Hebrew Bible July 12

2 Sam 6:1-5,12b-19

Now King David was told, "The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God." So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. (v12)

The Hebrew text for this day omits a difficult and confronting incident involving Uzzah (v.6-11). The absolute holiness and power of God seems to be revealed here in a way that seems to contradict with the idea of a God who sees the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). Perhaps to understand the passage properly we need to look at its context - stories of blessing that surround the place where the Ark is housed.

One of David's first tasks after establishing his capital was to bring the Ark of the Covenant from the house of Abinadab to the city of David. The death of Uzzah scared him greatly, and he left with Obed-edom for three months. Despite or because of this great responsibility Obed-edom was greatly blessed, so David figured it was time it moved closer to his home. We really don't know if this was godly inspiration moving the Ark, or simply a king who saw the properly it brought and exercised his power to get that blessing for himself. In those days the were two rules:
1. The king is always right.
2. In the event that the king is wrong, rule 1 applies. King David wanted it in his city, and no one else was likely to suggest it be kept elsewhere.

So the ark made its way to Jerusalem - with great rejoicing. The good thing about this event was the celebration and rejoicing. David not only made a number of offerings to God that day, but also blessed the people with his generosity.

The bad thing was his wife's response. She despised David because he, her husband and the great king of this nation, danced before the Lord. It was normal for the common people to dance, and for the powerful to watch. Here the most powerful man in all the land was lost in a frenzy of religious ecstasy and celebration. wearing a linen ephod. As far as Michal was concerned it was unseemly and indecent, not at all fitting for a king.

Today there are those who engage in worship with their whole being....and others whose worship is more a mental exercise than a physical one. We must take care not to judge others whose actions in worship don't fit with our sense of what is proper. Instead we should enjoy worshipping God whole heartedly - and in a manner that is appropriate to who we are, and not worry too much about the way that others worship.


* The story of the capture of the Ark by the Philistines, and its subsequent return to Israel is recorded in 1 Samuel 4-6. The ark represented the presence and power of God for the Israelites, but brought suffering when in the hands of the Philistines after they had captured it from Saul. To avert further suffering they sent it back to Beth-Shemesh, and then to Kiriath-jearim where it remained for twenty years.