Bible Strands
2 Samuel 6:13
When those carrying the ark of the LORD had advanced six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records David’s procession as he retrieves the ark from Obed-edom’s house and moves it toward the City of David. The moment occurs mid-transport, precisely when the bearers halt to allow David to offer sacrifices.
The words — The verb צָעֲדוּ (tza.'a.Du) translates "they had stepped," marking the exact interval before the offering. The noun נֹשְׂאֵי (no.se.'Ei) identifies the specific bearers carrying the ark of Yahweh.
The thread — This halting practice mirrors the Levitical handling instructions in Numbers 4:15 and the dedication sacrifices recorded in 1 Kings 8:5. The carrying method itself aligns with the pole-and-shoulder mandate detailed in 1 Chronicles 15:15.
Why it lands — The text states that proximity to the ark triggers immediate sacrifice rather than continued movement. It requires readers to treat holy presence with measured obedience, halting routine to prioritize prescribed worship before proceeding.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And it was so, that when they that bare the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 8:5 There, before the ark, King Solomon and the whole congregation of Israel who had assembled with him sacrificed so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered.
- 1 Chronicles 15:15 And the Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles, as Moses had commanded in accordance with the word of the LORD.
- Numbers 4:15 When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting.
- Numbers 7:9 But he did not give any to the Kohathites, since they were to carry on their shoulders the holy objects for which they were responsible.
- Joshua 3:3 and commanded the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, you are to set out from your positions and follow it.
- 1 Chronicles 15:2 Then David said, “No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the LORD has chosen them to carry the ark of the LORD and to minister before Him forever.”
- 1 Chronicles 15:25 So David, the elders of Israel, and the commanders of thousands went with rejoicing to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the house of Obed-edom.
- 2 Chronicles 5:6 There, before the ark, King Solomon and the whole congregation of Israel who had assembled with him sacrificed so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered.