⁵ So David gathered all Israel from the Shihor River near Egypt to the border of Hamath in order to bring God’s ark from Kiriath Jearim.

⁶ David and all Israel went to Baalah in Kiriath Jearim, which is in Judah, to bring God’s ark ⌞to Jerusalem⌟. (The Lord is enthroned over the angels ^[a] ⌞on the ark⌟ where his name is used.) ⁷ David and his men put God’s ark on a new cart from Abinadab’s home. Uzzah and Ahio guided the cart. ⁸ David and all Israel were celebrating in God’s presence with all their might, with songs, with lyres, harps, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets.

⁹ But when they came to Chidon’s threshing floor,^[b] the oxen stumbled. So Uzzah reached out to grab the ark. ¹⁰ The Lord became angry with Uzzah and killed him for reaching for the ark. He died in God’s presence.

¹¹ David was angry because the Lord had struck Uzzah so violently. (That place is still called Perez Uzzah [The Striking of Uzzah] today.) ¹² David was afraid of God that day. “How can I bring God’s ark to my ⌞city⌟?” he asked. ¹³ So he didn’t bring God’s ark to his ⌞home⌟, the City of David. Instead, he rerouted it to the home of Obed Edom, who was from Gath. ¹⁴ God’s ark stayed at the home of Obed Edom with his family for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed Edom’s family and everything he owned.

²⁵ So David, the leaders of Israel, and the army’s commanders joyfully went to get the ark of the Lord’s promise from Obed Edom’s house. ²⁶ Because God helped the Levites who carried the ark of the Lord’s promise, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams. ²⁷ David was dressed in a fine linen robe, as were all the Levites who carried the ark, the ⌞Levites who were⌟ singers, and Chenaniah, the leader of the musicians’ prophetic songs. David also wore a linen ephod.^[a]

²⁸ All Israel brought the ark of the Lord’s promise with shouts of joy and the sounding of rams’ horns, trumpets, cymbals, harps, and lyres. ²⁹ When the ark of the Lord’s promise came to the City of David, Saul’s daughter Michal looked out of a window and saw King David dancing and celebrating, so she despised him.

16 The men carrying the ark set it inside the tent David had put up for it. They presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in God’s presence. ² When David had finished sacrificing burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. ³ He also distributed to every person in Israel—both men and women—a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

⁴³ Then all the people went home. David went back to bless his family.