And he inserted the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it. – Exodus 37:5

Today's Scripture Reading (October 24, 2021): Exodus 37

Instructions are a necessary but also often a frustrating part of life. We need them to construct things or to complete specific actions, but too often, we don't understand the instructions that are given to us. And our reaction to instructions that we don't understand is usually to ignore them, especially if we think that we have a better way. But often, we also find that our better way isn't better, and if we had just understood the instructions, or sometimes even read the instructions, there was a reason for what they said and how they instructed us to proceed.

The Bible contains many stories that are hard to understand. One of them is found in 2 Samuel 6. According to the account, King David commands that the Ark of the Covenant be brought to Jerusalem. The ark had been captured by the Philistines decades earlier. They had returned the religious artifact to Israel, but it had never made it all the way back to the Tabernacle, which at this time was in Gibeon.

David's order was unique. The ark should have been placed to the Tabernacle at Gibeon. Instead, David wants the ark brought to Jerusalem. He intended that Jerusalem should become not just the political center for Israel but also a spiritual center. And to begin the process of making Jerusalem "The Holy City," the ark needed to be brought to Jerusalem

So. David sends a team to get the ark and bring it to Jerusalem instead of Gibeon. And part of that team was a soldier named Uzzah. The team placed the ark on a cart pulled by a set of oxen, and the oxen started the journey toward Jerusalem. Along the way, one of the oxen stumbled, the ark shook, and it just about fell off of the cart. It would have fallen off of the cart, except that a hand reached out and steadied it on the cart. That hand belonged to Uzzah.

But Uzzah died as a result of his action. What bothers me most about the death of Uzzah is that it is not that he was irreverent in any way. He acted to protect the ark, and yet he died because of that action. Why? It is a story that is hard to understand.

The cautionary tale of Uzzah brings us back to the idea of instructions. The problem wasn't really with Uzzah. The ark was never intended to be placed on a cart and pulled by oxen. It was designed to be carried by priests with the poles, inserted through the rings on the side of the ark, but that was something that David, and therefore Uzzah, didn't understand. If they had, and if the priests had been sent to pick up the Ark as God intended, Uzzah wouldn't have died. The instructions were available, but no one bothered to consult them. And as a result, a good man died.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Exodus 38