2 Chronicles 26
New King James Version
Uzziah Reigns in Judah(A)
26 Now all the people of Judah took [a]Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 2 He built [b]Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king rested with his fathers.
3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem. 4 And he did what was (B)right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 5 (C)He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who (D)had understanding in the [c]visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him (E)prosper.
6 Now he went out and (F)made war against the Philistines, and broke down the wall of Gath, the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities around Ashdod and among the Philistines. 7 God helped him against (G)the Philistines, against the Arabians who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites. 8 Also the Ammonites (H)brought tribute to Uzziah. His fame spread as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong.
9 And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the (I)Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress of the wall; then he fortified them. 10 Also he built towers in the desert. He dug many wells, for he had much livestock, both in the lowlands and in the plains; he also had farmers and vinedressers in the mountains and in [d]Carmel, for he loved the soil.
11 Moreover Uzziah had an army of fighting men who went out to war by companies, according to the number on their roll as prepared by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains. 12 The total number of [e]chief officers of the mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred. 13 And under their authority was an army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, that made war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy. 14 Then Uzziah prepared for them, for the entire army, shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and slings to cast stones. 15 And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by (J)skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong.
The Penalty for Uzziah’s Pride(K)
16 But (L)when he was strong his heart was (M)lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord his God (N)by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. 17 So (O)Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the Lord—valiant men. 18 And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It (P)is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the (Q)priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the Lord God.”
19 Then Uzziah became furious; and he had a censer in his hand to burn incense. And while he was angry with the priests, (R)leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the Lord, beside the incense altar. 20 And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and there, on his forehead, he was leprous; so they thrust him out of that place. Indeed he also (S)hurried to get out, because the Lord had struck him.
21 (T)King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death. He dwelt in an (U)isolated house, because he was a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.
22 Now the rest of the acts of Uzziah, from first to last, the prophet (V)Isaiah the son of Amoz wrote. 23 (W)So Uzziah [f]rested with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of burial which belonged to the kings, for they said, “He is a leper.” Then Jotham his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 26:1 Azariah, 2 Kin. 14:21ff.
- 2 Chronicles 26:2 Heb. Eloth
- 2 Chronicles 26:5 Heb. mss., LXX, Syr., Tg., Arab. fear
- 2 Chronicles 26:10 Or the fertile fields
- 2 Chronicles 26:12 Lit. chief fathers
- 2 Chronicles 26:23 Died and joined his ancestors
2 Chronicles 26
Names of God Bible
King Uzziah of Judah(A)
26 All the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was 16 years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 Uzziah rebuilt Elath and returned it to Judah after King Amaziah lay down in death with his ancestors. 3 Uzziah was 16 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 52 years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jecoliah from Jerusalem. 4 He did what Yahweh considered right, as his father Amaziah had done. 5 He dedicated his life to serving Elohim in the days of Zechariah, who taught him to fear Elohim. As long as he dedicated his life to serving Yahweh, Elohim gave him success.
6 Uzziah went to wage war against the Philistines. He tore down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. He built cities near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. 7 Elohim helped him when he attacked the Philistines, the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal, and the Meunites. 8 The Ammonites paid taxes to Uzziah, and his fame spread to the border of Egypt because he became very powerful. 9 Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at Corner Wall, Valley Gate, and the Angle, and he reinforced them. 10 He built towers in the desert. He dug many cisterns because he had a lot of herds in the foothills and the plains. He had farmers and vineyard workers in the mountains and the fertile fields because he loved the soil.
11 Uzziah had an army of professional soldiers. They were ready to go to war in their companies based on the number organized by the scribe Jeiel and the officer Maaseiah. They were commanded by Hananiah, one of the king’s officials. 12 The total number of family heads among these warriors was 2,600. 13 Under them was an army of 307,500 soldiers. They were a powerful force that could support the king against the enemy. 14 For the entire army Uzziah prepared shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and stones for slings. 15 In Jerusalem he made machines designed by inventive people. The machines were placed on the towers and corners to shoot arrows and hurl large stones.
King Uzziah Is Cursed with a Skin Disease(B)
Uzziah’s fame spread far and wide because he had strong support until he became powerful. 16 But when he became powerful, his pride destroyed him. He was unfaithful to Yahweh his Elohim. He went into Yahweh’s temple to burn incense on the incense altar. 17 The priest Azariah went in after him with 80 of Yahweh’s courageous priests. 18 They opposed King Uzziah. They said to him, “Uzziah, you have no right to burn incense as an offering to Yahweh. That right belongs to the priests, Aaron’s descendants, who have been given the holy task of burning incense. Get out of the holy place because you have been unfaithful. Yahweh Elohim will not honor you for this.”
19 Uzziah, who held an incense burner in his hand, became angry. While he was angry with the priests, a skin disease broke out on his forehead. This happened in front of the priests in Yahweh’s temple as Uzziah was at the incense altar. 20 When the chief priest Azariah and all the priests turned toward him, a skin disease was on his forehead. They rushed him away. Uzziah was in a hurry to get out because Yahweh had inflicted him with the disease.
21 King Uzziah had a skin disease until the day he died. Since he had a skin disease, he lived in a separate house and was barred from Yahweh’s temple. His son Jotham was in charge of the royal palace and governed the country.
22 Everything else about Uzziah, from beginning to end, is recorded by the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz. 23 Uzziah lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried with them in a field containing tombs that belonged to the kings. People said, “He had a skin disease.” His son Jotham succeeded him as king.
2 Chronicles 26
Modern English Version
Uzziah, King of Judah(A)
26 And all the people of Judah took Uzziah[a] and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah when he was sixteen years old. 2 He built Eloth and restored it to Judah after Amaziah the king slept with his fathers.
3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he was king in Jerusalem for fifty-two years. The name of his mother was Jekoliah from Jerusalem. 4 And he did what was correct in the eyes of the Lord as everything his father Amaziah had done. 5 And he sought after God in the days of Zechariah, the one who instructed him in the fear of the Lord. And in the days that he sought after the Lord, God caused him to succeed.
6 He went out to make war with the Philistines, and he broke through the walls at Gath and Jabneh and Ashdod. Then he built cities in Ashdod and among the Philistines. 7 And God brought him aid against the Philistines and Arabians, those living in Gur Baal, and the Meunites. 8 And the Ammonites gave a gift to Uzziah, and his name spread even to the border of Egypt because he became quite powerful.
9 Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress; and he fortified them. 10 And he built towers in the wilderness, and he dug out many cisterns because he had a large amount of livestock, both in the lowland Shephelah and in the plain. He also had workers in the fields and vineyards in the hills and fertile orchards, for he loved agriculture.
11 And Uzziah had an army prepared for battle, those who went out for war as companies in the number of their divisions by the appointment of Jeiel the scribe, and Maaseiah the officer, and Hananiah a commander of the king. 12 The total number of chief officers of the mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred. 13 And under their hand was a mighty army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred who were able to go to battle as a strong army and to help the king against his enemies. 14 And Uzziah prepared for the entire army shields, long spears, helmets, scale armor, bows, and slings for stones. 15 In Jerusalem he made war machines by skilled men to be placed on towers and corners to shoot arrows and large stones. And his name went out for a great distance. He received great help until he was even more powerful.
Uzziah’s Punishment for Pride
16 And as he grew strong, his heart grew more proud, leading to his destruction. Then he acted unfaithfully against the Lord his God, for he entered the temple main hall of the Lord to burn incense on the altar. 17 But Azariah the priest entered in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the Lord—men of valor. 18 And they stood against King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord for it is for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Leave from the sanctuary because you have been unfaithful, and there will be no honor for you from the Lord God.”
19 Then Uzziah was enraged, and in his hand was a censer for incense. And when he became angry with the priests, leprosy appeared on his forehead in front of the priests in the house of the Lord, near the altar of incense. 20 Then Azariah the head priest and all the priests turned to him, and he had leprosy on his forehead; and they hastened to remove him from there, and he also hurried to leave because the Lord had struck him.
21 So King Uzziah had leprosy until the day of his death. He dwelt in a separate house with his unclean disease because he was cut off from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham his son was over the house of the king, and he governed the people of the land.
22 Now the remainder of the acts of Uzziah, from beginning to end, Isaiah the prophet, son of Amoz, has written them. 23 So Uzziah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the burial field belonging to the kings because they said, “He is a leper.” And Jotham his son ruled in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 26:1 Also known as Azariah in 2Ki 15.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.