2 Chronicles 26 - Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Uzziah (Azariah) King of Judah

26 All the people of Judah took Uzziah,[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah.

2 He was the one who built Elat and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.

3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah[b] from Jerusalem.

4 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, like everything that his father Amaziah had done. 5 He continued to seek God throughout the days of Zechariah, who trained him in the fear[c] of God. As long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper.

6 He went out and waged war against the Philistines. He broke down the wall of Gath, the wall of Javneh, and the wall of Ashdod. He built cities in the territory of Ashdod and among the Philistines. 7 God helped him against the Philistines, against the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites.

8 The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah. His reputation spread as far as the border of Egypt because he had become very strong. 9 Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the Angle, and he fortified them.

10 He built towers in the wilderness. He dug many cisterns because he had large herds both in the Shephelah and on the plains. He also had farmers and vineyard workers in the highlands and in the fertile lands,[d] because he loved the soil.

11 Uzziah had an army, well trained and ready for war, organized in divisions based on the numbers from the census taken by Jeiel the secretary and Ma’aseiah the officer, under the direction of Hananiah, one of the king’s officials.

12 The total number of the leading fathers[e] who led the powerful warriors was 2,600. 13 Under their command there was a strong army of 307,500 men, able to wage war as a very powerful force, to help the king against the enemy. 14 Uzziah supplied the whole army with shields, spears, helmets, coats of mail, bows, and stones for slingshots. 15 In Jerusalem he made war machines produced by clever inventors to be mounted on the towers and at the corners, to shoot arrows and hurl large stones. His reputation spread far and wide because he received marvelous help until he was strong.

Uzziah’s Sinful Pride and Death

16 But when he had grown powerful, the pride in his heart led to his destruction. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God. He entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.

17 Azariah the priest went in after him. He was followed by eighty priests of the Lord, brave men. 18 They confronted King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, because you have been unfaithful. This action will not result in any praise for you from the Lord God.”

19 Uzziah became angry. He had a censer for burning incense in his hand. When he became angry with the priests, leprosy[f] broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests, beside the altar of incense in the House of the Lord. 20 When Azariah, the head priest, and all the other priests looked at him, they immediately realized he had leprosy on his forehead. They rushed him out of there. He himself also was in a hurry to leave because the Lord had struck him.

21 King Uzziah remained a leper until the day of his death. He lived in a quarantined house because he was a leper. He was excluded from the House of the Lord. Jotham his son was in charge of the palace of the king and administered justice for the people of the land.

22 The rest of the acts of Uzziah, from first to last, were recorded by Isaiah son of Amoz, the prophet.

23 Uzziah rested with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the burial field that belonged to the kings, because they said, “He is a leper.” His son Jotham ruled as king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 26:1 He is called Azariah in 2 Kings.
  2. 2 Chronicles 26:3 Also called Jekiliah. Such spelling variants are common in biblical personal names.
  3. 2 Chronicles 26:5 A Hebrew variant is visions.
  4. 2 Chronicles 26:10 Hebrew carmel, which may be translated as a proper name Carmel
  5. 2 Chronicles 26:12 Fathers is a common name for the heads of societal units in Israel since they were organized along family lines.
  6. 2 Chronicles 26:19 The Hebrew word covers a wider range of skin diseases than the disease presently known as leprosy.

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2 Chronicles 26 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

26 And all the people of Judah take Uzziah (and he [is] a son of sixteen years), and cause him to reign instead of his father Amaziah. 2 He hath built Eloth, and restoreth it to Judah after the king's lying with his fathers. 3 A son of sixteen years [is] Uzziah in his reigning, and fifty and two yea...
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2 Chronicles 26 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

26 Forsooth all the people of Judah made Uzziah[a], his son, of sixteen years age, king for his father Amaziah. (Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, or Azariah, Amaziah’s son, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father.) 2 He builded Eloth (And he rebuilt Eloth), and r...
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2 Chronicles 26 - World English Bible (WEB)

26 All the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah. 2 He built Eloth and restored it to Judah. After that the king slept with his fathers. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign; and he reigned fifty-two years in J...
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2 Chronicles 26 - The Voice (VOICE)

26 1-3 After Amaziah’s death, the Judahites chose Uzziah, who was 16 years old, as their next king. During his reign he recaptured the port city of Eloth for Judah, bringing economic growth to the nation. Uzziah, son of Amaziah and Jechiliah of Jerusalem, reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. 4 He acted j...
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2 Chronicles 26 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Uzziah Strengthens Judah’s Defenses26 Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was 16 years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 He built Eloth and restored it to Judah after the king slept with his fathers. 3 Uzziah was 16 years old when he became king, and he reigned 52 ...
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2 Chronicles 26 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Reign of Uzziah26 And all the people of Judah took Uzzi′ah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amazi′ah. 2 He built Eloth and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers. 3 Uzzi′ah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-tw...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Reign of Uzziah26 Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king to succeed his father Amaziah.(A)2 He rebuilt Eloth and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his ancestors. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Uzziah Rules in Judah26 All the people of Judah had crowned Amaziah’s sixteen-year-old son, Uzziah, as king in place of his father. 2 After his father’s death, Uzziah rebuilt the town of Elath[a] and restored it to Judah. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusale...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New Life Version (NLV)

Uzziah Rules Judah26 Then all the people took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah. 2 He built Eloth and returned it to Judah after the king died. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king. And he ruled fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His m...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Uzziah Reigns in Judah(A)26 Now all the people of Judah took [a]Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 2 He built [b]Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king rested with his fathers. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigne...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Uzziah king of Judah26 Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah,[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, a...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New International Version (NIV)

Uzziah King of Judah(A)(B)26 Then all the people of Judah(C) took Uzziah,[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors. 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

Uzziah King of Judah26 All the people of Judah made Uzziah king. He was 16 years old. They made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 2 Uzziah rebuilt Elath. He brought it under Judah’s control again. He did it after Amaziah joined the members of his family who had already died. 3 Uzziah was 16 ...
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2 Chronicles 26 - New English Translation (NET)

Uzziah’s Reign26 All the people of Judah took Uzziah,[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in his father Amaziah’s place. 2 Uzziah[b] built up Elat and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah[c] had passed away.[d] 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for...
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