CHAPTER 13

¹And David counseled with the commanders of the thousands and of the hundreds, with every officer. ²And David said to all the assembly of Israel, “If it be right to you and if it be from the LORD our God, let us send out widely to our remaining brothers in all the territories of Israel, and together with them, the priests and the Levites in the towns of their pasturelands, that they gather round to us. ³And let us bring round the Ark of our God to us, for we did not seek it out in the days of Saul.” ⁴And all the assembly said to do this, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. ⁵And David assembled all Israel from Shihor in Egypt to Lebo-Hamath to bring the Ark of God from Kiriath-Jearim. ⁶And David went up, and all Israel with him, to Baalah, to Kiriath-Jearim which is in Judah, to bring up from there the Ark of God, the LORD enthroned upon the cherubim, Whose name is called upon it. ⁷And they mounted the Ark of God on a new cart from the house of Abinadab with Uzza and Ahio driving the cart. ⁸And David and all Israel were playing before the LORD with all their might in songs and with lyres and with lutes and on tambourines and on cymbals and with trumpets. ⁹And they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, and Uzza reached out his hand to take hold of the Ark, for the oxen had slipped. ¹⁰And the LORD’S wrath flared up against Uzza, and He struck him down for reaching out with his hand to the Ark, and he died there before God. ¹¹And David was incensed because the LORD had burst out against Uzza. ¹²And David was afraid of the LORD on that day, saying, “How can I bring to me the Ark of God?” ¹³And David did not remove the Ark of the LORD to himself in the city of David, and he had it turned aside to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. ¹⁴And the Ark of God remained in the house of Obed-Edom three months, and the LORD blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that was in it.