Lived In A Separate House

2 Chronicles 26:19-27:3 – Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead. When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the Lord had afflicted him. King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house—leprous, and banned from the temple of the Lord. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land. The other events of Uzziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. Uzziah rested with his ancestors and was buried near them in a cemetery that belonged to the kings, for people said, “He had leprosy.” And Jotham his son succeeded him as king. Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done, but unlike him he did not enter the temple of the Lord. The people, however, continued their corrupt practices. Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the temple of the Lord and did extensive work on the wall at the hill of Ophel.

Numbers 5:2 – “Command the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone who has a defiling skin disease or a discharge of any kind, or who is ceremonially unclean because of a dead body.

2 Chronicles 20:20,30 – Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.”… And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.

Application:

• ·         The people who suffered from discharges became living object lessons to the whole camp on the necessity for all people to be “clean” in their approach to God. Unclean meant ceremonially unfit to be with the community, and a possible contaminant to the tabernacle and the pure worship of the Lord.
• ·         “Have faith in the Lord your God and…in His prophets” was a particularly apt word for the Chronicler’s contemporaries to hear from this son of David—at a time when their only hope for the future lay with the Lord and the reassuring words of His prophets.
• ·         Righteous kings have victory in warfare, while wicked rulers experience defeat.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV