January 22
“Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouting, and with sound
of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and
harps…. So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tent that David had
pitched for it: and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God” (1 Chron.
15:28; 16:1).
When the land had been purchased by David, he longed to bring the ark of God there, but
once again he failed the Lord. He wanted to do so by a worldly plan, with worldly means, and
in a worldly way.
In the book of Numbers, the Lord had given His heavenly pattern for the transport of the ark.
No man has any power or authority to change the divine order. God brought David to his
senses and in 1 Chronicles 15, he gathered the Levites to carry up the ark of God to that
same spot purchased from the Jebusite. What a happy day it was for David!
With great joy and gladness they brought up the ark after many years of wondering – “with
instruments of music, psalteries and harps and cymbals sounding by lifting up the voice with
joy”. It was a time of great joy, — with singers singing right from the heart on that day of
gladness and David himself joining in the celebration (verse 27).