Uzziah, king of Judah, reigned for 52 years. That’s a rather long tenure. One who would reign that long might come to believe they could do anything. That’s the trap Uzziah fell into.
The Chronicler wrote, “But when he was strong, his heart 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” (2 Chr. 26:16). Uzziah’s name meant “The Lord is my strength.” And it was the Lord who enabled him to prosper as long as sought the Lord (2 Chr. 26:5). Now that Uzziah had some success and peace from his enemies, he began to trust in himself more than in the Lord. The writer of Proverbs said, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall” (Pro. 16:18). Pride infected Uzziah’s heart and it led to the idea that he believed he could do anything he wanted, like doing the work of a priest.
Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests followed Uzziah into the Temple. They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense” (2 Chr. 26:16-17). Uzziah had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, but became angry at the priest’s orders. While he was raging at the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead. The priests franticly removed Uzziah from the Temple. He remained a leper in quarantine for the rest of his life (2 Chr. 26:21).
The epitaph on Uzziah’s tomb was “He is a leper.” What a sad way for a king to be remembered. It would have been one thing had he been born a leper and became king. Instead he was a king who became a leper due to his pride.
Uzziah lifted himself up, and God brought him low. The apostle Peter wrote, “God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time” (1 Pt. 5:5b-6). God will lift us up if we will humble ourselves. On the other hand, if you attempt to exalt yourself, like Uzziah, God will bring you down.