13. Under them was an army of 307,500 soldiers. They were a powerful force that could support the king against the enemy.
14. For the entire army Uzziah prepared shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and stones for slings.
15. In Jerusalem he made machines designed by inventive people. The machines were placed on the towers and corners to shoot arrows and hurl large stones.Uzziah’s fame spread far and wide because he had strong support until he became powerful.
16. But when he became powerful, his pride destroyed him. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God. He went into the Lord’s temple to burn incense on the incense altar.
17. The priest Azariah went in after him with 80 of the Lord’s courageous priests.
18. They opposed King Uzziah. They said to him, “Uzziah, you have no right to burn incense as an offering to the Lord. That right belongs to the priests, Aaron’s descendants, who have been given the holy task of burning incense. Get out of the holy place because you have been unfaithful. The Lord God will not honor you for this.”
19. Uzziah, who held an incense burner in his hand, became angry. While he was angry with the priests, a skin disease broke out on his forehead. This happened in front of the priests in the Lord’s temple as Uzziah was at the incense altar.
20. When the chief priest Azariah and all the priests turned toward him, a skin disease was on his forehead. They rushed him away. Uzziah was in a hurry to get out because the Lord had inflicted him ⌊with the disease⌋.