Παραλειπομένων Αʹ 13

1 καὶ ἐβουλεύσατο Δαυιδ μετὰ τῶν χιλιάρχων καὶ τῶν ἑκατοντάρχων παντὶ ἡγουμένῳ

[One day] David talked with all his army officers. Some of them were commanders of 100 soldiers and some were commanders of 1,000 soldiers.

2 καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ τῇ πάσῃ ἐκκλησίᾳ Ισραηλ εἰ ἐφ’ ὑμῖν ἀγαθὸν καὶ παρὰ κυρίου θεοῦ ἡμῶν εὐοδωθῇ ἀποστείλωμεν πρὸς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ἡμῶν τοὺς ὑπολελειμμένους ἐν πάσῃ γῇ Ισραηλ καὶ μετ’ αὐτῶν οἱ ἱερεῖς οἱ Λευῖται ἐν πόλεσιν κατασχέσεως αὐτῶν καὶ συναχθήσονται πρὸς ἡμᾶς

Then he summoned the other Israeli leaders and said to all of them, “If it seems to you to be a good thing for us to do, and if it is what Yahweh our God wants, let’s send a message to our fellow Israelis in all the areas of our country, including the priests and [other] descendants of Levi who are living among them in their towns and in the nearby pasturelands, to come and join us,

3 καὶ μετενέγκωμεν τὴν κιβωτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὅτι οὐκ ἐζήτησαν αὐτὴν ἀφ’ ἡμερῶν Σαουλ

because we want to bring the Sacred Chest of our God back to us. While Saul [was the king], we did not go to God’s presence to ask him what we should do.”

4 καὶ εἶπεν πᾶσα ἡ ἐκκλησία τοῦ ποιῆσαι οὕτως ὅτι εὐθὴς ὁ λόγος ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ

All the people agreed with David, because they all thought that it was the right thing to do.

5 καὶ ἐξεκκλησίασεν Δαυιδ τὸν πάντα Ισραηλ ἀπὸ ὁρίων Αἰγύπτου καὶ ἕως εἰσόδου Ημαθ τοῦ εἰσενέγκαι τὴν κιβωτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκ πόλεως Ιαριμ

So David gathered all the Israeli people, from the Shihor [River] in Egypt to Lebo-Hamath [town in the north, and told them that he wanted them] to [help] bring the Sacred Chest of God [back to Jerusalem] from Kiriath-Jearim [city].

6 καὶ ἀνήγαγεν αὐτὴν Δαυιδ καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ ἀνέβη εἰς πόλιν Δαυιδ ἣ ἦν τοῦ Ιουδα τοῦ ἀναγαγεῖν ἐκεῖθεν τὴν κιβωτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ κυρίου καθημένου ἐπὶ χερουβιν οὗ ἐπεκλήθη ὄνομα αὐτοῦ

David went with all the Israeli people to Baalah [town], which is [another name for] Kiriath-Jearim, to get the Sacred Chest. [The people believed that] God ruled from between the statues of winged creatures that was above the lid of the Sacred Chest [MTY].

7 καὶ ἐπέθηκαν τὴν κιβωτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπὶ ἅμαξαν καινὴν ἐξ οἴκου Αμιναδαβ καὶ Οζα καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ ἦγον τὴν ἅμαξαν

The people put the Sacred Chest on a new cart and transported it from Abinadab’s house. Uzzah and Ahio were guiding [the oxen that were pulling the cart].

8 καὶ Δαυιδ καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ παίζοντες ἐναντίον τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν πάσῃ δυνάμει καὶ ἐν ψαλτῳδοῖς καὶ ἐν κινύραις καὶ ἐν νάβλαις ἐν τυμπάνοις καὶ ἐν κυμβάλοις καὶ ἐν σάλπιγξιν

David and all the Israeli people were celebrating in God’s presence with all their strength. They were singing and [playing] lyres, harps, tambourines, and cymbals, and [blowing] trumpets.

9 καὶ ἤλθοσαν ἕως τῆς ἅλωνος καὶ ἐξέτεινεν Οζα τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ τοῦ κατασχεῖν τὴν κιβωτόν ὅτι ἐξέκλινεν αὐτὴν ὁ μόσχος

But when David’s men came to the place where Kidon threshed grain, the oxen stumbled. So Uzzah reached out with his hand to prevent the Sacred Chest from falling off the cart.

10 καὶ ἐθυμώθη ὀργῇ κύριος ἐπὶ Οζα καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτὸν ἐκεῖ διὰ τὸ ἐκτεῖναι τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν κιβωτόν καὶ ἀπέθανεν ἐκεῖ ἀπέναντι τοῦ θεοῦ

Yahweh immediately became very angry with Uzzah, and he caused Uzzah to suddenly die there because he had put his hand on the Sacred Chest, [and Yahweh had commanded that only the descendants of Levi who help the priests should touch the Sacred Chest].

11 καὶ ἠθύμησεν Δαυιδ ὅτι διέκοψεν κύριος διακοπὴν ἐν Οζα καὶ ἐκάλεσεν τὸν τόπον ἐκεῖνον Διακοπὴ Οζα ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης

David was angry because Yahweh had punished [MTY] Uzzah. And now that place [where Uzzah died] is called ‘The Punishment of Uzzah’.

12 καὶ ἐφοβήθη Δαυιδ τὸν θεὸν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ λέγων πῶς εἰσοίσω πρὸς ἐμαυτὸν τὴν κιβωτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ

That day, David was afraid of God. He asked [himself], “(How can I bring God’s Sacred Chest to my [city]?/I am afraid to bring God’s Sacred Chest to my [city].)” [RHQ]

13 καὶ οὐκ ἀπέστρεψεν Δαυιδ τὴν κιβωτὸν πρὸς ἑαυτὸν εἰς πόλιν Δαυιδ καὶ ἐξέκλινεν αὐτὴν εἰς οἶκον Αβεδδαρα τοῦ Γεθθαίου

So the men with David did not take the Sacred Chest to Jerusalem. Instead, they took it to the house of Obed-Edom, who was from Gath [city].

14 καὶ ἐκάθισεν ἡ κιβωτὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν οἴκῳ Αβεδδαρα τρεῖς μῆνας καὶ εὐλόγησεν ὁ θεὸς Αβεδδαραμ καὶ πάντα τὰ αὐτοῦ

The Sacred Chest stayed with Obed-Edom’s family in his house for three months. And [during that time] Yahweh blessed Obed-Edom’s family and everything that he owned.