We read about God bringing about the reunion of Israel under King David but under the unfortunate human hands of Recab and Baanah who had decided that Ishbosheth needed to be murdered. They ended up executed but still you wonder what might have been if they had not intervened. Somehow in scripture there is a way in which God's will occurs even if carried out by the hands of humans (whether knowingly or not). There is a part of me that thinks they shouldn't have killed Ishbosheth but then another part where I can see God knowing that His will was done to reunite his people. Sadly later, we read that Judah and Israel separate again and we wonder whether it should have happened another way.
We are then reminded that even after 'success' we must not run headlong into new experiences without staying in check with God. David asks God about conquering the Philistines rather than just going ahead with it.
We then read about the Ark again (remember this represents God's presence) which has been in exile in some far flung corner of Israel. We read again about both its holiness and also its blessing as an object for the Israelites. We can understand David's anger that Uzzah died but we must remember that God is holy and is not to be toyed with. God had told them how to carry the ark and it was on poles carried by priests. The fact that they had used a cart and this resulting in an Ox stumbling should be no surprise. We need to constantly remind ourselves not to treat His presence with contempt otherwise He will simply go somewhere else.
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