Lest We Be Hasty (1 Chron. 12-16)

In the course of a lifetime we will make many hard decisions in following Christ. If I am wise, I have much to consider, much to weigh, before reaching a point of action in any situation. My decisions affect not only myself or my immediate family and friends, but they may also have far-reaching consequences, as I represent Christ. How I bear His name matters. In reaching a major decision, I want to find God’s good, acceptable, and perfect will for my life in all things, but I find that often means I must present my body “as a living and holy sacrifice, which is [my] spiritual service of worship” (Rom. 12:1-2, NASB). This is not a normal human thing to do, as the flesh seeks its own way. Only in Christ can I do this.

David is known for being a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14, Acts 13:22) and after Saul, a king who sought his own will to his own destruction, David’s heart for God was refreshing. He sometimes got ahead of himself in his eagerness, though, as he did in attempting to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. Likewise, we often make hasty decisions in our eagerness to serve God when we do so in an unprepared manner resulting in less than pleasant consequences. 

At the time of the decision to transport the Ark, David was on top of the world. All of his mighty men of war and the armies of Israel and Judah (250,000-plus) had gathered at Hebron in support of David’s kingship, and they had done so with “a perfect heart” (I Chr. 12:38). After years of hiding in caves, fleeing from Saul and his other enemies, escaping death, pretending madness and suffering many other indignities all while knowing he was God’s anointed, the overflow of David’s heart was simply to have the God he had faith in near him. There was no fault in this! This longing for God was the essence of David; yet he sought much counsel from his captains and leaders and all the people of Israel assembled, deciding to bring God near without waiting for God’s pleasure or direction, without obeying God’s directions previously given for the transportation of the ark. Thus a seemingly good thing became a hard lesson in David’s life.

All of the wise counsel in the world doesn’t matter if God is not in it. What David decided was “right in the eyes of all the people” (I Chr. 13:4), and they assembled en-masse to watch the progression of the Ark from the place the Philistines had returned it, Kiriath-jearim, after taking it and learning seven months’ worth of hard lessons. The Philistines safely returned the Ark to the children of Israel on a new cart. Similarly, David had a new cart constructed to move the Ark, yet a man died in the process for trying to stop the Ark from tumbling to the earth when he reaching out and touched it with his hands (13:10). Why the difference? God let the Philistines return the ark to His people without further harm because they realized God’s presence and judgment on them and acted on it (and it fit His plan). David’s decision to bring back the Ark in an unworthy manner incurred God’s wrath because God’s children know what God requires and they understand (or should) God’s holiness, so they are without excuse. 

When David’s decision to return the Ark (and God’s presence) to Israel didn’t go as he’d planned, he became angry. Here all of Israel was lined up cheering his decision to bring God back to Israel, and they all witnessed the utter catastrophe and Uzza’s death. David’s embarrassment and unconfessed anger at God soon turned to fear because he understood both God’s holiness and his sinful state; thus, how could he continue with his plan to “bring the Ark of God home” to himself while he was in such a state (13:12)? Instead of confessing his sin, he allowed his own sin separated him from God’s presence, as he chose to take the the Ark to someone else’s house (13). God did not leave David; David abandoned God temporarily while struggling with the realities of his decision. 

In his anger and confusion, David for a time willingly set God aside and distracted himself by enlarging his own family, taking many more wives at Jerusalem in addition to the ones he already had. In becoming aware of God’s blessing on his kingdom for the sake of Israel, David acted in this seemingly counter-intuitive way, but then the Philistines attacked and David “inquired of God,” finally getting things in the right order. By recognizing God’s holiness, by being unwilling to be out of God’s will, and by seeking His input, David received God’s blessings. The nation was delivered and blessed with victory, not once, but twice against the pesky Philistines, and finally, David transported the Ark of the Covenant to its new home in Jerusalem in an obedient way. God himself helped the Levites who were carrying the Ark (15:26), and as a result, there was much joy in the act. There was an overwhelming outpouring of thanksgiving to the Lord (16:8-36) and worship with a renewal of the commitment to minister before the Ark continually according to the law of the Lord, as He had commanded (16:40). There was joy in the journey when the journey pleased the Lord. 

When we seek to make decisions pleasing to God, the Word of God offers us much wise counsel. We can seek man’s advice, popular opinion, do what pleases us, but in reality the only thing that brings joy is seeking His good pleasure and laying down our lives in obedience and worship, and often that means waiting on Him. Being sure is worth it.