2 Samuel 6:4
ESV
with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark.
NIV
with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it.
NASB
So they brought it with the ark of God from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Ahio was walking ahead of the ark.
CSB
and brought it with the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on the hill. Ahio walked in front of the ark.
NLT
that carried the Ark of God. Ahio walked in front of the Ark.
KJV
And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab which was at Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God: and Ahio went before the ark.
NKJV
And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill, accompanying the ark of God; and Ahio went before the ark.
What does 2 Samuel 6:4 mean?
When the Israelites came to the Promised Land, God commanded them to set up the tabernacle in Shiloh. The tabernacle housed the ark of the covenant and the altar (Joshua 18:1). At that time, judges ruled the land, and the nation remained a loose group of divided tribes.When Samuel was young, Eli's sons took the ark into battle, and the Philistines captured it (1 Samuel 4:11). Archaeological evidence suggests the Philistines destroyed Shiloh during this period. God struck the Philistines with tumors and infestations of rats, so they sent the ark back on a cart pulled by cows (1 Samuel 6:1–18). It arrived at Beth-shemesh, where some men improperly handled it, and God killed them (1 Samuel 6:18–20). The people of Beth-shemesh then brought the ark to Kiriath-jearim, also called Baale-judah, where it stayed for twenty years in the home of Abinadab (1 Samuel 7:1–2; 1 Chronicles 13:6).
During his reign, Saul may have kept the ark near him to take into battle (1 Samuel 14:18). Eventually, it returned to Abinadab's house, where his sons Uzzah and Ahio cared for it (2 Samuel 6:3). Meanwhile, the tabernacle moved from Shiloh to Nob, and later to Gibeon (1 Samuel 21:1–6; 1 Chronicles 16:39–40).
After establishing Jerusalem as his capital, David decides to bring the ark there. He places it on a new cart pulled by oxen, with Ahio guiding the cart and Uzzah walking beside it. They have completely ignored God's command that the ark I to be carried only using poles, and only by Levites (Exodus 25:12–14; Deuteronomy 10:8). When the oxen stumble and Uzzah reaches out to steady the ark, God strikes him dead for disobedience (2 Samuel 6:1–7).
