2Samuel 6

 

וַיֹּסֶף עוֹד דָּוִד אֶת־כָּל־בָּחוּר בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל שְׁלֹשִׁים אָלֶף׃   6:1

2Sam. 6:1   And David again gathered together all the chosen men in Israel, thirty thousand.

וַיָּקָם וַיֵּלֶךְ דָּוִד וְכָל־הָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ מִבַּעֲלֵי יְהוּדָה לְהַעֲלוֹת מִשָּׁם אֵת אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים אֲשֶׁר־נִקְרָא   6:2 שֵׁם שֵׁם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת יֹשֵׁב הַכְּרֻבִים עָלָיו׃

2Sam. 6:2   And David rose and went with all the people who were with him, from Baale-Judah, bringing up from there the ark of God, which is called the Name.  The name of the Lord of hosts inhabited the cherubim on it.

The scribe’s statement about the name of the Lord inhabiting the cherubim is different from what we find in Exod. 25:22 and Numb. 7:89.  Does this mean that the mystique surrounding the cherubim changed in the time between the recording of those two chapters and this one?  Or does it mean that the scribe was again careless?  Or was this just another way of saying that the Lord spoke from between the cherubim, but only to Moses?  After all, another meaning for the word name is reputation.  Could the scribe have meant that the reputation of the Lord resided with the cherubim?  Certainly a possibility!

וַיַּרְכִּבוּ אֶת־אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים אֶל־עֲגָלָה חֲדָשָׁה וַיִּשָּׂאֻהוּ מִבֵּית אֲבִינָדָב אֲשֶׁר בַּגִּבְעָה וְעֻזָּא וְאַחְיוֹ בְּנֵי   6:3 אֲבִינָדָב נֹהֲגִים אֶת־הָעֲגָלָה חֲדָשָׁה׃

2Sam. 6:3   And they attached the ark of God to a new cart and raised it up from the house of Abinadab, which was on a hill, and sons of Abinadab, Uzza and Acheio, were driving the new cart.

וַיִּשָּׂאֻהוּ מִבֵּית אֲבִינָדָב אֲשֶׁר בַּגִּבְעָה עִם אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים וְאַחְיוֹ הֹלֵךְ לִפְנֵי הָאָרוֹן׃   6:4

2Sam. 6:4   And they brought it out from the house of Abinadab, which was on a hill, with the ark of God, and Acheio went before the ark.

A question!  Did Acheio drive the cart along with Uzza, as stated in v. 6:3, or did he walk before the cart, as stated in this verse?  Perhaps the change was indicated by the scribe in anticipation of what was to happen next (see v 6:6).  So was Uzza now driving the cart by himself?

וְדָוִד וְכָל־בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל מְשַׂחֲקִים לִפְנֵי יְהוָה בְּכֹל עֲצֵי בְרוֹשִׁים וּבְכִנֹּרוֹת וּבִנְבָלִים וּבְתֻפִּים   6:5

  וּבִמְנַעַנְעִים וּבְצֶלְצֶלִים׃

2Sam. 6:5   And David and all the house of Israel were rejoicing before the Lord with all manner of instruments of wood and with harps and with psalteries and with timbrels and with sistra and with cymbals.

וַיָּבֹאוּ עַד־גֹּרֶן נָכוֹן וַיִּשְׁלַח עֻזָּא אֶל־אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים וַיֹּאחֶז בּוֹ כִּי שָׁמְטוּ הַבָּקָר׃  6:6

2Sam. 6:6   When they had come as far as the threshing floor of Nacon, then Uzza stretched forth to the ark of God and took hold on it, for the oxen had stumbled.

וַיִּחַר־אַף יְהוָה בְּעֻזָּה וַיַּכֵּהוּ שָׁם הָאֱלֹהִים עַל־הַשַּׁל וַיָּמָת שָׁם עִם אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים׃   6:7

2Sam. 6:7   And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah and God smote him there because of the error, and he died there by the ark of God.                              [Return to 1Chr. 13:9]

In this verse and the next, and perhaps one more time in 1Chronicles, the name of Uzza is spelled with a heh at the end instead of with an aleph.  This is not considered to be an error, as names are occasionally found with variant spellings.

וַיִּחַר לְדָוִד עַל אֲשֶׁר פָּרַץ יְהוָה פֶּרֶץ בְּעֻזָּה וַיִּקְרָא לַמָּקוֹם הַהוּא פֶּרֶץ עֻזָּה עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה׃   6:8

2Sam. 6:8   And it was shocking to David for the reason that the Lord had burst forth on Uzzah.  So the name has been given to that place of Perez-uzzah until this day.

The name Perez-uzzah can mean Breach of Uzzah or Outburst of Uzzah, referring either to his demise or his act for which he was killed.

These verses, 6:3 to 6:7, raise an interesting and intriguing question.  Who were the they in v. 6:3 who set the ark on the cart?  Had David brought priests with him?

וַיִּרָא דָוִד אֶת־יְהוָה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וַיֹּאמֶר אֵיךְ יָבוֹא אֵלַי אֲרוֹן יְהוָה׃   6:9

2Sam. 6:9   And David feared the Lord on that day and he thought, “How can the ark of the Lord be brought to me?”

וְלֹא־אָבָה דָוִד לְהָסִיר אֵלָיו אֶת־אֲרוֹן יְהוָה עַל־עִיר דָּוִד וַיַּטֵּהוּ דָוִד בֵּית עֹבֵד־אֱדוֹם הַגִּתִּי׃   6:10

2Sam. 6:10   So David was not willing to remove the ark of the Lord to him to the city of David, and carried it aside to the house of Obed-edom, the Gittite.

Obed-edom is said to have been a Levite, assumed born in the Levitical city of Gath-rimmon.

וַיֵּשֶׁב אֲרוֹן יְהוָה בֵּית עֹבֵד אֱדֹם הַגִּתִּי שְׁלֹשָׁה חֳדָשִׁים וַיְבָרֶךְ יְהוָה אֶת־עֹבֵד אֱדֹם וְאֶת־כָּל־בֵּיתוֹ׃   6:11

2Sam. 6:11   And the ark of the Lord remained at the house of Obed-edom, the Gittite, three months while the Lord blessed Obed-edom and his whole house.

וַיֻּגַּד לַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד לֵאמֹר בֵּרַךְ יְהוָה אֶת־בֵּית עֹבֵד אֱדֹם וְאֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁר־לוֹ בַּעֲבוּר אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים וַיֵּלֶךְ   6:12 דָּוִד וַיַּעַל אֶת־אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים מִבֵּית עֹבֵד אֱדֹם עִיר דָּוִד בְּשִׂמְחָה׃

2Sam. 6:12  And it was told to king David saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that is his because of the ark of God.  So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the city of David with joy.

וַיְהִי כִּי צָעֲדוּ נֹשְׂאֵי אֲרוֹן־יְהוָה שִׁשָּׁה צְעָדִים וַיִּזְבַּח שׁוֹר וּמְרִיא׃   6:13

2Sam. 6:13   And it was when the bearers of the ark of the Lord had stepped six paces that he sacrificed an ox and a fatling.

וְדָוִד מְכַרְכֵּר בְּכָל־עֹז לִפְנֵי יְהוָה וְדָוִד חָגוּר אֵפוֹד בָּד׃   6:14

2Sam. 6:14   And David was dancing with full strength before the Lord and David was wearing an Ephod of linen.

וְדָוִד וְכָל־בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל מַעֲלִים אֶת־אֲרוֹן יְהוָה בִּתְרוּעָה וּבְקוֹל שׁוֹפָר׃   6:15

2Sam. 6:15   And David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and with sounds of the horn.

וְהָיָה אֲרוֹן יְהוָה בָּא עִיר דָּוִד וּמִיכַל בַּת־שָׁאוּל נִשְׁקְפָה בְּעַד הַחַלּוֹן וַתֵּרֶא אֶת־הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד מְפַזֵּז   6:16 וּמְכַרְכֵּר לִפְנֵי יְהוָה וַתִּבֶז לוֹ בְּלִבָּהּ׃

2Sam. 6:16   As the ark of the Lord was coming in to the city of David, then Michal, daughter of Saul, was looking through the window and she saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord and she had disdain for him in her heart.

וַיָּבִאוּ אֶת־אֲרוֹן יְהוָה וַיַּצִּגוּ אֹתוֹ בִּמְקוֹמוֹ בְּתוֹךְ הָאֹהֶל אֲשֶׁר נָטָה־לוֹ דָּוִד וַיַּעַל דָּוִד עֹלוֹת לִפְנֵי   6:17 יְהוָה וּשְׁלָמִים׃

2Sam. 6:17   And they brought the ark of the Lord and set it on its place in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it.  Then David offered burnt offerings before the Lord, and peace offerings.

                                                                                                      [Return to 1Kin. 1:39]

This is rather strange.  First a question:  Did David or a priest look into the ark to see what had survived, if anything, in it during its wandering?  And, more importantly, David seems to be in violation of many verses in Exodus and  Leviticus.  The ark was supposed to be in the Tabernacle, not in a tent pitched by David.  Moreover, David had lay people handling the ark -- strictly forbidden!  There’s more -- see the next two verses.

וַיְכַל דָּוִד מֵהַעֲלוֹת הָעוֹלָה וְהַשְּׁלָמִים וַיְבָרֶךְ אֶת־הָעָם בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת׃   6:18

2Sam. 6:18   When David finished from the burnt offerings that he was offering, and the peace offerings, then he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts.

Here’s more:  Where were the sacrifices burned?  On an altar?  Who built that altar and where was it?  Was the altar consecrated (by sprinkling of the blood of the sacrifice on it)?  In addition, sacrifices away from the Tabernacle were strictly forbidden.

וַיְחַלֵּק לְכָל־הָעָם לְכָל־הֲמוֹן יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמֵאִישׁ וְעַד־אִשָּׁה לְאִישׁ חַלַּת לֶחֶם אַחַת וְאֶשְׁפָּר אֶחָד   6:19 וַאֲשִׁישָׁה אֶחָת וַיֵּלֶךְ כָּל־הָעָם אִישׁ לְבֵיתוֹ׃

2Sam. 6:19   And he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, to both men and women, to each one loaf of bread and one portion of meat and one sweet cake, and the entire people left each to his house.

Finally, the sacrificial meat from the peace offerings were only for the priests, Levites, and each person who offered the sacrifice, no one else.                                                           [Return to 1Chr. 16:1]

וַיָּשָׁב דָּוִד לְבָרֵךְ אֶת־בֵּיתוֹ וַתֵּצֵא מִיכַל בַּת־שָׁאוּל לִקְרַאת דָּוִד וַתֹּאמֶר מַה־נִּכְבַּד הַיּוֹם מֶלֶךְ   6:20

  יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר נִגְלָה הַיּוֹם לְעֵינֵי אַמְהוֹת עֲבָדָיו כְּהִגָּלוֹת נִגְלוֹת אַחַד הָרֵקִים׃

2Sam. 6:20   When David returned to bless his household, then Michal, daughter of Saul, came out to meet David and she said, “How did the king of Israel bring honor today, who became exposed today to the eyes of the handmaids of his servants like the shameless uncovering of one of the vain fellows?”

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל־מִיכַל לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר בָּחַר־בִּי מֵאָבִיךְ וּמִכָּל־בֵּיתוֹ לְצַוֺּת אֹתִי נָגִיד עַל־עַם יְהוָה   6:21 עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְשִׂחַקְתִּי לִפְנֵי יְהוָה׃

2Sam. 6:21   And David said to Michal, “Before the Lord, Who preferred me more than your father and more than all his house, appointing me prince over the people of the Lord, over Israel!  And I may rejoice before the Lord!”

וּנְקַלֹּתִי עוֹד מִזֹּאת וְהָיִיתִי שָׁפָל בְּעֵינָי וְעִם־הָאֲמָהוֹת אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְתְּ עִמָּם אִכָּבֵדָה׃   6:22

2Sam. 6:22   “And I can be more base than this yet when I am base in my own eyes and with the handmaids of whom you have spoken.  With them I will get honor.”

וּלְמִיכַל בַּת־שָׁאוּל לֹא־הָיָה לָהּ יָלֶד עַד יוֹם מוֹתָהּ׃   6:23

2Sam. 6:23   As for Michal, daughter of Saul, there was not a child born to her until the day of her death.                                                                                                           [Return to 2Sam. 21:8]

Is this last verse intended to indicate that David ignored Michal from that time forward?

 

[Return to 2Samuel Chapters]    [Prev.:  2Sam. 5]    [Next:  2Sam. 7]