Pentecost +7, thoughts going in, Sunday, July 12th 2015

2Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-21: David again brought together all the able young men of Israel--thirty thousand. 2 He and all his men went to Baalah in 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 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 castanets, harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums and cymbals. 12 So David went to bring up the ark of God to the City of David with rejoicing. 13 When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. 14 Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the LORD with all his might, 15 while he and the entire house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets. 16 As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart. 17 They brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the LORD. 18 After he had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD Almighty. 19 Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each person in the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women. And all the people went to their homes. 20 When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, "How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, going around half-naked in full view of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!" 21 David replied to Michal, "I was dancing before the Lord who chose me over your father and his whole family to appoint me ruler over the Lord's people Israel. I will celebrate before the Lord.

            The David Saga, Pt 6. As usual, with a reading this long, there's a LOT going on, but the New Interpreter's Commentary does a pretty good job of summarizing the main points of the story. In the broadest sense, the story is both religious AND political; and the story is about David, the Ark of the Lord, and the house of Saul.

            Thanks to Steven Spielberg, most people have a slight knowledge of the Ark of the Covenant. At the very least they've heard of it. We all know that it's being held in a secret government warehouse. On the other hand, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, even today, claims that the Ark rests in one of their chapels in the small town of Aksum--but no one is allowed to see it. All we really know for sure is that this once important focal point of ancient Israelite religion vanished from the pages of history somewhere around 587 BCE.

            For tribal Israel the ark was the chief symbol of the Lord's presence in their midst. It was a gilded box made of acia wood (Exodus 25:10-22; 37:1-9), with winged cherubim atop its cover, which served as a pedestal for the invisibly enthroned YAHWEH--Israel's covenant God. Within the ark was a golden jar of manna, Aaron's rod, and the tablets of the Law. The ark was the symbol of God's presence among his people, but like all biblical symbols, it was more than that; the symbol was the channel of the reality. As Israel was being formed into a nation, this presence was key; God was the 'Divine Warrior' who fought on their behalf against Israel's enemies.

            The use and resting place of the Ark is, itself, a fascinating study. The people of the Exodus were, of necessity, nomadic; God was leading them somewhere. Hence, the Ark had to be portable. As 1Samuel opens, the people have ceased wandering; they are now residents of the land. The Ark had taken up residence at Shiloh. 1Samuel 4-6 is the fascinating account of how the Ark is taken from Shiloh to the field of battle against the Philistines--in the hopes of securing victory. Unfortunately, just the opposite happens; Israel is defeated and the Philistines capture the Ark. At first the Philistines think they've got something great in their possession, but it soon becomes a curse to them wherever they put it. In one particularly theological passage, the Ark was placed in the temple of their god Dagon, but the statue of Dagon was found prostrate in front of the Ark the next morning; after the statue of Dagon was restored to its place, it was again found prostrate the next morning, and this time its head and hands had also been broken off. Eventually the Philistines have enough of the Ark and send it packing back to Israel. By the time 2Samuel 6 rolls around, it has been in the keeping of an old priest named Abinadab. Several things are thus happening in this story:

1. The transfer of the Ark served to legitimate David's rule. David has been anointed king over Judah and all of Israel. Now the Ark of the Lord would reside in David's city, Jerusalem. In addition, this also gives standing to the town of Jerusalem, which had only just recently been conquered and appropriated by David.

2. The procession of the Ark serves as a public ritual to inaugurate Jerusalem not only as a center of political power, but also as the religious center of the land. In generations to come, the city would house the King's palace AND the Temple of the Lord.

3. The story tells us something about David's personal character. As usual, commentators point out David's ability to shrewdly play the crowd. On the one hand this could be a calculated PR stunt, like the president laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier. On the other hand, David seems capable of pulling these things off with complete genuineness. Whatever political gain David gets from this highly publicized act, it still stems from the fact that he is a man after God's own heart and his religious zeal is genuine.

4.  The House of Saul is clearly being diminished in the story. Michal, the daughter of Saul, has contempt for David's actions. The way the story plays out, however, she is portrayed as more than just a 'nagging wife.' Her words are contrasted with David's zeal for the Lord. She, and all she represents, are presented as antagonistic to the Lord and His anointed. While it isn't included in the Sunday reading, it is noteworthy that the chapter includes the detail that she remains childless--hence, the house of Saul and the house of David are never united by an heir.

Cheers,

T.M.