Study Desk

God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians who lived in Gur-baal, and against the Meunites.

In Jerusalem he made large objects of war, planned by able men, to be on the towers and the corners. They were for shooting arrows and big stones. So Uzziah's name became known in far away places. For he was helped by God in a very special way until he was strong.

But when he became strong, Uzziah's heart was so proud that his actions were sinful. He was not faithful to the Lord his God, for he went into the Lord's house to burn special perfume on the altar of special perfume.

They went against King Uzziah and said to him, "It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn special perfume to the Lord. It should be done by the religious leaders, the sons of Aaron, who are set apart to burn special perfume. Get out of the holy place, for you have not been faithful. You will have no honor from the Lord God."

Now the rest of the acts of Uzziah, first to last, were written by the man of God Isaiah, the son of Amoz.

So Jotham became powerful, because he let the Lord his God lead him in all his ways.

So the Lord his God gave him into the hand of the king of Syria. The Syrians won the war against Ahaz and carried away many of his people to Damascus. He was also given into the hand of the king of Israel, who killed many of his people in the war.

For Pekah the son of Remaliah killed 120,000 powerful soldiers of Judah in one day, because they had turned away from the Lord God of their fathers.

But a man who spoke for the Lord was there, whose name was Oded. He went out to meet the army that came to Samaria and said to them, "See, because the Lord, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, He has given them into your hand. But you have killed them in an anger which has even gone up to heaven.

And now you plan to make the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem work hard for you. Do you not have sins of your own against the Lord your God?

Ahaz gathered together the objects of the house of God and cut them in pieces. Then he closed the doors of the Lord's house, and made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.

In every city of Judah he made high places to burn special perfume to other gods. And he made the Lord, the God of his fathers, very angry.

Then he said to them, "Listen to me, O Levites. Now make yourselves holy. And make holy the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers. Carry what is unclean out from the holy place.

For our fathers have not been faithful. They have done what is bad in the eyes of the Lord our God. They have left Him and turned their faces away from the house of the Lord. They have turned their backs.

They have also shut the doors of the porch and put out the lamps. They have not burned special perfume or given burnt gifts in the holy place to the God of Israel.

Now it is in my heart to make an agreement with the Lord God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us.

Then Hezekiah put the Levites in their places in the house of the Lord with timbrels and different kinds of harps. He did as David, Gad and Nathan, the men who spoke for God, had all said. For through these men the Lord said that this was to be done.

King Hezekiah and the rulers told the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and Asaph the man of God. So they sang praises with joy, and bowed down and worshiped.

Then Hezekiah and all the people were filled with joy because of what God had done for the people, for it was done all at once.

Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah. He wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh also, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel.