Ordinary Time Week 7

Psalm: Psalm 24 or Psalm 85:8-13
Old Testament: 2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19
  or Amos 7:7-15
Gospel: Mark 6:14-29
Epistle: Ephesians 1:3-14

Ordinary Time continues this week and I want to explore the Ark of the Covenant since that is what our reading from 2 Samuel refers to. Perhaps you are familiar with Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark or the numerous documentaries and specials on TV that typically play around Easter or Christmas. I think the Ark still holds the imagination of people. 2 Samuel 6 relates how the Ark was moved from its resting place in a small Israelite village to a tent in Jerusalem.

The Ark was created in during the time of the Exodus at the base of Mt. Sinai and in it was placed the Tablets containing the Law, the staff of Aaron, and some Manna. Instructions were given in Exodus 25:12-15 as to how the Ark was to be moved around. There were gold rings on its corners into which wood poles would be placed and the Ark was to be carried by those poles. This is important to our story in 2 Sam. 6. The Ark, and the Tabernacle in which it was supposed to rest, represented the physical place where the Lord was present on earth. On top of the Ark was the mercy seat, which was where the Lord was said to reside.

To continue the story of the Ark, it was used during the conquest of the Promised Land, prominently at the crossing of the Jordan River and the fall of Jericho for example. It was briefly captured by the Philistines, but brought them disease so they returned it back to the Israelites. And that is where our story leaves us today. David decides to bring the Ark to his new capital city of Jerusalem and essentially solidify it as the political and religious capital of his kingdom. But when the movers are transporting the Ark, they place it on a new cart instead of carrying it the prescribed way with poles. I don't know if this this is significant, but it seems so considering how important it was to follow the Law and rules laid out by the Lord. Either way, the Ark almost falls and one of the movers reaches out to steady it and is stuck down by the Lord. It was being carried the wrong way and as a consequence it almost falls, so this led the man to reach out and touch the Ark when the Lord had commanded that it not be touched. (Numbers 4:15) It may seem harsh, but it reminds me at the very least that God was serious when he laid out his commands to his people. The Lord was so serious about Covenant faithfulness that he sent almost the whole nation into exile and captivity because of their lack of faithfulness. So perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that this man, Uzzah was his name, was struck dead for disobedience.

Ultimately, three months later David is successful in bring in the Ark to Jerusalem. It was bringing blessing to the house where it resided so David was willing to try again and maybe receive the same blessings. This time However, David followed the commands and used "bearers" the NASB says, instead of loading the Ark on a cart. The Ark is then placed inside the Temple when Solomon builds it and then presumably it is captured/destroyed in 587 BC when the Babylonians capture Jerusalem. The Ark at this point is essentially lost to history despite what Indiana Jones or the Discover Channel might say. I think it is significant that there is no Ark when the people return to Jerusalem after the exile. It appears that its significance waned in 2nd Temple Judaism. There are a few mentions of it in 2nd Maccabees, 1 Esdras, and in some Rabbinic literature that it was either captured or hidden, but they don't seem to make many theological claims about its significance. Granted I am no expert here, but that is what I am digging up.

There are two more mentions of the Ark I want do bring up. The first is found in Jeremiah 3:16. Jeremiah envisions that during the Messianic Age there will no longer be an Arc of the Covenant and the people won't even remember it. It will be unnecessary. The second mention comes in Rev. 11:19 where the Ark appears in the heavenly temple in John's vision. I am not even going to attempt to figure out what John was meaning, but on the surface maybe he was just saying the heavenly temple matches the earthly one. It is probably deeper than that, but trying to figure that out would open up a whole new discussion. I only mention it to show where the Ark shows up again in the New Testament because references to the Ark in the New Testament are limited to 1 reference in Hebrews and this one in Revelation.

So what the heck does this all mean and why does it matter? First, I enjoyed reading about the Ark of the Covenant today. Some of this was new information for me. So this is just some basic information that concerns Jewish and Christian history. Second, it reminds me that Christianity doesn't involve esoteric or secret knowledge, practices, or relics. We don't need the Ark, because in Christ we have the Spirit of God living in us. We each are living temples and God's presence resides in us! God's presence is no longer limited to the Jerusalem Temple and the mercy seat of the Ark, which it never truly was to begin with. Thanks be to God for the work of Christ and his presence in the Spirit. We don't have to rely on a Temple, an Ark, or even Jewish heritage be in God's presence and be a part of the family of God.

Grace and Peace.