The Uzzah Syndrome

In 2 Samuel 6 we are given the story of King David's first attempt to bring the Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem after it had been taken captive by the Philistines. I say first attempt because it was unsuccessful. Something tragic happened on the way. The text says, "But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God." (2 Sam. 6:6-7 NASB).
This passage used to really bother me. Here was Uzzah walking near the Ark as it was on its way to Jerusalem. My guess is that he was probably a very religious man. The reason I say this is because transporting the Ark was a big deal. The Ark of the Covenant signified the very presence of God. I would assume that King David didn't want just anyone to be walking with the Ark. He probably wanted proven men of priestly duty to be the leaders in returning the Ark to the nation of Israel. Now, as they were walking, the oxen that were pulling the Ark stumbled. So Uzzah, it seems out of reflex, put his hand up to stabilize the Ark. This seems like the right thing to do. Here is the Ark of God. It is the most prized possession in all of Israel, and it is about to fall to the ground. Who wouldn't place their hand up to protect this sacred box? But what happens? God's anger burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down.
Some have said that this passage has more to do with David's sin than with Uzzah's. David wasn't transporting the Ark according to the Law. According to the Law the Ark was to be carried by Levites. The Levites were to place poles through the rings attached to the casing of the Ark, and the Levites were to walk carrying the poles on their shoulders. However, David used oxen and a cart. Following this line of thought, some have concluded that the blame is ultimately on David's shoulders rather than Uzzah's.
It is true that David was wrong, and it may be true that this event would have never taken place had David followed the instruction in the Law. However, it is also clear that all of the blame is not on David. The text says that the LORD's anger burned against Uzzah for his irreverence. And I guess this is the part that always bothered me. Why did God become so angry with Uzzah for keeping the Ark from falling to the ground? It seems like it was just a reflex. Had Uzzah had time to really consider things, he might have thought about God's holiness and his own sinfulness. He might have been able to reason with himself that even touching the Ark would mean death for him. But he didn't have the privilege of thinking through the scenario. The ox stumbled, his hand went up, and he died.
But when this passage stopped bothering me so much was when I realized that Uzzah's hand going up was an indicator of the condition of his heart. Had Uzzah recognized God's holiness; had Uzzah truly understood his own sinfulness, then his reflex would have been to jump out of the way rather than to put up his hand. Through most of our lives we are not given the time to consider the theological and spiritual implications of our actions. We simply act. We act based on our hearts. John Piper has said, "If we are going to do what pleases God, most of the time it will be by reflex, not reflection." And I suspect that our reflex choices are more indicative of our belief system than those based on reflection.