Man living at the time of Divided Monarchy
Uriah was a priest during the reign of King Ahaz who followed the king's instructions in building a new altar based on a pagan model from Damascus.
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Also known as Urijah
Uriah was a priest who served during the reign of King Ahaz of Judah (2Ki.16.10-16; Isa.8.2). When Ahaz visited Damascus to meet with the Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser, he saw a pagan altar that impressed him. Ahaz sent a model of the altar to Uriah, instructing him to build a replica in Jerusalem. Uriah faithfully followed the king's instructions and built the altar. Upon Ahaz's return, the king made offerings on the new altar and modified the temple's ritual to accommodate it, displacing the bronze altar prescribed by God. Uriah's compliance with the king's orders, despite their departure from proper worship, reflects the religious compromise and syncretism that characterized Ahaz's reign. The prophet Isaiah mentions Uriah as a witness to his prophecy about the coming Immanuel (Isa.8.2), suggesting that Uriah was a recognized figure in Jerusalem's priestly community.
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5 verses in 2 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H0223
Then King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria. On seeing the altar in Damascus, King Ahaz sent Uriah the priest a model of the altar and complete plans for its construction.
And Uriah the priest built the altar according to all the instructions King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, and he completed it before King Ahaz had returned.
Then King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, “Offer on the great altar the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, and the kingʼs burnt offering and grain offering, as well as the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings of all the people of the land. Sprlatter on the altar all the blood of the burnt offerings and sacrifices. But I will use the bronze altar to seek guidance.”
So Uriah the priest did just as King Ahaz had commanded.
And I will appoint for Myself trustworthy witnesses—Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.”
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.