Be Very Wary of Pride

 

Isa 1:1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

I cracked open the Book of Isaiah this morning and am praying that God would allow me to unearth some of the treasures He has for us in this greatly revered book of the Old Testament.

My Zodhiates Hebrew/Greek Study Bible says this about the Book of Isaiah: “The Book of Isaiah contains more prophecies about the Messiah than any other Book in the Old Testament. In fact, the plan of salvation is so comprehensively revealed in Isaiah’s work that Augustine called it the fifth Gospel, and others have referred to it as “the Bible in miniature.”

If this were the only Book of the Bible, it would be enough to lead us to saving faith in Jesus!

 

The visions found in this book came to Isaiah from the Lord, during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. These four kings ruled in the Southern Kingdom from about 740 to 697 B.C. and you’d think they were all bad rulers that needed correction from the Lord through His mouthpiece, Isaiah. But the truth is, three out of four of these kings weren’t all that bad. Ahaz was the only rotten apple in the bunch and we are told in 2 Chron, 28:1, that he did not do what was right  in the sight of the Lord.

 

Today, let’s briefly look at the reign of Uzziah. 2Ch 26:5 tells us, “He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.”

 

Uzziah was a military genius, conquering many of Judah’s enemies and even inventing weapons of war that were far ahead of his time: 2Ch 26:15 And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong.

 

What happened to Uzziah when he became strong? Next verse: 2Ch 26:16 But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the LORD his God by entering the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.

The pride of Uzziah, led to his downfall. The Lord struck him with leprosy and he remained a leper until he died. By the way, when you see leprosy in the Bible, pride and self-righteousness are its companions. Be very wary of these two sins, lest they lead to your own downfall.  

 

Let that be our lesson for today. Pride goes before the fall. Pr 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.