The Life and Times of

Home at Last (6:12-19)

12 Now it was told King David, saying, “The LORD has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, on account of the ark of God.” David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the city of David with gladness. 13 And so it was, that when the bearers of the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14 And David was dancing before the LORD with all his might, and David was wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouting and the sound of the trumpet. 16 Then it happened as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17 So they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. 18 When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the peace offering, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts. 19 Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread and one of dates and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed each to his house.

There must have been an air of sadness in Jerusalem during those days when the ark remained in the house of Obed-edom. They were great days for Obed-edom and his family, however. We are not told what form the blessings took, but we are told that during the time the ark was in his house, Obed-edom and his family were blessed of God. People heard about it, and word reached David as well. It was a sign of sorts. Had David concluded the ark was a kind of curse on those close to it? If this were the case, David certainly did not want the ark there in Jerusalem with him. That is why he had it kept a safe distance away in the home of Obed-edom. But now it became apparent that the ark was really a source of blessing. What went wrong that brought about the death of Uzzah? How could this be rectified so that the ark and its accompanying blessings could come to Jerusalem? These questions must have been heavy on David's mind, and on the minds of other Israelites as well.

I believe we are expected to know the answer, which is the reason the author does not spell it out for us. The author of the Chronicles does not assume as much on the part of his readers, so he tells us directly:

1 Now David built houses for himself in the city of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it. 2 Then David said, “No one is to carry the ark of God but the Levites; for the LORD chose them to carry the ark of God and to minister to Him forever.” 3 And David assembled all Israel at Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the LORD to its place which he had prepared for it. 4 David gathered together the sons of Aaron and the Levites: 5 of the sons of Kohath, Uriel the chief, and 120 of his relatives; 6 of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, and 220 of his relatives; 7 of the sons of Gershom, Joel the chief, and 130 of his relatives; 8 of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah the chief, and 200 of his relatives; 9 of the sons of Hebron, Eliel the chief, and 80 of his relatives; 10 of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab the chief, and 112 of his relatives. 11 Then David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and for the Levites, for Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel and Amminadab, 12 and said to them, “You are the heads of the fathers' households of the Levites; consecrate yourselves both you and your relatives, that you may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel to the place that I have prepared for it. 13 “Because you did not carry it at the first, the LORD our God made an outburst on us, for we did not seek Him according to the ordinance.” 14 So the priests and the Levites consecrated themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel. 15 The sons of the Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles thereon, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the LORD (1 Chronicles 15:1-15).

David is first angered by the death of Uzzah, which quickly turns to fear. David's fear is healthy and well-founded, but God wants to be near His people to bless them. The only way this could happen was for men to approach Him in the way He prescribed. His presence was associated with the ark. Men could draw near to Him, but not too near. They could not touch the ark, lest they die. This meant the only way the ark could be moved was to move it as God had declared, by the Kohathites, who were to carry the ark by its poles, placed through the rings of the ark.

David now was assured that the nearness of the ark was a blessing, but that it must be brought to Jerusalem in accordance with God's directions. And so David assembled the Israelites and commissioned the sons of Kohath to carry it, instructing them carefully about the way they were to carry out their duty. The author informs us that after the ark was carried six steps, a sacrifice was offered. Those first six steps were no doubt the most tense steps of the entire journey. After the death of Uzzah, those nearest to the ark (the Kohathites) were surely nervous about being so close to this sacred box, indeed, to the presence of God Himself. As the journey continued, men's courage and joy must have increased. Soon there was great celebration as they made their way to the holy city.

Our text in 2 Samuel informs us that there was great celebration as the ark was brought to Jerusalem. The parallel account in 1 Chronicles is even more detailed. It was not just a small group of Israelites, but “all the house of Israel” (2 Samuel 6:15). On the first ill-fated journey with the ark, musicians accompanied the ark (2 Samuel 6:5). On the second successful journey, there were a whole host of musicians (1 Chronicles 15:16-24). It was one of the great moments in Israel's history:

28 Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the horn, with trumpets, with loud-sounding cymbals, with harps and lyres (1 Chronicles 15:28).

It was a time of celebration, of offering sacrifices and feasting:

17 So they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. 18 When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the peace offering, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts. 19 Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread and one of dates and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed each to his house (2 Samuel 6:17-19).