Finishing the Move: 2 Samuel 6:12-15
As a prelude to this post, I acknowledge taking an unpopular path with respect to this passage. I understand there are plenty of solid theological thoughts running contrary to my words here. This passage evokes great debate.
In moments of success, it is easy to see our focus slip away from God’s will. We think about our success. We think about our gains. We think about how our decisions cannot fail. We forgot it is God, not ourselves, who brought us here.
The ark rests at the threshing floor of Obed-edom. The Lord blesses Obed-edom’s house because of the presence of the ark. The story now takes a turn for the worse.
David sees the blessing of Obed-edom’s house and immediately makes plans to bring the ark to Jerusalem. This is not the action of a person pursuing God’s will. This is the act of an impulsive man trying to secure God’s favor. We are again not told David inquired of the Lord. Instead, David hears God’s blessing upon Obed-edom and immediately uses his kingly power to pluck the ark from him.
A sacrifice is made after the ark travels six steps. In Biblical symbolism, six is the number used for weakness, human sinfulness, and incompletion. The number six is chosen because it is one whole number shy of God’s number for completion, which is seven. Thus, it is possible the sacrifice was offered on the sixth step because the ark’s journey was incomplete. It is also possible the sacrifice is offered on the sixth step to symbolize how moving the ark was an act of human desire and not an act of the Lord.
At this point, David strips down to a linen garment, which is the garment the priests wore. David was not a priest, and he was moving the ark on his own impetus. David’s actions demonstrate the swelling of his own pride while his humbleness before the Lord takes a back seat to his growing pride.
Then, David dances. Many point to David’s dance before the Lord as the dance of a person humbled and unashamed. Keep in mind this story of David dancing is sandwiched between stories of David’s impulsiveness. David moved the ark, Uzzah died, and then he abuses his power to rip God’s blessing away from a random man in his kingdom. In the next chapter, David plans to build God’s temple until God shuts him down hard. These stories are not emphasizing David’s good decisions!
These stories illustrate David making impulsive decisions with him as the focus. This portion of David’s story demonstrates a king enthralled with newfound success. David works the crowd, plays up the hype, and creates an image. This story is not about the greatness of God or the humbleness of David. This story is about David promoting his own greatness.
Success is a double-edged sword. It feels great to be on top of the world and think of oneself as invincible. When we feel our strongest, though, we are also at our weakest. When we are on top of the world, we are highly susceptible to sin. In moments of success, it is easy to see our focus slip away from God’s will.
