The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1911-05-04
KING UZZIAEI
HUMBLED
Sunday School Lessen for Msy 7, 1911
Specially Arranged for ThiS Paper

OBSTRUCTION. ana an naughty spirit d.
fore a fall"-Prov. 1913.
T1ME-Czziah's reign extended (Beech-
err from II. G.. 500 to Il. G. 755: (Hastings)
b. G. sol to 749. Uzziah may have become
leper about B. G. 76S lothian being the
regent from that time.
PLACE-The Temple in Jerusalem
KlNGS-In Israel. Jeroboam III. In
Assyria. Shamanezer III.
PROPHETS-Amos, Hosea, Isaiah the
Zecharlah OF our lesson
On the murder of King Joash he
was succeeded by his eldest son.
Amaziah, man of piety and force,
who slew the murderers of his father,
sparing their sons, and then turned up
on the enemies of his country, the
Edomites south of the Dead Sea, who
had been ravaging southern Judea.
He hired thousands of mertenaries
from the Northern Kingdom, 10 aid
him in the war When a prophet re-
buked him for thus involving himself
With an idolatrous nation he dismiss
e.. the 'mercenaries, who. on their way
home, plundered the cities of Judah
Amaziah went on, however, and with
his own troops conquered the Edom-
ties in the Valley of Salt south of
the Dead Sea, and thoroughly sub
dued the cruel nation.
He brought home with him some of
the Edomite idols and worshiped
them, thus dishonoring Jehovah, who
had so sgnally helped him. in favor
OF gods who had proved their own
powerlessness. A courageous prophet
rebuked him, but we are told what the
effect was.
In his pride OF success, and perhaps
TO avenge the towns which the Israel
tish mercenaries had plundered, he
sent boastful message to Joash king
Of Israel, challenging him to fight. Jo-
ash promptly accepted the challenge,
completely worsted Amaziah, captured
Jerusalem, and went away with all the
treasure of the Temple and royal pal
ace, and with many of the citizens as
hostages. AmaZiah continued to
reign for fifteen years, but his sub
jects never were contented, and at last
they rose in revolt and murdered him.
The son of Amaziah, Uzziah a lad
of sixteen, was chosen by the people.
He continued his fathers conquest of
the Edomites by fOrtifying Cloth, an
important city at the head of the east
ern branch Of the Red Sea, thus put
ting Judah in a position to renew the
rich commerce with India which Solo
mon had established.
Uzziahs was a religious life. He
did that which was. right in the sight
Of the Lord. He followed Amaziah in
the better part OF hi. life, and not in
his idolatry. There is no better prep
aration for the eyes OF the world than
10 be conscious ever of Gods eyes
upon us.
The period Of UZziah and Jeroboam
was the golden age of Israel. AS Il
result of conquest and OF commercial
enterprise the accumulation OF wealth
was greater than had ever been
known before. The rich lived in
palaces of hewn stone and of ivory.
While the mobiles flourished, the poor
grew constantly poorer. The peasant
proprietors were crowded out, and all
the land came into the hands of a few
great mobiles. The free-born lsraelites
sank to the position of serfs. Pros
perity has more perils than adversely,
and pride is one of them. Dressed, ac-
cording to Josephus, in priestly attire,
and perhaps on the celebration of some
high national feast, Uzziah presumed
TO enter the Holy Place, which it was
death for any but priest to enter,
and TO offer incense upon the sacred
altar. UZziah appears to have desired
to become supreme pontiff as we'll as
king, and to exercise the same dual
functions as the Egyptian Pharaohs
were won't to do. He had to disregard
the direct command of Jehovah that
the priests alone should burn incense
on his altar; he had 10 despise the his
tory of his people, TO defy the holy
name by which he himself was called.
Thus a reign OF fifty-two years was
spoiled in an hour.
What terrible punishment came to
Uzziah? The iniiiction of that most
loathsome, incurable disease, leprosy.
Thus Miriam had been punished, and
Gehazi. According 60 Josephus, it was
at this very moment that the famous
earthquake of Uzziah's reign occurred.
For the rest of his life he lived in a
separate house. 1t was perhaps some
.place in the country to which the king
confined himself We are not told
whether he repented Of the sin that
he had committed; but we may per.
haps assume that he did So
The story Of Ahaz renforces the
warning that comes to us from the
story OF Uzziah. The pride of Ahaz
was pride of opinion; that of Uzzah
was pride in accomplishment. Pride
may spring from good looks, fine
clothes, plenty OF money a keen intel
lect, distinguished social position. y
boy may be vain of his ballplaying
and girl of her white hands. What
ever may be the source of it, pride is
always a terrible danger.
Pride is indeed like a leprosy 1t
makes us hideous to look upon, though
all the while we think we are beauti-
full. 1t causes our spiritual body to