14. Uzziah supplied his army with shields, spears, helmets, armour, bows, and stones used for slinging.
15. Some of his skilled workers invented machines that could shoot arrows and sling large stones. Uzziah set these up in Jerusalem at his defence towers and at the corners of the city wall.God helped Uzziah become more and more powerful, and he was famous all over the world.
16. Uzziah became proud of his power, and this led to his downfall.One day, Uzziah disobeyed the Lord his God by going into the temple and burning incense as an offering to him.
17. Azariah the priest and eighty other brave priests followed Uzziah into the temple
18. and said, “Your Majesty, this isn't right! You are not allowed to burn incense to the Lord. That must be done only by priests who are descendants of Aaron. You will have to leave! You have sinned against the Lord, and so he will no longer bless you.”
19. Uzziah, who was standing next to the incense altar at the time, was holding the incense burner, ready to offer incense to the Lord. He became very angry when he heard Azariah's warning, and leprosy suddenly appeared on his forehead!
20. Azariah and the other priests saw it and immediately told him to leave the temple. Uzziah realized that the Lord had punished him, so he hurried to get outside.
21. Uzziah had leprosy for the rest of his life. He was no longer allowed in the temple or in his own palace. That's why his son Jotham lived there and ruled in his place.
22. Everything else Uzziah did while he was king is in the records written by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.
23. Since Uzziah had leprosy, he could not be buried in the royal tombs. Instead, he was buried in a nearby cemetery that the kings owned. His son Jotham then became king.