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16 But once he became powerful, his pride destroyed him.[a] He disobeyed[b] the Lord his God. He entered the Lord’s temple to offer incense on the incense altar. 17 Azariah the priest and eighty other brave priests of the Lord followed him in. 18 They confronted[c] King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not proper for you, Uzziah, to offer incense to the Lord. That is the responsibility of the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who are consecrated to offer incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have disobeyed[d] and the Lord God will not honor you!” 19 Uzziah, who had an incense censer in his hand, became angry. While he was ranting and raving[e] at the priests, a skin disease[f] appeared on his forehead right there in front of the priests in the Lord’s temple near the incense altar. 20 When Azariah the high priest and the other priests looked at him, there was a skin disease on his forehead. They hurried him out of there; even the king[g] himself wanted to leave quickly because the Lord had afflicted him. 21 King Uzziah suffered from a skin disease until the day he died. He lived in separate quarters,[h] afflicted by a skin disease and banned from the Lord’s temple. His son Jotham was in charge of the palace and ruled over the people of the land.

22 The rest of the events of Uzziah’s reign, from start to finish, were recorded by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.[i] 23 Uzziah passed away[j] and was buried near his ancestors[k] in a cemetery[l] belonging to the kings. (This was because he had a skin disease.)[m] His son Jotham replaced him as king.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 26:16 tn Heb “his heart was high [i.e., proud] until to destroy.”
  2. 2 Chronicles 26:16 tn Or “was unfaithful to.”
  3. 2 Chronicles 26:18 tn Heb “stood against.”
  4. 2 Chronicles 26:18 tn Or “been unfaithful.”
  5. 2 Chronicles 26:19 tn Heb “angry.”
  6. 2 Chronicles 26:19 tn Traditionally “leprosy,” but this was probably a skin disorder of some type, not leprosy (technically known today as Hansen’s disease). See 2 Kgs 5:1.
  7. 2 Chronicles 26:20 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  8. 2 Chronicles 26:21 tn The precise meaning of בֵּית הַחָפְשִׁית (bet hakhofshit, “house of [?]”) is uncertain. NASB, NIV, NRSV all have “in a separate house”; NEB has “in his own house…relieved of all duties.” For a discussion of various proposals, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 166-67.
  9. 2 Chronicles 26:22 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Uzziah, the former and the latter, Isaiah son of Amoz, the prophet, recorded.”
  10. 2 Chronicles 26:23 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
  11. 2 Chronicles 26:23 tn Heb “fathers.”
  12. 2 Chronicles 26:23 tn Heb “a field of burial.”
  13. 2 Chronicles 26:23 tn Heb “for they said, ‘He had a skin disease.’”

Uzziah’s Sin and Punishment

16 But when he had become powerful, he also became proud, which led to his downfall. He sinned against the Lord his God by entering the sanctuary of the Lord’s Temple and personally burning incense on the incense altar. 17 Azariah the high priest went in after him with eighty other priests of the Lord, all brave men. 18 They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is the work of the priests alone, the descendants of Aaron who are set apart for this work. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have sinned. The Lord God will not honor you for this!”

19 Uzziah, who was holding an incense burner, became furious. But as he was standing there raging at the priests before the incense altar in the Lord’s Temple, leprosy[a] suddenly broke out on his forehead. 20 When Azariah the high priest and all the other priests saw the leprosy, they rushed him out. And the king himself was eager to get out because the Lord had struck him. 21 So King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in isolation in a separate house, for he was excluded from the Temple of the Lord. His son Jotham was put in charge of the royal palace, and he governed the people of the land.

22 The rest of the events of Uzziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 23 When Uzziah died, he was buried with his ancestors; his grave was in a nearby burial field belonging to the kings, for the people said, “He had leprosy.” And his son Jotham became the next king.

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Footnotes

  1. 26:19 Or a contagious skin disease. The Hebrew word used here and throughout this passage can describe various skin diseases.