Cart

Carts in the ancient Near East were simple two-wheeled ox-drawn vehicles used for transporting heavy loads. The Hebrew agalah denotes this basic farm and transport cart. Jacob's sons received carts from Pharaoh to bring their father and families to Egypt (Genesis 45:19, 27). The Philistines placed the ark of the covenant on a new cart when returning it to Israel after the plague upon them (1 Samuel 6:7–14), a practice repeated when David's first attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem ended in the death of Uzzah (2 Samuel 6:3–8). God's displeasure at this second instance arose because the law required the ark to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites (Numbers 7:9), not on a cart — a lesson in the importance of approaching God according to his prescribed manner.