Many of you have surely heard of the ark of the covenant. The ark was something that was prescribed by God and built by the priests during the time of Moses. The ark was sort of a chest, overlaid with gold, with two artistic renderings of angels on the top (called “cherubim”).

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Hebrews 9:4 tells us what was in the ark. It says, “It had the gold altar of incense and the ark of the covenant, covered with gold on all sides, in which was a gold jar containing the manna, Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.”

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So, we’re going to dive into a story about the ark of the covenant, and you may come to feel that’s even a bit weird.

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Before we do, let’s go to the Lord in prayer.

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(prayer)

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Ok, so let’s read the passage, and then we’ll talk more about it.

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Today’s sermon is entitled “One Bad Decision.” You’ll see why I chose that title in just a moment.

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Look at 2 Samuel 6:1-11:

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1 David again assembled all the fit young men in Israel: thirty thousand. 2 He and all his troops set out to bring the ark of God from Baale-judah. The ark bears the Name, the name of the Lord of Armies who is enthroned between the cherubim. 3 They set the ark of God on a new cart and transported it from Abinadab’s house, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the cart 4 and brought it with the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on the hill. Ahio walked in front of the ark. 5 David and the whole house of Israel were dancing before the Lord with all kinds of fir wood instruments, lyres, harps, tambourines, sistrums, and cymbals.

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6 When they came to Nacon’s threshing floor, Uzzah reached out to the ark of God and took hold of it because the oxen had stumbled. 7 Then the Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah, and God struck him dead on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there next to the ark of God. 8 David was angry because of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah, so he named that place Outburst Against Uzzah, as it is today. 9 David feared the Lord that day and said, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” 10 So he was not willing to bring the ark of the Lord to the city of David; instead, he diverted it to the house of Obed-edom of Gath. 11 The ark of the Lord remained in his house three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and his whole family.

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Ok, so let’s talk a little more about the ark.

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First, let’s answer the question:

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‌I. What’s going on with the ark?

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I’ve already told you a little bit about what’s in the ark, how it came to be, and so forth.

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However, the ark was not merely a relic with special artifacts inside. The ark actually represented the presence of God.

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When God’s people carried the ark into battle, they were victorious. When the enemies of Israel stole the ark and kept it in their territory, they suffered.

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At this point in the Bible (2 Samuel 6), David is king of Israel.

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David wanted to set up a new capital for his kingdom and for worship in Israel, in a place called Jerusalem.

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The ark was being held at someone’s house, and it was close to the borders of one of Israel’s greatest enemies, the Philistines.

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So, David planned to bring the ark closer to his home, closer to the new capital of the kingdom, and further away from the Philistines.

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So, David set off with 30,000 fit young men to bring the ark back. David probably brought this large army both as a sign of strength and prosperity, and as a genuine means of protecting the ark.

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However, even though 30,000 men were brought to protect the ark, it only took one man to mess things up.

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So, second, let’s see . . .

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‌II. What’s going on with this guy’s death?

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This is the weird part for many of us. We think, “Why in the world would God strike Uzzah dead for touchi