In the reading for today, King David calls the court prophet, Nathan, to him to propose a building project. David considers it unseemly that while he lives in a palace of paneled luxury, the ark of the covenant is still in a tent. Now the ark of the covenant, you should know, was a very important object. It was essentially a box, carved and decorated, and fitted with long pole-handles so it could be carried about from place to place as the people moved. It was important because it was the prime symbol of the covenant between God and the Israelites. The covenant and the tradition surrounding it trace back to the time of desert wandering accounted in the scriptures as Moses was leading the people out from slavery in Egypt.

We can only guess that the ark of the covenant contained some religi…