David left Zadok
the priest and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high
place in Gibeon to present burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of burnt
offering (1 Chronicles
16:39,40).
In approximately
1050 BC the Philistines won a decisive victory over the confederated tribes of
Israel at Shiloh. Though Israel brought the Ark of the Covenant to the battlefield
as its ultimate weapon, it did them no good, and they were soundly thrashed in
a major defeat leaving Israel subservient to Philistia.
Philistine
celebration soon turned to concern and then panic as the power of God turned
against them. They sent the ark back to Israel where it found a resting place
in Kiriath-Jearim.
For over fifty years
the ark remained there in the care of Abinadab’s family. Never during the reign
of Saul did he inquire of the ark. When David conquered Jerusalem, establishing
it as the religious and political center of Israel, he retrieved the ark
placing it in the new tent he had built for it there.
At some point after
the defeat at Shiloh, Moses’ tabernacle was moved to Gibeon, and from today’s
passage it seems that sacrificial worship continued there – business as usual.
One difference: God was not there. The Ark of the Covenant (the symbol of God’s
presence) was housed elsewhere.
How life changing
could worship be that doesn’t require the presence of God?
TODAY’S MEDITATION
When’s the last time you
encountered God’s palpable presence in worship? What was that like?
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