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Let me give you a little background on the story.  David has become king, and has just conquered the Philistines.  Now he wants to return the ark to Jerusalem.  The ark was one of the most important religious items in Israel.  It was a wooden box covered with gold, containing the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, a pot of manna, and Aaron’s rod.  It was kept in the inner sanctuary of the tabernacle and was a meeting place between the high priest and God.  But in 1 Samuel 4, it had been stolen by the Philistines.  Now that David has become king, he wants to return the ark to Jerusalem.  We’ll pick up the story in 2 Samuel 6 and read the first 5 verses:

2 Samuel 6:1-5 - David again brought together out of Israel chosen men, thirty thousand in all.  ² He and all his men set out from Baalah of Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the Name, the name of the LORD Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim that are on the ark.  ³ They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart  ⁴ with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it.  ⁵ David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might before the LORD, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, sistrums and cymbals. 

David gathers 30,000 of his men.  You may remember that he had a group of 37 men called David’s mighty men, fierce warriors who fought alongside him.  There was Benaiah, who killed a lion, and Josheb, who killed 800 men at once.  You get the picture.  So here is David and the strongest men in the land, heading out to take back the ark.  And as they head back towards Jerusalem with the ark on a new cart, guided by Uzzah and Ahio, they are celebrating with all their might, dancing and singing and playing instruments. 

Now, we are good, proper New Englanders.  And maybe you’ve never danced and celebrated before the Lord, and you’re weirded out by churches that display exuberant emotion in worship.  But rest assured that there is nothing sacrilegious about that.  David and his men can not contain their joy before the Lord.  But things are about to change drastically.  Let’s keep reading in verse 6: 

⁶ When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled.  ⁷ 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.  ⁸ Then David was angry because the LORD's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah (the Lord has broken out against Uzzah).  ⁹ David was afraid of the LORD that day and said, "How can the ark of the LORD ever come to me?"  ¹⁰ He was not willing to take the ark of the LORD to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it aside to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite.  ¹¹ The ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the LORD blessed him and his entire household.

Wow.  Once again, picture the scene – David and his men dancing and singing and shouting before the Lord with all their might, celebrating that the ark of the covenant is returning to its proper place.  And as they are going, the oxen stumble, and the ark looks like it’s going to fall off into the dirt, and so instinctively Uzzah reaches out to steady it.  And verse 7 tells us that “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.”  Wow.