Daily Devotional for Wednesday, December 6

The Mistake

“And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God,” 2 Samuel 6:7.

Not all accidents are the same. Not all errors have equal consequences. If you push F6 instead of F4, you get the wrong candy from the machine. If you turn the wrong way at an intersection, you may cause a major accident. And not all errors have moral dimensions, but some most definitely do. Sometimes spilled milk is accidental, sometimes it is purposeful and willful.

Uzzah was not necessarily trying to do wrong in this text. He was trying to help move the ark to the city. He was trying to protect the ark from a fall. But his lack of judgment cost him his life. No human was supposed to touch the ark. The ark represented the very presence of God. It was designed to be situated in the Holy of Holies. It functioned as the earthly throne of God and should not have been treated casually or lightly. It is hard to know how much Uzzah knew or did not know about proper procedures for approaching and carrying the ark. He may not have had a personal copy of the Torah, but he should have been warned. The priests should have cautioned and trained those involved in this good effort, but

no one did. So Uzzah died, struck down by God.

Like the priests of that day, we have a responsibility to train and warn those around us. As parents, we need to train our children about the consequences of following or failing to follow God. Some sins, some errors, have difficult consequences. As neighbors, we need to tell our coworkers and friends about life in Jesus and what happens if we reject Him.

REFLECTION: Failure to communicate spiritual truth can have long-lasting, even eternal consequences. Speak truth and speak life at every opportunity.

Jason Rutherford