comes from within and defiles a man, Mark 7. 20-23, and it is in the list of ‘deadly sins’ that the Lord hates, Prov. 6. 17. Pride is essentially self-worship, taking what is God’s and bestowing it on ourselves. Pride should never be in our thinking. There are a number of causes of pride including:

  • Knowledge, 1 Cor. 8.1: Knowledge puffs up. As we increase in knowledge of the word of God our knowledge must not induce pride. Instead, it should lead to humility as we increase in appreciation of God.
  • Wealth, 1 Tim. 6. 10: The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. At times, it causes us to be ‘haughty’, leaving others feeling less worthy. Wealth is not a reason to glory, ‘What do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?’ 1 Cor. 4. 7.
  • Good looks, Isa. 3. 16-18: There is nothing wrong with being attractive. A problem arises when a person’s attractiveness becomes a source of pride to them. We live in a day when it seems that, for many, the only thing they have in their favour is their appearance. If you are a good-looking person, the Lord bless you, and may you use your good looks to God’s glory rather than yours, and may your beauty be that which is within.
  • Lack of understanding of the Lord, Prov. 8. 13: ‘Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate’.

Pride exalts self, it should always be our ambition for only the Lord to be exalted, Isa. 2. 11. Pride causes division, Prov. 16. 18, and disgrace, 11. 2, and is opposed by God, 3. 34.

How do we avoid pride?

  • Love: ‘Love does not parade itself, is not puffed up’, 1 Cor. 13. 4.
  • Lowliness: ‘In lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself, Phil. 2. 3.
  • Likeness to Christ: ‘bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ’, 2 Cor. 10. 5.

It’s easy to see where Uzziah’s pride came from. Let’s determine not to follow that path. Isaiah knew who glory should be ascribed to, ‘In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple’, Isa. 6. 1. Do we appreciate the glory of the Lord?