| King Uzziah was only sixteen when he became king | | | | go to God himself without the work of the priests. |
| and he ruled the people for fifty two years. He | | | | |
| prayed and looked to God to help him, and God did. | | | | He pushed his way into the holy place where only |
| He gave him victory over his enemies, and they built | | | | the priests were allowed to enter, and took up a |
| up a strong army. He built walls and towers around | | | | censer in his hand to burn incense on the altar. |
| Jerusalem to protect them. The Bible says, “As | | | | Azariah, the high priest, took a group of eighty |
| long as he sought the Lord, God made him to | | | | priests with him and came after the king into the |
| prosper,” 2 Chronicles 26:5. “And he was | | | | holy place. He said to him, “You have no right to |
| marvellously helped till he was strong,” 2 | | | | be here, Uzziah. It is only the priests whom God has |
| Chronicles 26:15. | | | | chosen to burn incense. Go out quickly, for you have |
| | | | | sinned in this and God will punish you.” |
| When he had a strong army and walls and towers, | | | | |
| he became proud and sinned against God. One day | | | | King Uzziah was very angry that anyone should |
| he went to the temple. It was the work of the | | | | speak to him. Was he not the king? Immediately God |
| priests, those from Aaron’s family, to burn | | | | punished him. The priests who were watching saw |
| incense on the altar. Anyone else was forbidden to | | | | white spots break out on his forehead. They knew |
| do it, Numbers 16:40. Everyone who came to worship | | | | that God had smitten him with the dreadful disease |
| in the temple came to the priest, so that they might | | | | of leprosy because of his sin. |
| offer their sacrifices for them and burn incense on | | | | |
| the altar. | | | | They began to push him out of the temple, for no |
| | | | | leper was allowed in there. He could not be king any |
| In the days before the Lord Jesus came into the | | | | longer. He had to live in a separate house by himself. |
| world, this was the way they came to God. Since | | | | He was called unclean and was cut off from the |
| the Saviour was crucified and risen again, He is our | | | | house of God all the rest of his life. Everyone in the |
| great high priest in Heaven. We come to God | | | | land knew this, and no doubt the people felt that |
| through Him not through priests, not through | | | | King Uzziah was a great sinner before God. He lived |
| sacrifices, not through incense. King Uzziah felt that | | | | alone until his death. |
| because he was king he could offer the incense and | | | | |