2Samuel 6:1 ¶
Again, David gathered together all the chosen men of
Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David
arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of
Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name
of the LORD of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims. 3 And they set the ark of God upon a new cart,
and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in Gibeah: and
Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drave the new cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of
Abinadab which was at Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God: and Ahio went
before the ark. 5 And David and all the
house of Israel played before the LORD on all manner of instruments made of
fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and on timbrels, and on cornets,
and on cymbals.
After the civil war and the battle with the
Philistines David called his soldiers to accompany him in bringing the ark of
God to the house of Abinadab. There was a joyous celebration.
However, the ark should not have been set on
a new cart, or an old one. It was to be carried on priests’ shoulders, John
Gill wrote. See Numbers 7:9. John Gill stated that David penned Psalm 68 at
this time.
Numbers 7:9
But unto the sons of Kohath he gave none: because the service of the
sanctuary belonging unto them was that they should bear upon their shoulders.
Psalm 68:1 ¶
«To the chief Musician, A Psalm or Song of David.» Let God arise, let
his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him. 2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away:
as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of
God. 3 But let the righteous be glad;
let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. 4 Sing unto God, sing praises to his name:
extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him.
5 A father of the fatherless, and a
judge of the widows, is God in his
holy habitation. 6 God setteth the solitary in families: he
bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a
dry land.
7
¶ O God, when thou wentest forth before
thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness; Selah: 8 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at
the presence of God:
even Sinai itself was moved at the presence
of God, the God of Israel. 9 Thou, O
God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance,
when it was weary. 10 Thy congregation
hath dwelt therein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor.
11 The Lord gave the word: great was the
company of those that published it. 12
Kings of armies did flee apace: and she that tarried at home divided the
spoil. 13 Though ye have lien among the
pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her
feathers with yellow gold. 14 When the
Almighty scattered kings in it, it was white as snow in Salmon.
15
¶ The hill of God is as the hill of
Bashan; an high hill as the hill of Bashan. 16
Why leap ye, ye high hills? this is the hill which God desireth to dwell
in; yea, the LORD will dwell in
it for ever. 17 The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even
thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.
18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast
led
captivity captive: thou hast received gifts
for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among
them. 19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily
loadeth us with benefits,
even the God of our salvation. Selah. 20 He that is our God is the God of salvation;
and unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death. 21 But God shall wound the head of his
enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one
as goeth on still in his trespasses.
22
¶ The Lord said, I will bring again from
Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea: 23 That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of
thine enemies, and the
tongue of thy dogs in the same. 24 They have seen thy goings, O God; even the
goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. 25
The singers went before, the players on instruments
followed after; among them were the damsels
playing with timbrels. 26 Bless ye God
in the congregations, even the Lord, from the fountain of Israel. 27 There is little Benjamin with
their ruler, the princes of Judah and their
council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali. 28 Thy God hath commanded thy strength:
strengthen, O God, that which thou
hast wrought for us. 29 Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall
kings bring presents unto thee. 30
Rebuke the company of spearmen, the multitude of the bulls, with the
calves of the people, till every one submit himself with pieces of silver:
scatter thou the people that delight in war. 31
Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her
hands unto God.
32
¶ Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the
earth; O sing praises unto the Lord; Selah: 33
To him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens, which were of old; lo,
he doth send out his voice, and that a mighty voice. 34 Ascribe ye strength unto God: his excellency
is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds. 35 O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy
places: the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people.
Blessed be God.
2Samuel 6:6 ¶
And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his
hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it.
7 And the anger of the LORD was kindled
against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died
by the ark of God. 8 And David was
displeased, because the LORD had made a breach upon Uzzah: and he called the
name of the place Perezuzzah to this day. 9
And David was afraid of the LORD that day, and said, How shall the ark
of the LORD come to me? 10 So David
would not remove the ark of the LORD unto him into the city of David: but David
carried it aside into the house of Obededom the Gittite. 11 And the ark of the LORD continued in the
house of Obededom the Gittite three months: and the LORD blessed Obededom, and
all his household.
Nachon is also known as Chidon.
1Chronicles 13:9 ¶ And when they came unto the threshingfloor of
Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled.
I refer you to an earlier catastrophe that
occurred at harvest time when the Philistines gave back the ark and a huge
number of men were slain by God.
1Samuel 6:19 ¶ And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because
they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty
thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD
had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter.
Numbers 4:20 But they shall
not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.
While the Philistines were not punished for their handling of the ark
the Israelites were. The number here of 50,070 men is a huge number but it is
so specific it needs some attention. If we accept this number and others we
will come to as true and accurate we must reconsider what scholars have
believed regarding the populations of the Ancient Near East.
John Gill noted that someone had asserted that this number
accounted also for the Philistines that died from the plague but this isn’t
warranted by the text. First, we ask the question why were so many people
gathered at what was probably a small place?
Some scholars estimate the world of Greece and the Ancient Near
East in around 400BC as upwards of ten million but historical records of census
in Ancient China, if they are reliable, suggest a population there of 13
million from between 2000 and 1000BC. Ancient Egypt according to ancient
writers had a population of 7 million or above. I would say that the numbers
were there in this most fertile place and are probably vastly understated due
to the length of time a census would take in the ancient world and how
inaccurate it might be. The Chinese references may only be a count of heads of
households and not represent total numbers. We discussed this in Genesis,
Exodus, and beyond, this land flowing with milk and honey, this very fertile
place still drying out after the Flood.
The fields must have been filled with workers for the harvest. In
an agricultural country this would mean thousands of workers every square mile
doing work by hand. With the slow progression of this cart led by cows from the
land of the Philistines word would get around very quickly and people would
mass toward this great event. We gather large crowds to sporting events and
music concerts today and this would have been much more important of an event
to these people. The death toll must have been a staggering blow to the work of
the harvest and a great grief to the population. I would suggest perhaps,
considering verse 2 of the next chapter that it took twenty years for the land
to recover from the destruction, perhaps worse than the plague the Philistines
suffered.
1Samuel 7:2
And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time
was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after
the LORD.
Here, the death of one man terrified David
and he was afraid to bring the ark any further so he left it at a person’s home
who apparently understood that he was not to handle it or look into it and God
blessed him.
2Samuel 6:12 ¶ And it was told king David, saying, The LORD
hath blessed the house of Obededom, and all that pertaineth unto him,
because of the ark of God. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the
house of Obededom into the city of David with gladness. 13 And it was so, that when they that
bare the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings.
14 And David danced before the LORD with
all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up
the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet. 16 And as the ark of the LORD came into the city
of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David
leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17 And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and
set it in his place, in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for
it: and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
18 And as soon as David had made an end
of offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the
name of the LORD of hosts. 19 And he
dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as
well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of
flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to
his house.
Learning of the way that God had blessed
Obededom and his house David decides to retrieve the ark, this time bringing it
reverentially and with great pomp and ceremony as he dressed in the attire of a
priest. It is interesting that David plays the part of prophet (Psalms), priest
(as here in this episode), and, of course, king. In this he is a type of Christ
Himself.
Michal is contemptuous of David’s celebrating
and honoring the Lord God in his behavior, dancing joyously before the Lord,
rejoicing. The ark is brought to the tabernacle that David prepared and he is
generous to the people. See 1Chronicles 15 for more details.
2Samuel 6:20 ¶ Then David returned to bless his household.
And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, How glorious
was the king of Israel to day, who uncovered himself to day in the eyes of the
handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows shamelessly uncovereth
himself! 21 And David said unto Michal, It
was before the LORD, which chose me before thy father, and before all his
house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the LORD, over Israel: therefore
will I play before the LORD. 22 And I will
yet be more vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight: and of the
maidservants which thou hast spoken of, of them shall I be had in honour.
23 Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul
had no child unto the day of her death.
Michal’s disrespect of God’s anointed king not
only draws a rebuke from David and a curse from God as He left her childless
for her life. She called his removal of his royal clothes and the wearing of
the priest’s ephod uncovering himself which, of course in this context, does
not mean he was naked. David was not only her husband but her king as well and
the man that God had put in power acting as a priest here.
For verse 21 see;
1Samuel 3:14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the
LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him
to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD
commanded thee.
She will raise the children of another but
experience great tragedy in the process. Read all of 2Samuel 21 but note this
particularly;
2Samuel 21:8 But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the
daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the
five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the
son of Barzillai the Meholathite:
As Gill pointed out, the seed of David and
Saul would not be mixed.
No comments:
Post a Comment