The Ark of the Covenant was transported to here after the dwellers of Beit Shemesh, where it had been kept before, had been punished for sacrilege (they tried to take a look inside the shrine and perished).
After it had happened they were too afraid to keep the Ark any longer.
During the Byzantine period, a church was built on this site and today there is the Monastery of Our Lady of the Covenant, with a huge statue, which serves as a wonderful reference point.
After twenty years when the Ark was kept in the house of Abinadab and his sons, King David decided to solemnly transport it to his capital, Jerusalem.
The Tanakh says that there were 30 thousand people taking part in the ceremony celebrated on this occasion.
The sons of Abinadab carried the Ark in a new oxen-drawn wagon, while David and all the house of Israel rejoiced, singing songs and playing harps, lyres, tambourines, rattles, and cymbals.
It is worth mentioning that an unpleasant incident occurred at the very beginning of the journey: the oxen stumbled, and when Uzza, the son of Abinadab, reached out his hand to support the Ark, the Lord struck him for sacrilege (the Ark was always to be carried on special beams and never to be touched with one's hands).
The procession stopped and the Ark was left in Owed's house for three months.
And only after all sorts of blessings landed on the house of Owed as sign of the Divine Protection, the shrine was moved further with even greater solemnity .
For every six steps made by the carriers of the Ark David sacrificed a bull and a fatted calf .
And all the way he danced with all his might before the Lord.
So, to the sounds of shofars and joyful cheering, the Ark of the Covenant was transported to its new home.
It was brought and put into a special place in the Tabernacle (Tent of the Covenant).
