The long reign of Uzziah [also known as Azariah]
in the land of Judah and Benjamin was characterized
by a prosperity greater than that of any other ruler since
the death of Solomon, nearly two centuries before. For
many years the king ruled with discretion. Under the
blessing of Heaven his armies regained some of the territory
that had been lost in former years. Cities were rebuilt
and fortified, and the position of the nation among the
surrounding peoples was greatly strengthened. Commerce
revived, and the riches of the nations flowed into Jerusalem.
Uzziah's name "spread far abroad; for he was marvellously
helped, till he was strong." 2 Chronicles 26:15.
This outward prosperity, however, was not accompanied
by a corresponding revival of spiritual power. The temple
services were continued as in former years, and multitudes
assembled to worship the living God; but pride and formality
gradually took the place of humility and sincerity.
Of Uzziah himself it is written: "When he was strong,
his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed
against the Lord his God." Verse 16.
The sin that resulted so disastrously to Uzziah was one
of presumption. In violation of a plain command of Jehovah,
that none but the descendants of Aaron should officiate
as priests, the king entered the sanctuary "to burn incense
upon the altar." Azariah the high priest and his associates
remonstrated, and pleaded with him to turn from his purpose.
"Thou hast trespassed," they urged; "neither shall
it be for thine honor." Verses 16, 18.
Uzziah was filled with wrath that he, the king, should
be thus rebuked. But he was not permitted to profane the
sanctuary against the united protest of those in authority.
While standing there, in wrathful rebellion, he was suddenly
smitten with a divine judgment. Leprosy appeared
on his forehead. In dismay he fled, never again to enter
the temple courts. Unto the day of his death, some years
later, Uzziah remained a leper--a living example of the
folly of departing from a plain "Thus saith the Lord."
Neither his exalted position nor his long life of service could
be pleaded as an excuse for the presumptuous sin by which
he marred the closing years of his reign, and brought upon
himself the judgment of Heaven.
God is no respecter of persons. "The soul that doeth
aught presumptuously, whether he be born in the land,
or a stranger, the same reproacheth the Lord; and that soul
shall be cut off from among his people." Numbers 15:30.
The judgment that befell Uzziah seemed to have a
restraining influence on his son. Jotham bore heavy
responsibilities during the later years of his father's reign and
succeeded to the throne after Uzziah's death. Of Jotham
it is written: "He did that which was right in the sight of
the Lord: he did according to all that his father Uzziah
had done. Howbeit the high places were not removed: the
people sacrificed and burned incense still in the high places."
2 Kings 15:34, 35.
The reign of Uzziah was drawing to a close, and Jotham
was already bearing many of the burdens of state, when
Isaiah, of the royal line, was called, while yet a young man,
to the prophetic mission. The times in which Isaiah was
to labor were fraught with peculiar peril to the people of
God. The prophet was to witness the invasion of Judah
by the combined armies of northern Israel and of Syria; he
was to behold the Assyrian hosts encamped before the
chief cities of the kingdom. During his lifetime, Samaria
was to fall, and the ten tribes of Israel were to be scattered
among the nations. Judah was again and again to be
invaded by the Assyrian armies, and Jerusalem was to suffer
a siege that would have resulted in her downfall had
not God miraculously interposed. Already grave perils were
threatening the peace of the southern kingdom. The divine
protection was being removed, and the Assyrian forces were
about to overspread the land of Judah.
But the dangers from without, overwhelming though
they seemed, were not so serious as the dangers from within.
It was the perversity of his people that brought to the
Lord's servant the greatest perplexity and the deepest depression.
By their apostasy and rebellion those who should
have been standing as light bearers among the nations were
inviting the judgments of God. Many of the evils which
were hastening the swift destruction of the northern kingdom,
and which had recently been denounced in unmistakable
terms by Hosea and Amos, were fast corrupting the
kingdom of Judah.
The outlook was particularly discouraging as regards
the social conditions of the people. In their desire for gain,
men were adding house to house and field to field. See
Isaiah 5:8. Justice was perverted, and no pity was shown
the poor. Of these evils God declared, "The spoil of the
poor is in your houses." Ye beat My people to pieces, and
grind the faces of the poor." Isaiah 3:14, 15. Even the
magistrates, whose duty it was to protect the helpless,
turned a deaf ear to the cries of the poor and needy, the
widows and the fatherless. See Isaiah 10:1, 2.
With oppression and wealth came pride and love of
display, gross drunkenness, and a spirit of revelry. See
Isaiah 2:11, 12; 3:16, 18-23; 5:22, 11, 12. And in Isaiah's
day idolatry itself no longer provoked surprise. See Isaiah
2:8, 9. Iniquitous practices had become so prevalent among
all classes that the few who remained true to God were
often tempted to lose heart and to give way to discouragement
and despair. It seemed as if God's purpose for Israel
were about to fail and that the rebellious nation was to suffer
a fate similar to that of Sodom and Gomorrah.
In the face of such conditions it is not surprising that
when, during the last year of Uzziah's reign, Isaiah was
called to bear to Judah God's messages of warning and
reproof, he shrank from the responsibility. He well knew
that he would encounter obstinate resistance. As he realized
his own inability to meet the situation and thought of the
stubbornness and unbelief of the people for whom he was
to labor, his task seemed hopeless. Should he in despair
relinquish his mission and leave Judah undisturbed to their
idolatry? Were the gods of Nineveh to rule the earth in
defiance of the God of heaven?
Such thoughts as these were crowding through Isaiah's
mind as he stood under the portico of the temple.
Suddenly the gate and the inner veil of the temple seemed to
be uplifted or withdrawn, and he was permitted to gaze
within, upon the holy of holies, where even the prophet's
feet might not enter. There rose up before him a vision
of Jehovah sitting upon a throne high and lifted up, while
the train of His glory filled the temple. On each side of
the throne hovered the seraphim, their faces veiled in adoration,
as they ministered before their Maker and united in
the solemn invocation, "Holy, holy holy, is the Lord of
hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory," until post and
pillar and cedar gate seemed shaken with the sound, and
the house was filled with their tribute of praise. Isaiah 6:3.
As Isaiah beheld this revelation of the glory and majesty
of his Lord, he was overwhelmed with a sense of the
purity and holiness of God. How sharp the contrast between
the matchless perfection of his Creator, and the sinful course
of those who, with himself, had long been numbered among
the chosen people of Israel and Judah! "Woe is me!" he
cried; "for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean
lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips:
for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts." Verse 5.
Standing, as it were, in the full light of the divine presence
within the inner sanctuary, he realized that if left to his
own imperfection and inefficiency, he would be utterly
unable to accomplish the mission to which he had been
called. But a seraph was sent to relieve him of his distress
and to fit him for his great mission. A living coal from the
altar was laid upon his lips, with the words, "Lo, this hath
touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and
thy sin purged." Then the voice of God was heard saying,
"Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" and Isaiah
responded, "Here am I; send me." Verses 7,8.
The heavenly visitant bade the waiting messenger, "Go,
and tell this people,