May 4th

Today’s passage is from 1st Chronicles 13–16 which repeats the events we read about in 2nd Samuel 5. The added details give us insight as to how David became a man who depended desperately upon the Lord. 

In chapter 13 David was moved to bring the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem; all of Israel was in agreement. However, David did not follow the “rules” of God, as we are made aware by his comments to the Levites in verse 13 of chapter 15, 

“Because you did not carry it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not seek him according to the rule.”

It was because David didn’t follow God’s rules—he didn’t desperately depend on God—that Uzzah was struck dead when he reached out to steady the ark. What seemingly was an righteous act, was an offense to God because they did not give heed to His specific instruction (Numbers 4:15). In response God “broke out” against Uzzah.

The concept of “breaking out against” is an important theme here in these chapters. God broke out against Uzzah so that they named the place of his death Perez-uzza (13:11); the Hebrew word PEREZ means to “breach” or to “burst forth”—to break out. Afterwards, in the valley of Raphaim, David obeyed the Lord and depended desperately upon Him. God then broke out against the Philistines and that place was called Baal-perazim; a derivative of PEREZ meaning “the Lord of breakthroughs.” David learned that when we fall short of God’s commands or His holiness, He breaks out against us—we experience consequences. And when we depend on Him, He bursts forth in our defense for our blessing. 

Take-away: Be encouraged to stay connected to God through prayer, Scripture, and obedience. When you walk closely with Him, you will experience victory from the Lord of breakthroughs in your journey.