The Ark of the covenant represented God’s presence. It was a box made out of fine wood covered with gold with two Cherubim figures on top. In the Ark were several artifacts that were highly significant which represented God’s deliverance. Such items that were in the Ark were the Ten Commandments, which God gave to Moses, Aaron’s rod which budded, and a jar of manna. Anytime God’s people went to war or needed to converse with God they went to the Ark; at least the high priest did. In one occasion the people of Israel went to war against the enemy and lost heavily, so they went back to their tents and decided to take the Ark; they figured with the Ark they would surely win. But, to their surprise the people lost again and the enemy took the Ark away for the people. Now, their symbol of service and hope was gone, the Ark of the Covenant for good. Many years past by that the people were without the Ark they became accustom of dealing with their life issues on their own; God was no longer with them. Until the Ark came back. It was in place whose people did not know how to render honor to it.
2 Samuel 6
6 And when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it. 7 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God.
Now, the Ark of the Covenant; that wooden box, represents Christ who was born in a wooden manager and died in on a wooden cross. The bible calls Christ the hope of glory (Col1:27), that which the people of God had lost. The people of Israel’s focus was on the fixture, on what represented God instead on God himself. Like with the people at Athens in the times of the Apostles when Paul passed by and saw that they had and idol titled “THE UNKNOWN GOD”(Acts17:22-24), as the children of Israel and the Ark. And, when David and the people found the Ark again after many years they had not changed the way they looked at God. Instead of they putting the burden of the Ark on the shoulders of the Levites and priest they put it on animals of which angered God and cause him to kill UZZAH when the Ark was about to fall; priest could not touch any holy thing. They trusted on the symbol of God and not in the God of the symbol. God’s burden is light its not all that hard to carry Jesus said come to me all that are heavy laden and burdened and I will give you rest and take my yoke (Mt.11:28-29). When UZZAH died David became afraid of the Ark and placed it in the land of Obed-edom and God blessed his home powerfully(ps127:1).