“…[King Uzziah] was marvellously helped, till he was strong.
When he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the LORD his God”
2 Chronicles 26:15-16a [KJV]
Picture credit: Naomi
I’m starting today with a confession: the hardest part of writing this blog post was choosing a starting illustration. It’s not that I can’t think of a true-life scenario where I’ve been proud and sinful. It’s that I can think of far too many. I could give example after example of my pride in academic grades, accomplishments, family, self-righteousness, comparing myself to others and trying to be in control.
In my final years of schooling, I became obsessed with achieving not just good, but prize-worthy, grades. I was largely motivated by two things: wanting to be in control, and to show certain teachers and class boasters that they were wrong to underestimate me. I finished the school year with high grades …but it came at a cost: crippling migraines and damaged relationships. I also discovered that prospective employers didn’t care whether I had a A+ or a C- on my report card. The Bible was right when it says, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” (James 4:6c).
Pride comes in many forms. It can strike young and old, battlers and high achievers, both leaders and followers. Pride in your achievements is something the secular world encourages (so long as you don’t literally beat yourself on the chest – unless you are a boxer). Yet God says he hates pride (Proverbs 6:16-17). I was recently talking to a friend about intellectual pride. She said she grew up being told “You are so smart!” and it wasn’t until she was an adult that she realised, “Although God has gifted me cognitively, it does not make me any better than anyone else.” Yet it’s so easy for our hearts to become “lifted up,” a description used of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26:16.
King Uzziah (Azariah) was one of Judah’s great kings (2 Chronicles 26, 2 Kings 15:1-7). He was a mighty innovator, builder and military leader, and Judah reclaimed much of the political power and lands lost under previous kings. Chronicles records that “he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD” (verse 4) and “as long as [Uzziah] sought the Lord, God made him to prosper” (verse 5). But – oh those tragic ‘buts’ in the scripture! – “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” (verse 16). As Uzziah knew, only Levitical priests were permitted to burn incense upon the altar, and the Lord judged Uzziah’s pride, striking him down with leprosy. Uzziah was immediately evicted from the temple and remained an outcast for the rest of his life, with his son taking over the throne.
Pride has many facets, but today we’re discussing just four in the context of Uzziah’s life.
Firstly, we need to “Take heed lest [we] fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). Uzziah was one of few kings of Judah and Israel to receive that significant endorsement; “He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,” (2 Chronicles 26:4a). He served the Lord faithfully for many years. He conquered many other foes but was ultimately defeated by his own pride. None of us, no matter our experience, or the number of years we have faithfully depended on God, or even if we’ve stood strong in the past, are immune from the temptation of pride. It’s easy to be humble when we’re struggling and aware of our inadequacy. But it’s hard to be humble in the glow of success and praise. Pride was Satan’s downfall (Isaiah 14:12-16), and the undoing of Israel (Hosea 5:5). Paul spoke of his own battles with pride in his religious heritage, warning us to “have no confidence in the flesh” (Philippians 3:3b), and saying that “there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure” (2 Corinthians 12:7b). If the Apostle Paul was conscious of the danger of pride in his own life, we too should take care.
Secondly, pride leads to self-deception. This self-deception leads to us claiming credit for God’s accomplishments. 2 Chronicles 26 repeatedly states that Judah’s victories stemmed from God’s enabling. But Uzziah’s heart became ‘lifted up’. This phrase is found in Deuteronomy 8:14a, where Israel was warned to be careful in times of prosperity, for “Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt”. Galatians 6:3 says, “For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.” But we often don’t think this verse applies to us. We’re just conscious that our accomplishments, our ministries, our intellect, our skill, our family, are all so much better than that poor dear’s over there. But Paul told the Corinthians, “For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). You’re a fool and a liar, Paul is saying, because everything good you have, you have received from God. Instead, we should thank God and live in dependence on him. Self-deception also leads us to think that our independence is doing God a favour. The little voice of temptation whispers, “God’s busy. Don’t worry about seeking his help for something as little as this.” This is pride disguised by a thin veneer of religious good works. The climax of Uzziah’s pride was, to him, a religious act and show of devotion. Yet it was complete disobedience to God’s Word. Similarly, when we decide to do something in our own strength, we are disobeying God’s commands to surrender all our lives to Him (Romans 12:1, Proverbs 3:5-6).
Thirdly, another characteristic of pride is ignoring godly counsel. Uzziah “sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 26:5a). The verse implies that the godly prophet Zechariah’s days ended during Uzziah’s reign, ie that Zechariah died. After Zechariah’s death, Uzziah doesn’t seem to have found a new spiritual mentor – maybe he decided he didn’t need one – and blatantly defied the rebuke of the godly priests. Similarly, we can all reach points in our lives, where we think we know everything we need to know on a certain topic. We are self-appointed experts who won’t allow others to challenge us or give feedback. We listen to sermons to hear what God has to say to others, not what He wants to say to us. Proverbs 12:15 points out how self-destructive this attitude is, saying, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.” Proverbs 19:21 says, “There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.” And the New Testament reminds us many times, that Christians need pastors (Hebrews 13:17) and each other as fellow labourers and encouragers in living the Christian life (see Hebrews 10:24-25, 1 Peter 5:5, 1 Thessalonians 5:11-13, Titus 2:3-5).
Finally, pride blinds us to the clear commands of God’s Word. Why ever did Uzziah think that God would bless disobeying scriptural commands? How could he think that God, the unchanging, eternal one, would suddenly throw out the commandments He had given Moses 700 years before? And yet the same thing happens today. A woman is a good speaker, perhaps even an earnest Bible student, and suddenly she’s appointed pastor because she’s more academically qualified than the available men. A single woman says there aren’t enough godly men to go around, and decides to settle for a ‘good’ man, a non-Christian, instead. A man or woman with charisma, can create disciples after their own selves and split the church. And so many young people, told over and over they are a perfect fit for such and such a career, are flattered into pursuing a life direction that is not God’s will for them. See past those thoughts and feelings of pride. Know what the Bible says, and know that God does not bless disobedience. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall”. The only way to avoid God’s chastening of pride is through humble obedience. As James 4:6 says, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
In summary, King Uzziah’s life is a sad reminder that we are all susceptible to pride. May the Lord help us to depend on Him, now and always.
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