1 Chronicles · chapter 13 of 29
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1 Chronicles 13 tells of David's first attempt to bring the ark of God to Jerusalem. With great celebration, the ark travels from Kiriath-jearim on a new cart, but at the threshing floor of Chidon the oxen stumble, Uzzah reaches out to steady it and dies. David is afraid and leaves the ark at the house of Obed-edom, where the Lord blesses his family for three months.
With the kingdom now united and Jerusalem as the capital, David wants the center of Israel's life to be the ark of the covenant, God's throne among his people, which had been away from the sanctuary for decades. This chapter shows both the king's zeal and a limit: it is not enough to want to honor God, it must be done as he has directed. It is the first step of a story that will be completed in chapter 15.
David consults the commanders of thousands and hundreds and the whole assembly of Israel, and proposes to bring the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim, because they did not seek it in the days of Saul. All the people approve. David gathers Israel from Shihor of Egypt to the entrance of Hamath, and they go up to Baalah of Judah, that is Kiriath-jearim, to bring the ark of God, over which the name of the Lord is called.
They carry the ark from the house of Abinadab on a new cart, driven by Uzzah and Ahio. David and all Israel celebrate before God with all their might, with songs, harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets. When they come to the threshing floor of Chidon, the oxen stumble, and Uzzah reaches out his hand to steady the ark. The anger of the Lord burns against Uzzah, and he strikes him down for putting out his hand to the ark, and he dies there before God.
David is angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah, and he names that place Perez-uzzah. That day he fears God and asks how he can bring the ark home. So he does not take it into the city of David but leaves it at the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. The ark remains there three months, and the Lord blesses the household of Obed-edom and all that he has.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
David proposes bringing the ark of God because they had not sought it in the days of Saul. With that phrase the author shows that the king wants to repair a neglect and put God back at the center of the people's life.
David and all Israel celebrate with all their might before God, with songs and instruments. The joy is sincere, but the story shows that enthusiasm does not replace obedience to what God had commanded about how the ark was to be carried.
The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah for putting out his hand to the ark, and he died before God. The text does not explain every detail, but it makes clear that God's holiness is not handled lightly, even with good intentions.
The ark stayed three months in the house of Obed-edom, and the Lord blessed his household and all that he had. So the chapter ends with the assurance that God remains good to those who receive him with reverence.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: From Kiriath-jearim, also called Baalah of Judah. — 1 Chronicles 13:5-6
Answer: On a new cart, driven by Uzzah and Ahio. — 1 Chronicles 13:7
Answer: Celebrating before God with all their might, with songs and instruments. — 1 Chronicles 13:8
Answer: He reached out his hand to steady the ark, and the Lord struck him and he died. — 1 Chronicles 13:9-10
Answer: Perez-uzzah. — 1 Chronicles 13:11
Answer: In the house of Obed-edom the Gittite, for three months. — 1 Chronicles 13:13-14
This chapter is uncomfortable and therefore necessary. David had a good desire, and the people celebrated sincerely, but they did something in their own way without consulting how God had commanded the ark to be carried. The lesson for today is that sincerity does not replace obedience. In a small group, ask how to learn God's will from Scripture before rushing to serve him.
It also shows how to react when something goes wrong. David was angry, but then he feared God, and he learned. The fear of the Lord did not push him away from God but led him to seek more carefully. That is an invitation to humility when our good intentions fail.
1 Chronicles 13 leaves the ark at Obed-edom's house and David with questions. Meanwhile, the next chapter shows a strengthened David: the king of Tyre sends him materials, more children are born and the Lord gives him victory over the Philistines, before the ark finally reaches Jerusalem.
God's law said the ark was to be carried by the Levites with poles on their shoulders, and that it was not to be touched. By placing it on a cart and reaching out a hand, that order was broken. The text does not justify the death with a single reason, but it teaches that God's presence is holy and must be treated as he commanded.
The text says David was displeased because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. His anger was a human reaction to the tragedy of a celebration turning into mourning. The same day it turned into reverent fear, and from it he learned to seek God in the right way.
He was a man of Gath. The text does not explain his origin: some take him as a foreigner and others as a Levite living in that city. He agreed to have the ark in his house. The text says God blessed his household and everything he had. Later he appears among the gatekeepers of the temple, which suggests he joined in the service of the Lord.