When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God. […] David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” He was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. (2 Samuel 6:6, 7, 9, 10 NIV)

I’d be a little nervous, too. Uzzah grabs the ark to keep it from falling on the ground, and The Lord smites him. Later on, David won’t let that thing in his house. Smart guy. He also does a whole song and dance routine to appease the sociopath, which his newest bride, Michal, finds demeaning. “Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.” (2 Samuel 6:23 KJV)

The next day, David tells his prophet, Nathan, that he plans to build a nice house for the ark, since it’s been kept in a tent all this time. Overnight, Nathan has a vision of The Lord telling him to tell David that he’d better not do it. When David hears this, he drones on for twelve verses telling the Lord how wonderful He is, just so he won’t end up like Uzzah.

One parting note: it’s good to be King! See below:

After he left Hebron, David took more concubines and wives in Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him. (2 Samuel 5:13 NIV)

Next: 2 Samuel 8-12.