A SUDDEN HALT
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Opening Prayer
Holy God, inspire me as I read your Word today. Give me new insight and conviction to apply its truths in ways that impact others, showing them who you are.
Read 1 CHRONICLES 13
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Bringing Back the Ark
13 David conferred with each of his officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. 2 He then said to the whole assembly of Israel, “If it seems good to you and if it is the will of the Lord our God, let us send word far and wide to the rest of our people throughout the territories of Israel, and also to the priests and Levites who are with them in their towns and pasturelands, to come and join us. 3 Let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we did not inquire of[a] it[b] during the reign of Saul.” 4 The whole assembly agreed to do this, because it seemed right to all the people.
5 So David assembled all Israel, from the Shihor River in Egypt to Lebo Hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim. 6 David and all Israel went to Baalah of Judah (Kiriath Jearim) to bring up from there the ark of God the Lord, who is enthroned between the cherubim—the ark that is called by the Name.
7 They moved the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. 8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, timbrels, cymbals and trumpets.
9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.
11 Then David was angry because the Lord’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah.[c]
12 David was afraid of God that day and asked, “How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?” 13 He did not take the ark to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. 14 The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house for three months, and the Lord blessed his household and everything he had.
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 13:3 Or we neglected
- 1 Chronicles 13:3 Or him
- 1 Chronicles 13:11 Perez Uzzah means outbreak against Uzzah.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Do you think that the generation preceding you was more respectful of their place of worship than yours? Is reverence harder today, especially for those of us who gather and worship in less traditional places?
I lived in Peru for a number of years, and one memory concerns the time when I needed to fit a longer electric cable to an appliance. I needed to measure the length of cable carefully, so to anchor one end I plugged it into a live socket. I then measured up—and cut the cable—bang!! I have had a great respect for electricity ever since!
This story of the carrying of the ark of God from Abinadab’s house in Kiriath Jearim to the city of David (Jerusalem) begins with great excitement, joy, and genuine worship, but it suddenly ends with a destructive bang, because Uzzah had not understood the danger of overfamiliarity with God. The ark was at the heart of Israelite religion and worship, containing artifacts that dated back to God’s meeting with his people at Sinai.1 It had a lot of spiritual meaning, and Uzzah’s attitude to it should have been as reverent as his attitude to God himself. Perhaps he’d grown used to its presence during the 20 years it had been at his father’s house2 and he failed to understand that destruction or blessing was linked to a realization of what it was and a respect for holy things.
It’s not surprising that David’s anger turned to fear (v. 12). Are there things in our own Christian culture which we have perhaps failed to treat as holy? Some Quechua Christians in Peru will not put a Bible on the floor. It’s not a case of superstition, but of respect. In our emphasis on God’s love, are we guilty of being overfamiliar with him, forgetting that he is also holy? How can we distinguish between genuine respect for holy things (Bibles? Communion vessels?) and superstition?
Apply
Are there things of God that require more of your respect or honor?
Closing prayer
Lord God, help me to grow in my understanding of what holiness is. Reveal to me any lack of reverence that needs my repentance.
1 See Heb 9:1–5 2 1 Sam 7:1, 2; 2 Sam 6:3
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