cunning men, to be on the towers and upon the [1]battlements, to shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong.
16But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up [2]so that he did corruptly, and he trespassed against the LORD his God; for he went into the temple of the LORD to burn incense upon the altar of incense. 17And Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him fourscore priests of the LORD, that were valiant men: 18and they withstood Uzziah the king, and said unto him, It pertaineth not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the LORD, but to the priests the sons of Aaron, that are consecrated to burn incense: go out of the sanctuary; for thou hast trespassed; neither shall it be for thine honour from the LORD God. 19Then Uzziah was
col. 4510). The next reference to similar instruments of war is in 1 Macc. vi. 51, 52.
helped] Cp. ver. 7.
16—20 (not in Kings). Uzziah's Presumption.
16—20. Uzziah died from leprosy, as is related in vv. 21—23 (= 2 Kin. xv. 5—7). That terrible disease was always regarded as a manifestation of Divine anger against the sufferer (cp. Numb. xii. 9 ff.; 2 Kin. v. 27), but no special cause is assigned in Kings why the disaster befell Uzziah. In the present verses an adequate reason is brought forward—Uzziah, blinded by the pride of his success, infringed the privileges of the priesthood and was guilty of sacrilege. The motive for some such tale is so strong and the actual sin alleged so akin to the Chronicler's prejudices that it may well be that the tale originated with him or his immediate circle. Yet it is possible that there may be behind the present form of the tale a valid tradition of a dispute at this period between the hierarchy and the authority of the king.
16. did corruptly] Cp. xxvii. 2.
he trespassed] Cp. xii. 2; Josh. vii. 1, xxii. 16. The Heb. word implies presumptuous dealing with holy things.
the altar of incense] Cp. Ex. xxx. 1—10. Not only the altar, but the incense itself was "most holy"; ib. vv. 34—38.
17. Azariah the priest] i.e. the high-priest (ver. 20). He cannot be identified with any priest in the list given 1 Chr. vi. 4—15 (v. 30—41, Heb.).
18. the priests the sons of Aaron] Cp. xiii. 10, 11 and Num. xvi. 40.
neither shall it be for thine honour] A euphemism covering a threat of danger and disgrace.
