Then David summoned the priests Zadok and Abiathar, and the Levites Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab, and said to them, “You are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites. Consecrate yourselves, you and your brothers, so that you may bring up the ark of the LORD, the God of Israel, to the place that I have prepared for it. Because you did not carry it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not seek him according to the rule.” So the priests and the Levites consecrated themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD, the God of Israel. And the Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the LORD.
(1 Chronicles 15:11-15)

Insert Pondering Emoji Here

As the Ark was being brought back to Israel, the oxen stumbled. Uzzah, trying to keep the Ark steady with his hand, was killed instantly for touching it. The mistake was not in David’s desire to move the Ark, but in the method used to return it. David either ignored or was unaware of the specific instructions in God’s law about how to move the Ark. It’s obvious he learned his mistake and was working on correcting it. This incident was a divine object lesson to all of Israel that God governed the king and not the other way around. If David had been allowed to handle the Ark of God as he wanted, what would that have said to the people about their faith?

David learned an important lesson: When God gives specific instructions; it would be wise to follow them to the letter. The second time around David saw to it that the Levites carried the Ark, based on the instructions recorded in Numbers 4:5-15.

Now we may not always fully understand the reasons behind God’s instructions, but we do know that His wisdom is complete and his judgment unfailing. The way to know God’s instructions is to know his Word. But just like children don’t understand the reasons for every one of their parents’ instructions until they are older, we don’t understand all of God’s reasons in this life. So it’s far better to obey God first, and then discover His reasons. We are never free to disobey God just because we don’t understand.

Remember, we walk by faith and not by sight.