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Bringing the Ark Home - The Books of 2 Samuel & 1 Chronicles · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. As the ark of the Lord came
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  Speaker 1: into the city of David, Michael, Saul's daughter, looked through
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  Speaker 1: a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before
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  Speaker 1: the Lord, and she despised him in her heart. 2
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  Speaker 1: Samuel 6.16 Dear God, As the story of David in
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  Speaker 1: 2 Samuel 6 and 1 Chronicles 13.15-17 falls on my ears,
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  Speaker 1: I will pick up where David left off and praise you, God,
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  Speaker 1: whenever I get the chance. I refuse to treat your
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  Speaker 1: presence as common and ordinary. Instead, I will honor each
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  Speaker 1: moment I get to stand in your presence. In my
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  Speaker 1: prayer time, I will make sure that I am uninterrupted
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  Speaker 1: and that you get all of my attention as I
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  Speaker 1: pursue you and your heart, Lord. When I worship, I
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  Speaker 1: am serving all opposing forces' notice, that the presence of
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  Speaker 1: God is with me and before me. Like David, I
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  Speaker 1: will be unashamed to worship and praise you for who
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  Speaker 1: you are and all that you've done. I will not
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  Speaker 1: be like Michael, who was worried more about image than authenticity.
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  Speaker 1: I declare that I will not focus on appearance more
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  Speaker 1: than substance. I will remain a worshiper because the one
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  Speaker 1: I praise has done great things, and is worthy of
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  Speaker 1: it all. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for praying
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  Speaker 1: with me today. Continue listening for an incredible Bible story
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  Speaker 1: brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Bringing the Ark Home In our last story, we met
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  Speaker 2: the mighty men of David. Their character, skill, and devotion
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  Speaker 2: separated them from the rest of the soldiers of Israel,
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  Speaker 2: and David relied on them as he took back Israel
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  Speaker 2: from the Philistines. Now we see David's mission to successfully
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  Speaker 2: carry the Ark of the Covenant back into Israel, which
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  Speaker 2: proves to be a daunting task since the holiness of
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  Speaker 2: God is not to be handled lightly. Inspired by the
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  Speaker 2: book of 2 Samuel.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. In yesterday's story, we heard
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  Speaker 3: about David's mighty men, how they mirrored his own devotion, bravery, courage,
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  Speaker 3: and commitment. These men strengthened David and helped him to
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  Speaker 3: win many victories in the name of the Lord God.
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  Speaker 3: Israel was on a winning streak, defeating Philistines left and right,
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  Speaker 3: but David still knew something needed to be set right.
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  Speaker 3: The Ark of the Covenant was not in Israel where
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  Speaker 3: it belonged. And in today's story, we'll see how David
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  Speaker 3: sets this difficult task of moving the Ark. It is
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  Speaker 3: no simple task or a safe one. The Ark was
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  Speaker 3: representative of God's glory on earth. And as David and
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  Speaker 3: the people will learn, God's holiness is not something to
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  Speaker 3: be approached casually. So, let's listen to today's reading now.
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  Speaker 2: The battle against the Philistines had been won. The dust
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  Speaker 2: of war and strife had begun to settle, and it
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  Speaker 2: was time for the Ark of the Covenant to come
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  Speaker 2: home to the people. David knew this took precision and
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  Speaker 2: a great deal of tact. Many stories had been told
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  Speaker 2: of men and women dying in attempts to handle the Ark,
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  Speaker 2: and David had no intention of losing lives in the
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  Speaker 2: attempt of something holy. David arose early in the morning
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  Speaker 2: with 30,000 hand-picked men. A holy and fierce procession of
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  Speaker 2: warriors was trailed the Ark of the Covenant as priests
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  Speaker 2: began to carry it. Uzzah and Ahio, two of the priests,
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  Speaker 2: carried the cart on an oxen carriage with great trepidation.
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  Speaker 2: David brought out his lyre, and many members of the
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  Speaker 2: group began to play behind them. As the group grew
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  Speaker 2: more comfortable, all the men and women surrounding the Ark
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  Speaker 2: broke out into song. Flutes, harps, lyres, and drums played
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  Speaker 2: into the air. David led the congregation in worship, and
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  Speaker 2: they sung praises to God for his great faithfulness. David
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  Speaker 2: was elated to lead his people in this way. David
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  Speaker 2: would often forget that before he was a warrior or king,
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  Speaker 2: he was a musician and worship leader. His heart was
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  Speaker 2: warmed by the opportunity to lead the people in song.
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  Speaker 2: The celebration continued as Uzzah and Ahio drove the cart
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  Speaker 2: into the city. As they were on their way, a
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  Speaker 2: bump in the road lifted the carriage, and the ark
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  Speaker 2: began to slide off. Uzzah reacted quickly and kept the
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  Speaker 2: ark from crashing to the ground. David stopped playing as
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  Speaker 2: he watched Uzzah holding the ark. Uzzah turned to David
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  Speaker 2: with a grave look in his eye. Before David could
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  Speaker 2: say a word, Uzzah fell to the floor and died.
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  Speaker 2: David rushed to Uzzah. His lifeless body lay in his arms.
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  Speaker 2: David was filled with anger and confusion.' How could the
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  Speaker 2: Lord kill a man trying to save the ark from falling?'
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  Speaker 2: David thought to himself. He looked behind him to see
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  Speaker 2: the people weeping over Uzzah's death. David remained silent, although
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  Speaker 2: his anger towards God ran deep. He did not understand
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  Speaker 2: his ways or why a righteous man would die needlessly.'
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  Speaker 2: David drew a deep breath to calm himself and had
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  Speaker 2: the ark of God brought to a house nearby. He
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  Speaker 2: kept the ark at the home of Obedidim, a Levite
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  Speaker 2: who lived on the outskirts of Israel. There it was
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  Speaker 2: kept safe, and Obed's household became blessed because of the
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  Speaker 2: Lord's presence. David was told of Obed's household and how
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  Speaker 2: the glory of God fell upon them in a new
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  Speaker 2: and exciting way. David's anger subsided, and he gave in
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  Speaker 2: to the confusing nature of God. The Lord had delivered
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  Speaker 2: him time and time again, and he was not about
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  Speaker 2: to question how to handle the holiness of God's presence.
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  Speaker 2: David brought the ark back to Jerusalem, and the entire
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  Speaker 2: city rejoiced in its return. David's joy could not be contained.
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  Speaker 2: He danced and leapt with joy in the courtyard of
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  Speaker 2: his home. David cast off his royal robes and danced
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  Speaker 2: among the people as one of them. David danced without inhibition,
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  Speaker 2: embarrassing his wife, Michal, who watched from the window. How
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  Speaker 2: could a king make such a fool of himself, she thought.
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  Speaker 2: She despised David's immodesty and made it very clear to
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  Speaker 2: him she was displeased. The ark made its way through
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  Speaker 2: the city. David had pitched a tent for the ark
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  Speaker 2: according to the law of Moses. He brought offerings before
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  Speaker 2: the ark and blessed the people in the name of
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  Speaker 2: the Lord. All of Israel— men, women, and children— feasted and
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  Speaker 2: danced in celebration. God's presence had returned. It marked a
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  Speaker 2: new era of peace for the people of Israel. For
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  Speaker 2: so long they had lived under the shadow of Saul.
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  Speaker 2: The darkness in his heart had seeped into the city,
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  Speaker 2: and hopelessness filled the air. But now the Lord's joy
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  Speaker 2: was renewed in their hearts. David looked upon his people
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  Speaker 2: as a shepherd who had just fed his sheep. He
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  Speaker 2: was truly content and blessed to be a part of
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  Speaker 2: what God was doing. The sun began its descent and
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  Speaker 2: the people made their way back into their homes. David,
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  Speaker 2: still humming to the tune of worship songs, opened the
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  Speaker 2: doors of his chambers and began to undress for bed.
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  Speaker 2: David's wife, Michal, was waiting up for him. She sat
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  Speaker 2: in the corner of the room, arms folded and eyes piercing.
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  Speaker 2: David looked at her, confused as to why she looked
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  Speaker 2: so bleak on such a joyous day.' Ah, the mighty
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  Speaker 2: King of Israel,' she said with sarcasm in her voice. Oh,
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  Speaker 2: how he honored himself today, removing his kingly robes and
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  Speaker 2: dancing like a commoner. David looked at his wife, knowing
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  Speaker 2: she was the daughter of Saul, and expected a different
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  Speaker 2: type of king. He gave a slight sigh and said,
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  Speaker 2: For the Lord I will become as undignified as necessary.
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  Speaker 2: I will celebrate even if it makes me despised.
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  Speaker 1: In your eyes.
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  Speaker 2: Michal's words bothered David, yet he would not allow them
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  Speaker 2: to rob him of joy. He was going to be
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  Speaker 2: a different type of king. A king that worshipped. A
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  Speaker 2: king that would kneel down into the muck and mud
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  Speaker 2: to fight alongside his soldiers. A king that would strip
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  Speaker 2: naked before God. A king that would sing loudly, raise
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  Speaker 2: his hands, and humble himself before the one true God.
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  Speaker 3: We open today's story with a defeated enemy. The Philistines
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  Speaker 3: had been driven out, soundly defeated, because God gave David
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  Speaker 3: and his armies many victories. This was no accident. David
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  Speaker 3: consistently sought God and his favor, and God gave him
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  Speaker 3: victory after victory. But David was well aware that the
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  Speaker 3: symbol of God's presence with them, the Ark of the Covenant,
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  Speaker 3: was not where it belonged. It belonged in Israel, but
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  Speaker 3: David knew that moving it would be no simple task.
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  Speaker 3: Mishandling the ark would spell death, as it had been
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  Speaker 3: for men and women in the past who handled the
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  Speaker 3: ark incorrectly. David knew he needed to be careful, but
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  Speaker 3: he also was in a hurry to get the ark
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  Speaker 3: back to Israel. So rather than call on the Levites
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  Speaker 3: to carry the ark on their shoulders using wooden poles
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  Speaker 3: as God commanded, David summoned two priests to carry the
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  Speaker 3: ark on an ox-pulled cart. He also gathered 30,000 warriors
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  Speaker 3: to form a procession to protect the ark on its
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  Speaker 3: journey from the house of Abinadab, whose sons were going
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  Speaker 3: to guide the cart to Israel. David, the former musician,
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  Speaker 3: went with the people, playing the harp and leading the
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  Speaker 3: people in worship. His intentions were pure and his heart
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  Speaker 3: filled with the joy of the Lord. But then, along
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  Speaker 3: the way, the oxen stumbled. Uzzah, who was next to
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  Speaker 3: the cart, pulled out his hand and touched the ark,
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  Speaker 3: afraid it would fall over. But touching God's holy presence
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  Speaker 3: was a clear violation of God's law, and God struck
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  Speaker 3: this man dead immediately. Though his intentions were good, he
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  Speaker 3: had grown too casual around the ark and failed to
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  Speaker 3: show God the reverence that is required. It was a
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  Speaker 3: reminder that God's holiness is serious. But David was angry
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  Speaker 3: and didn't understand why God would do that. So he
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  Speaker 3: left the ark at the home of a Levite. God
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  Speaker 3: blessed that home, and after some time, David resolved again
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  Speaker 3: to take the ark to Israel. This time, the Levites
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  Speaker 3: bore the ark all the way to the city of David. David,
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  Speaker 3: along with all the people, was ecstatic, rejoicing before the Lord.
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  Speaker 3: He threw off his kingly robes and danced without inhibitions.
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  Speaker 3: He wasn't dancing for appearances or for pleasure, but for
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  Speaker 3: his God. His wife Michael saw him, and she was embarrassed.
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  Speaker 3: She chastised him when he got home, but David didn't care.
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  Speaker 3: In 2 Samuel 6, 21, we hear his response. And
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  Speaker 3: David said to Michael, It was before the Lord who
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  Speaker 3: chose me above your father and above all his house
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  Speaker 3: to appoint me as a prince over Israel, the people
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  Speaker 3: of the Lord, and I will celebrate before the Lord.
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  Speaker 3: God deserves our praise and our worship, even when it
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  Speaker 3: is exuberant and enthusiastic. That's what David understood as he
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  Speaker 3: danced without inhibition or fear of embarrassment. He was dancing
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  Speaker 3: before and for Almighty God because the ark was finally
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  Speaker 3: home where it belonged. David was a king who waited
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  Speaker 3: on God and worshiped him without reservation and who led
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  Speaker 3: the people to do the same. This was the king
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  Speaker 3: that God had chosen, the man after God's own heart.
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  Speaker 3: And next time, we'll meet a new prophet who will
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  Speaker 3: help guide this godly king in God's way. Lord, we
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  Speaker 3: truly do worship you with all of our hearts. We
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  Speaker 3: are unashamed to offer you our praise and adoration. Help
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  Speaker 3: us like David always to give our very best to
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  Speaker 3: you with joy and excitement and great love. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Please download the
• 12:36
  Speaker 3: Pray.com app and make Bible study and prayer, a priority
• 12:40
  Speaker 3: in your life. And if you enjoyed this podcast, share
• 12:43
  Speaker 3: it with someone you love. And if you want more
• 12:46
  Speaker 3: resources as to how to live abundantly in Jesus Christ,
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  Speaker 3: be sure to visit jackgram.org. God bless you.