Uzziah of Judah

Uzziah of Judah ( _he. עֻזִּיָּהוּ), also known as Azariah, was the king of the ancient Kingdom of Judah, and one of Amaziah's sons, whom the people appointed to replace his father (2 Kings 14:21; 2 Chronicles 26:1). He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.

William F. Albright has dated his reign to 783 BC-742 BC, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates 767 BC-740 BC.

Biblical tradition

Uzziah took the throne at the age of sixteen (2 Kings 14:21). His long reign of about fifty-two years was "the most prosperous excepting that of Jehoshaphat since the time of Solomon." He was a vigorous and able ruler, and "his name spread abroad, even to the entering in of Egypt" (2 Chr. 26:8, 14). In the earlier part of his reign, under the influence of a prophet named Zechariah, he was faithful to Yahweh, and "did that which was right in the sight of the Lord" (2 Kings 15:3; 2 Chr. 26:4, 5) In Jerusalem he made machines designed by skillful men for use on the towers and on the corner defenses to shoot arrows and hurl large stones. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.

But then, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. (2Chr. 26: 15-16)

Azariah the High Priest saw the tendency of such a daring act on the part of the king, and with a band of eighty priests he withstood him (2 Chr. 26:17), saying, "It appertaineth not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense." In the mean time a great earthquake shook the ground and a rent was made in the temple, and the bright rays of the sun shone through it, and fell upon the king's face, insomuch that the leprosy seized upon him immediately. (Josephus Flavius, Antiquities IX 10:4).

Uzziah was suddenly struck with "tzaraat" while in the act of offering incense (2Chr. 26:19-21), and he was driven from the Temple and compelled to reside in "a separate house" to the death (2 Kings 15:5, 27; 2 Chr. 26:3).

He was buried in a separate grave "in the field of the burial which belonged to the kings" (2 Kings 15:7; 2 Chr. 26:23). "That lonely grave in the royal necropolis would eloquently testify to coming generations that all earthly monarchy must bow before the inviolable order of the divine will, and that no interference could be tolerated with that unfolding of the purposes of God... (Dr. Green's "Kingdom of Israel").

Isaiah sees the Lord "in the year that king Uzziah died" (Isaiah 6:1).

Uzziah Tablet

In 1931 an archeological find, now known as the Uzziah Tablet, was discovered by Professor E.L. Sukenik of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He came across the artifact in a Russian convent collection from the Mount of Olives. The origin of the tablet previous to this remains unknown and was not documented by the convent. The inscription on the tablet is written in ancient Hebrew with an Aramaic style. This style is dated to around AD 30-70, around 700 years after the supposed death of Uzziah of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. Nevertheless the inscription is translated, "The bones of Uzziah, king of Judah, rest here...do not open!" It is open to debate whether this really is the tomb of King Uzziah or simply a later creation. Many seem to claim that it was a later reburial of Uzziah after the Second Temple Period.

Another Uzziah was the father of Jehonathan, one of David's overseers (1 Chronicles 27:25).