Second Samuel chapter 6 has the perplexing story of Uzzah, who steadied the Ark of the Covenant.
But first, I have to mention the story of Abigail. She is one of my favorite characters in the Bible. David is still running from Saul. He and his travel companions support themselves by defending farms and towns from raiders and thieves. They were guarding the property of Nabal, a wealthy landowner. Normally such landowners would provide food and provisions for those guarding their property, but Nabal rudely refused to help David and his men. David is ready to go to battle against Nabal and his servants, but Abigail, Nabal’s wife, learns of her husband’s behavior and intercedes.
She brings a gift of two hundred loaves, two bottles of wine, five sheep ready dressed, five measures of parched corn, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs and goes out to meet David. She bows before him saying, “Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid” (1 Samuel 25:24). David responds by saying, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand.” (1 Samuel 25:32-33). Nabal gets drunk and when Abigail told him what had happened, the scripture says that “his heart died.” Abigail becomes David’s wife.
Abigail, as a mediator, becomes a type of Christ, who pleads our case before the Father (see D&C 45:3-5). I think it’s interesting that in the Book of Mormon when Jacob gives a sermon on chastity, that he makes reference to David and his wives and says “many hearts died,” referring to the broken hearts of the Nephite wives and children.
Now back to Uzzah.
David brings the Ark of the Covenant back to the city of David. They placed the Ark on a new cart to transport it and Uzzah and Ahio drove the cart. Normally, the Ark was housed in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle. It represented God’s glory and presence. Only the high priest could approach it and only on Yom Kippur after a series of cleansing rituals (see Leviticus 16). As they came to a threshing floor, the oxen shook the cart. Uzzah put forth his hand to steady the Ark, and the scripture states, “God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God” (2 Samuel 6:6-7).
David was upset about this event, and I have to say that upon my first reading of this chapter, I thought it was quite harsh that Uzzah had to die for this. But I think this has to do more with the reality of God’s glory than a punishment. It’s a natural law that if you try to defy gravity and jump off a building, you will fall to the ground. It’s eternal law that one must be glorified, prepared, and authorized to come into the presence of God.
Moses, Abraham, the brother of Jared, and Joseph Smith experienced God’s presence, but they had to be transfigured first. Moses was able to discern between the Lord’s glory and Satan’s lack thereof as he said to Satan, “I could not look upon God, except his glory should come upon me, and I were transfigured before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man. Is it not so, surely?” (Moses 1:14).
Here are a few verses of scripture that demonstrate the effect of God’s presence:
- Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil. (Isaiah 33:14-15)
- And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not. (Leviticus 16:13)
- For a desolating scourge shall go forth among the inhabitants of the earth, and shall continue to be poured out from time to time, if they repent not, until the earth is empty, and the inhabitants thereof are consumed away and utterly destroyed by the brightness of my coming. (D&C 5:19)
- And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last. (Revelation 1:17)
- As soon then as he (Jesus) had said unto them, I am he, they (the chief priests and Pharisees) went backward, and fell to the ground. (John 18:6)
- And so great shall be the glory of his presence that the sun shall hide his face in shame, and the moon shall withhold its light, and the stars shall be hurled from their places. (D&C 133:49)
- But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap. (Malachi 3:2)
- For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence. (Alma 12:14)
- O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One. Remember that his paths are righteous. Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name. (2 Nephi 9:41)
