WHY DID UZZAH HAVE TO DIE? THIS HAS PERPLEXED MANY SOULS AND TEACHES US LESSONS THAT DO NOT DEPEND UPON EMOTIONS BUT COLD HARD FACTS.

INTRODUCTION Many people remember the story of Uzzah who touched the ark of the Covenant and died. Some may have never heard this story. It is found in 2 Samuel 6:1-7 “Now David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. {2} And David arose and went with all the people who were with him to Baale-judah, to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the Name , the very name of the LORD of hosts who is enthroned above the cherubim.

{3} And they placed the ark of God on a new cart that they might bring it from the house of Abinadab which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab were leading the new cart. {4} So they brought it with the ark of God from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Ahio was walking ahead of the ark.{5} Meanwhile, David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the LORD with all kinds of instruments made of fir wood, and with lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.

{6} But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. {7} And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God.

Here is the situation Uzzah was protecting the ark. It was a 400 year old piece of furniture. Had it fallen, it could have been shattered. He was doing something very noble. AND, GOD STILL STRUCK HIM DEAD.

NOW, WE HAVE TO ASK; WAS THIS FAIR? When we listen to false teachers, we are told that our good intentions will get us to heaven. There are many people who feel that the intentions of the heart will be acceptable to God even if their actions do not show it. It does not matter to them if they observe, follow or even know the Law. They believe that God knows the heart of man, and will pardon any faults a person might have. What is the old cliche'? THE ROAD TO HELL IS PAVED WITH GOOD INTENTIONS. The lesson for us to learn is that good intentions will not make up for failing to keep the Laws of God.

Here are the instructions for transporting the ark. Numbers 4:15 (NKJV) "And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is set to go, then the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These are the things in the tabernacle of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry." Exodus 37:5 (NKJV) "And he put the poles into the rings at the sides of the ark, to bear the ark. Numbers 4:6 (NKJV) "Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of blue; and they shall insert its poles."

God had given some strict instructions concerning the objects of the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant. Moses was instructed to carefully observe these rules, and Moses was to relay the rules to the people. All the stories of the Bible have a purpose. Some are difficult to understand why they are there. If we study enough, we will get a better understanding of why they are given to us.

WHY Was this story written? Romans 15:4 (NKJV) "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope." 1 Corinthians 10:11 (NKJV) "Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come." THIS is the real reason Uzzah had to die.

God does not accept sloppiness. In this story, we see sloppiness in the service to God. This revealed a lack of concern for Gods Laws and took away from His honor and His glory. Though Uzzah was the one who died, it was David who was guilty of the transgression. Poor Uzzah was a victim. His good, well intended, actions brought on sudden death. In a way, he was lucky. David had to suffer the pain of the loss, because he realized it was his fault.

This story does not fit with the false teaching of good intentions. Proverbs 16:2 (NKJV) "All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the spirits." Many people have a hard time accepting the fact that they have faults. Most get very defensive when challenged on the job or some other place about their shortcomings. Only the truly humble will accept the fact and do something about it.

Proverbs 16:25 (NKJV) "There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death." People will almost always look at things from a human perspective. Seldom will they view things from a spiritual perspective. What seems right from a human viewpoint is not what God teaches sometimes. Sometimes the rules and instructions from God make no sense at all, or they just don't seem fair.

Proverbs 21:2 (NKJV) "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the hearts." Some people will say: I feel that God is too good to condemn anyone. I feel that as long as my intentions are good, everything will be alright. I can feel, I can think, I can do anything and still go to heaven. It does not matter how you worship God, just so long as you are sincere. As much as we would like it to be this way, the Bible teaches us that it is wrong thinking.

God wants obedience Proverbs 21:3 (NKJV) "To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice." 1 Samuel 15:22 (NKJV) "Then Samuel said: "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams." Micah 6:6-8 (NKJV) "With what shall I come before the LORD, And bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, Ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?" Hosea 6:6 (NKJV) "For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings."

History repeats itself Jeremiah 7:21-26 (NKJV) "Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: "Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat meat. For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices. But this is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you. Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but followed the counsels and the dictates of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward. Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. Yet they did not obey Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers.

Getting back to our story David was extremely upset with God for killing Uzzah. When D avid learned the proper way to transport the ark, he kind of blamed the priests because they should have known better and should have told him so.

1 Chronicles 15:12-15 (NKJV) "He said to them, "You are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites; sanctify yourselves, you and your brethren, that you may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel to the place I have prepared for it. For because you did not do it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him about the proper order. So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel. And the children of the Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders, by its poles, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the LORD."

Lesson to be learned David finally got it right when he had the ark transported the way God had commanded. Good Intentions Do Not Take The Precedence Over God’s Laws We Must Be Reverent We Must Do Things His Way We Must Not Treat any Holy Thing with sloppiness.

What are the holy things of god? His Word/Truth His Church/ Body Of Christ His Saints/ Children/ Servants/ Followers/ Adopted Ones / Christians The Souls of The Lost.

Conclusion Don’t let your sloppiness cause one to lose their soul. Don’t let your laziness be the cause of someone losing their soul. Ignorance is no excuse. Be ready to teach those who teach otherwise about good intentions. Have you been sloppy with God’s things?