ANGER MAKES ME ANGRY

There are certain stories in the Bible that I have a difficult time fully comprehending. I came across one of those stories last week.

The story is found in II Samuel 6:6-11. A gentleman by the name of Uzzah is struck down dead by God, for being disobedient. God's commands demand full obedience and Uzzah, despite his intentions, fell short. All in all, it seems to be pretty harsh punishment for such an offense. Or was it? The Bible tells us that Uzzah (which means strength) was transporting God's Ark of the Covenant to a certain location selected by King David. Upon arrival at a certain location, Uzzah sees the oxen stumble and fearing the ark will fall, he reaches out to steady the ark and is killed immediately. Why? Here's some potential reasons...

1. He wasn't supposed to touch ark I Chron. 13:10
2. He shouldn't have been transporting it on a cart, instead should have been carrying on shoulders.
3. He wasn't a Levite?
4. There may have been other "stuff" going on in his life, that God wasn't pleased with?

King David would have some responsibility in numbers 2 and 3, but yet he survived Uzzah indiscretion. Even though David was disobedient, why did God spare him? Is this why David was angry?

What about Uzzah's heart? On the outside, he seems to look good. His intentions seem good and pure, but maybe his heart wasn't right. Only God knows.
From the story, I know that God is angry - mucho angry. I also know from His Word that God is just. It also seems so predictable that man (in this case, King David) will react with anger toward God when confronted with God's anger! Is that our default mode or what?

Bottomline: Obedience to God's commands are non-negotiable. It is pretentious for me to argue with I AM, when I know I am not.

DOM