Isaiah 1:1 lists the four kings who reigned over Judah during Isaiah‘s life. Find their names in the list below and order their reigns 1, 2, 3, 4.
“1. Uzziah
“2. Jotham
“3. Ahaz
“4. Hezekiah”
What did Isaiah call his wife? “the prophetess”
The name Uzziah means “the Lord is my strength.” In what ways does this passage suggest much of his reign was a reflection of his name?
“Verse 5 tells us, ‘He sought God…’ and ‘As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.’ Also, verse 7 says ‘God helped him’ and verse 15 implies God, ‘…for he was greatly helped…’
Describe why you think Uzziah would have been a hero to a boy like Isaiah.
“From the account, it sounds like Uzziah was a terrific king, and a shining example of a righteous, God-fearing man. He began his reign doing everything right.”
What primary sin proved the downfall of Uzziah (v. 16)? “his pride”
What about 2 Chronicles 26:5,15 hints that Uzziah also might have allowed the obstacle of prayerlessness to roll between himself and God?
“Both verses speak of God’s great help to him, which was in direct correlation with him seeking God, and staying humbly connected to Him.”
Describe why you think Uzziah presumed this forbidden role, and why the confrontation by the priests took such courage.
“I think he got sort of drunk on power and felt that his power as king made him able to override any rules, even God’s. The priests were very brave to tell the king he wasn’t allowed to do something. Even though they were right, he could’ve had them all killed.”
Consider using his reaction when confronted by the priest. How do you know he hadn’t just made a mistake in judgment?
“all of the below:
“ – his pride led to his downfall;
“ – he became angry when corrected;
“ – he was unfaithful to the Lord.”
Based on all we’ve learned by Uzziah’s example today, describe why you think God hates pride so much (Proverbs 8:13).
“Pride is like a gateway drug. It is a huge first step into any of the other big life-altering sins. Also, I think when pride has a foothold in a life, the Holy Spirit’s influence is suppressed.”
God hates pride because it dethrones Him and puts ourselves at the center of our universe. God’s hatred of pride expresses His love. Pride slights Him, but it destroys us.
Write your thoughts on how a person can avoid falling to the temptation of pride when he or she meets with success. Conclude by giving prayerful consideration to the example we’ve seen today.
“A person needs to keep his or her focus on God, as the true source of said success. All our successes are the result of the abilities and opportunities he blesses us with.”
Dearest Rachel –
So now, twenty-seven months since your departure, I’ve pulled up a new study volume of yours. Well, new to me… obviously, since it has your notes in it, it isn’t all that new. The most recent copyright is 2009, so that could be at any point in your last decade, I suppose.
We’re back to the subject of pride, and that of a particular king, just as Isaiah is about to be called to his ministry. A good king, by and large, if the books of the Kings and Chronicles are to be believed, but one moment of reckless pride basically destroyed it. In short, this was a man who after decades of reasonably good rulership, did not ‘finish well,’ as Pastor Scott likes to put it.
At least he taught his son to walk in his better ways, even if only half-heartedly. Even with the caveats about each of their reigns, the fact that, in general, it’s said that “they did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” is better commendation than half their family tree managed (and none of their rivals ruling in the north did).
It’s why I try to tell you about Daniel, as he’ll basically be our last legacy on this earth; the last of either of our bloodlines (although given that mine starts with me and ends with him, I’m not really all that worked up about it. And indeed, once I’m gone, how much attention would I pay to what’s going on down here, anyway? Wish you could answer me on that score). As much as I used to say, at those low points in my life, after being told how useless and worthless I was at work, how the one good thing I did in my life was having brought you up to the Chicago suburbs where you could affect so many more lives positively than you could if you stayed down in tiny little Macomb, so Daniel will hopefully be that final evidence of our good influence upon the world, if only by proxy.
Of course, when you come down to it, it’s not really our influence, so much as it is God working through us (and all those that shaped us in the past, and so on back to the beginning of the church and then some). So it’s not something for us to be proud of, lest we fall into a similar trap as old King Uzzaiah, right?
Anyway, be that as it may, keep an eye on Daniel, honey, and wish him luck. He’s going to need it.
Letters to Rachel 