Azariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, became king. He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done, except that the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. Then the Lord struck the king, so that he was a leper until the day of his death; so he dwelt in an isolated house.
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Good or Evil in the Eyes of the Lord
by
2 Kings 15:1-5, NIV
When I read about different kings who were ruling Israel and Judah, I was struck by the words, ‘He did what was right in the sight of the Lord’, or alternatively ‘He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord’. People usually do what they think is right. But our thoughts, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped by our good, or bad upbringing, our experiences, and even our culture. But in order to do what is right before God, we may have to go against our culture.
Azariah did what was right before God, except that he neglected to exercise his authority over the land in which he reigned by not getting rid of ungodly practices.
In the book of Chronicles, we find that King Azariah is called King Uzziah. We read that he was sixteen years old when he was made king instead of his father Amaziah. We also read that he acted unlawfully and burnt incense in the sanctuary.
‘And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honour from the Lord God” (2 Chronicles 26:18 ).
He is one of the kings who reigned the longest. However, he trespassed. He probably thought that, since he was the king, he could easily perform the duties the priests did. The priests told him that he was not authorised by God to do it. Instead of humbling himself, he became furious.
While he was angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the Lord, beside the incense altar. King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death. He dwelt in an isolated house, because he was a leper. What an ending for a king!
Could it be that pride caused the king to overstep his boundaries? Well, perhaps we need to ask ourselves a couple of questions. What is my rightful sphere of authority from the Lord? Am I doing that which is right in His eyes, or what is right in the eyes of other people?
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