Measure of Reverence

Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 6:1-11

Today's Treasure: "When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down and he died beside the ark of God" (2 Samuel 6:6-7).

King David, having conquered Jerusalem and defeated the Philistines, set out with thirty thousand men to bring the ark of God to Jerusalem. Unfortunately, we learn something in 2 Samuel 6:3 that can only spell disaster: "They set the ark of God on a new cart," (2 Samuel 6:3).

According to the regulations for kings of Israel, they were to personally hand copy the Law of God so that they would know every line. How then could David have set out to transport the ark in a wagon? God was extremely specific about every detail of the construction and treatment of the ark. According to Exodus 25:10-16 and Numbers 4:5,15, the ark was to be transported only by the priests using poles through the rings on the ark. The poles were to be carried on their shoulders.

God masterfully designed the transportation of His glory to literally rest on the shoulders of His revering priests, not on the backs of beasts. David's actions not only disregarded the Lord's instructions, they included a greater insult. 1 Samuel 4 tells of the Philistines capturing the ark of God. After they had suffered seven months of devastation, the Philistines loaded the ark on a cart pulled by two cows. Now David imitated the actions of the Philistines rather than obey the commands of God.

Sure enough, while "David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might before the LORD" (v.5), at the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out to stabilize the ark, and God struck him dead (vv. 6-7).

Imagine becoming emotionally geared for a great celebration only to greet disaster instead. Uzzah's death would have been shocking under the most sober of circumstances, but can you imagine the shock in the midst of such celebration? David must have felt as if he jumped off an emotional cliff.

David felt two emotions: anger and fear. Note that he felt anger and fear toward God, yet Scripture calls him "a man after God's own heart." I think one reason David remained a man after God's own heart was his unwillingness to turn from God, even when he felt negative emotions. David allowed his anger and fear to motivate him to seek more insight into the heart of God.

We need to follow David's example by allowing our questions and confusion to motivate us to seek God. At first consideration, the account of Uzzah and the ark is hard to swallow. God almost seems mean-spirited. In times like these, we find out whether we have based our faith on who God is or on what He does. Because His ways are higher than our ways, we cannot always comprehend what God is doing or why He makes certain decisions. When we sift His apparent activity through the standard of who He is, the fog begins to clear.

God is not telling us He is harsh in 2 Samuel 6. He's telling us He is holy. The words represent a big difference, although sometimes our limited understanding leads us to confuse them.

We have difficulty understanding how sacred the ark of the covenant was because we have the advantage of living after the incarnation of Christ. Think with me about the meaning of the ark. We can compare it only to Christ Himself, the Word made flesh to dwell among us! Once man and woman were cast from the Garden of Eden, God began the ministry of reconciliation, ultimately fulfilled on the Cross. Hundreds of years followed man's expulsion with no direct invitation for mankind to come and fellowship with God. At last Exodus 25:8 gives the revolutionary words God said to Moses: "Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them."

What music to starving ears! In the innermost place in this "sanctuary," God commanded them to build the ark of the covenant according to very specific directions. Then He said, "There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony, I will meet with you," (Exodus 25:22). The awesomeness, the holiness, the majesty of God dwelled right there, between the cherubim on that sacred ark! Until God was incarnate among men many centuries later in the person of Jesus Christ, the ark was the sacred center of God's glory and presence. To treat the ark inappropriately was to treat God inappropriately, not just because of what it was, but because of who God is. Based on who God is, I believe we can draw some conclusions about what He was doing when He killed Uzzah.

God was setting ground rules for a new regime. He was ushering in a new kingdom with a new king He had chosen to represent His heart. God had dealt with the disrespect of man through many judges as well as the reign of a selfish king. With a new day dawning, God was demanding a new reverence.

God wanted His children to be different from the world. The Philistines might transport the ark on an oxcart, but God's people would not. How careful we must be not to think that God is less holy because others seem to get away with irreverence! We are sometimes tempted to measure our respect for God by the lack of respect surrounding us. The godless, however, are not our standard. God is. Through the pen of King David, God told us to "praise him according to his excellent greatness," not according to public opinion (Ps. 150:2, KJV).

God wanted His kingdom to be established on His Word. The Israelites failed to consult God's designated commands for the ark's transportation. At the time David's kingdom was established, David certainly had access to the "Books of Moses," the first five books of the Bible.

God was teaching the relationship between blessing and reverence. After the death of Uzzah, David left the ark at the home of Obed-Edom. God greatly blessed that household. In the process, God demonstrated the relationship between reverence and blessing. God desires His presence and His glory to be a blessing, but reverence for Him is the necessary channel.

Holy Father, thank You for what Your Word has taught me about reverence. Forgive me for the times I've intentionally given You less respect and honor than I knew You deserved. I want to praise You according to Your excellent greatness! Thank You for the great mercy You show me every day. Forgive me also for the times I've unknowingly disrespected You. I pray to be more conscientious of Your awesome glory. Like the priests who carried the poles of the ark on their shoulders, allow me to feel the weight of Your glory every day. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Adapted from A Heart Like His, by Beth Moore, pages 139-142. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1999. Used by permission.