Day 4

ROUGH JUSTICE?

"He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." 1 John 2:4

At first it seems outrageous that in the middle of a joyful celebration one of the men appointed to guide the ark should have been struck dead when he put out a hand to steady it. A reflex action ending in death? No, it was more than just a touch he "took hold of it". This story is reminiscent of the famous song title, "I did it my way."

The Bible tells us of many people who could have taken that as their personal anthem. Cain thought his way was good enough Gen. 4:1-16. Abram took his own steps to secure the blessing God had promised Gen. 15:4,5;16:1-4. Rebekah also tried to give God a helping hand in her own way Gen 27. They all thought they were right but their actions led to disaster. Sincerity and good intentions are not enough Proverbs 14:12.

Way back at Sinai God gave strict instructions for the care and handling of the articles of the sanctuary (Numbers 4:15;7:9). In the eagerness of celebration these instructions were forgotten - the ark of God's presence was just put on an ox cart like any other piece of furniture. God had punished the Philistines for their irreverent treatment of the ark (1 Sam. 5 & 6). He could not ignore the fault of the Israelites.

David was angry and then afraid at the judgement of God (2 Sam. 6:7-9). The celebration stopped. On reflection however the king understood and saw that not only Uzzah had been at fault. David took responsibility (1 Chron 15:13). Obedience to God's commands is just as binding an obligation for us (John 14:23,24; 1 John 2:4)