“Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling” (Proverbs 16:18). That’s what Solomon wrote some 200 years before his descendent Uzziah reigned over Jerusalem. Now, in many ways Uzziah was a good king, seeking to do what was right in God’s sight (II Chronicles 26:4). And he was a great king, defeating the Philistines in battle, fortifying his capital city and fielding an army of over 300,000 soldiers (II Chronicles 26:6-13). He had armories full of weapons and ingenious catapults, ready to defend Jerusalem from its worst enemies (II Chronicles 26:14-15).

I think we Americans can understand how Uzziah felt. Even in the midst of this COVID crisis, our wealth is simply unmatched. No matter how many of them we print, dollars continue to be in great demand all over the world, and we continue to account for about ¼ of the total value of the global economy, even though we make up less than 5% of the world’s population.

And we are as powerful as we are rich. We spend more on our military every year than China, Russia, France, Britain, and Germany combined. We have 1.3 million active-duty servicemen, a little over 1,400 fighter aircraft, and 10 super aircraft carriers. Moreover, our ingenuity has placed all the knowledge of all the world at our fingertips.

But when Uzziah became rich and strong, he became proud. He thought that his wealth and power meant that he could do anything he wanted – even where it came to the Law of God. Now, that Law made it clear that only the priests from the tribe of Levi were allowed to go into the Temple. Even Uzziah’s ancestor Solomon, the man who was responsible for building the Temple, had observed that rule. But Uzziah thought he could march right into the Temple and offer incense before the Lord. And because he thought he could decide for himself what was right and wrong, he ended up paying a terrible price. The Lord struck him with leprosy so that he would not only be excluded from the Temple, but from every other part of society as well (II Chronicles 26:16-21). In short, Uzziah’s pride cost him everything in which he had put his faith.

So, what about us? Have we Americans let our wealth and power go to our heads? Have we tried to decide for ourselves what is right and wrong, especially where it comes to marriage and family issues? If so, should we really expect God to keep looking the other way? Maybe it would be better for us to stop trusting in ourselves and trust in Christ instead – before it’s too late.

II Chronicles 26:16-21 (NASB)

16 But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the LORD his God, for he entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.
17 Then Azariah the priest entered after him and with him eighty priests of the LORD, valiant men.
18 And they opposed Uzziah the king and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful, and will have no honor from the LORD God.”
19 But Uzziah, with a censer in his hand for burning incense, was enraged; and while he was enraged with the priests, the leprosy broke out on his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, beside the altar of incense.
20 And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous on his forehead; and they hurried him out of there, and he himself also hastened to get out because the LORD had smitten him.
21 And King Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death; and he lived in a separate house, being a leper, for he was cut off from the house of the LORD. And Jotham his son was over the king’s house judging the people of the land.