2 Samuel 6:6

UZZAH WAS STRUCK DEAD FOR TOUCHING THE ARK

"And when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. And David was displeased because Jehovah had broken forth upon Uzzah. And he called that place Perez-Uzzah, unto this day. And David was afraid of Jehovah that day; and he said, "How shall the ark of Jehovah come to me"? So David would not remove the ark of Jehovah unto him into the city of David, but David carried it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. And the ark of Jehovah remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And Jehovah blessed Obed-Edom and all his house."

The death of Uzzah here is certified to us in the sacred narrative as an act of God, a punishment of Uzzah for his touching the ark, contrary to God's commandment. It was not merely a sudden heart-attack understood and designated by men as such a judgment. Some have dared to describe this judgment against Uzzah as something far beyond what the trespass justified; but all such complaints ignore the simple lesson that, "None of God's commandments are trivial; and none of them may be violated with impunity." It would be difficult to imagine any smaller "sin" than that of Adam and Eve's eating of the forbidden tree, but from that one little sin, all of the sorrows, wretchedness, bloodshed and misery of all mankind for millenniums of time was the result. Israel needed that lesson to be emphasized in their day, and God emphasized it in the judgment against Uzzah.

"And David was angry because the Lord had broken forth upon Uzzah" (2 Samuel 6:8). It was Keil's opinion that David's burning anger here was not directed against God ... but against the cause of the calamity, which he attributed to himself."[14] We admit such a view could be correct, but to us it appears to be overly apologetic for David. Matthew Henry stated that, "David was angry and out of humor ... David did not now act like himself, like a man after God's own heart."[15]

"Perez-Uzzah" (2 Samuel 6:8). "This means `the breaking forth upon Uzzah', just as Baal-Perazim means `the Lord of breakings forth' (2 Samuel 5:20)."[16] In this last example, Baal is not the Lord who did the breaking forth. It is the Lord's breaking forth against Baal that is meant.

"And the place is called Perez-Uzzah, to this day" (2 Samuel 6:8). "Such expressions as "to this day" might have been added by the original compiler, but more probably by some subsequent scribe. Many such remarks are supposed to have been inserted by Ezra."[17]