This passage of Scripture includes two stories that are seemingly opposite in their approach to the Ark of the Covenant and therefore to worship. Let's look at each.
In verses 1-8 we get the strangest of the two stories. In this passage the newly crowned King David decided to make Jerusalem the political and religious capital of the nation of Israel. In the few verses prior King David built his palace, the political center, and in this passage he begins to bring the Ark of the God, the religious center.
So, David puts the Ark on a new cart and wheels it along with great pomp and circumstance. As the Ark went along it began to tip when the oxen pulling it stumbled. Uzzah reached out to take hold of it to keep it from falling and:
"the LORD's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down and he died there beside the Ark of God." (2 Samuel 6:7)
Now, why did God get so mad at Uzzah? Why did the LORD kill a man trying to keep the Ark from falling over?
Well, in Numbers 4:5-15 God detailed a very specific way that the Ark was to be moved. Poles were to be put on it so it would be carried by men, not pulled by oxen, and the sons of Aaron were to move it and no one was to touch it.
God desires to be approached and worship with all due respect. God is to be feared. He is to be revered. Uzzah died because of an irreverent act that David's poor leadership set him up for.
After this situation David ditches the Ark because he's afraid of God's wrath. Later King David finds that the place where the Ark was kept was abundantly blessed, so he went back to get it. This time around King David had the men carry it with the poles. King David ensured that the men feel the full weight of the glory rather than pulling it on a cart. In fact, after six steps King David had them set it down and sacrificed a bull and fattened calf.
King David then led this parade into Jerusalem. David came in dancing with all his might while dressed in less than a normal kingly fashion. David had an exuberant reaction to the presence of God entering his community.
Then King David's wife Michal scolded him for acting less than kingly in her opinion. She gave him a piece of her mind and David replied:
"I will celebrate before the LORD. I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes." 2 Samuel 6:21b-22a
Then God caused Michal to be barren her entire life. If you know anything about the culture of the Old Testament times, you know that this is an extreme punishment. Barrenness was seen as a great curse and many of the miracles in the Bible involve overcoming barrenness, not causing it.
So, in this chapter God was harsh with two people: Uzzah and Michal. God was extremely hard on Uzzah because proper reverence toward Him wasn't being exercised. The LORD was hard on Michal because she was trying to remove David's proper exuberance from the worship of Him.
God desires holy reverence and holy exuberance.
Worship of God mustn't be devoid of fearful reverence and obedience but it also can't be emotionless and He most certainly won't stand for people pouring water on the flames of the holy exuberance of others when done in the proper fashion. God deserves both and we must give both to Him. Do we do do both equally and simultaneously every time? I don't think so, but we must worship Him with both.
Our God is holy, holy, holy and He is the fountain of everlasting joy. Feel the weight of His glory and the excitement of His splendorous love toward us today.
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