1 Samuel 6
6
The Ark Returned to Israel
1The ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months. 2And the Philistines called for the priests and #Deut. 18:10; [Gen. 41:8; Ex. 7:11; Dan. 2:2; 5:7]the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.” 3They said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return him #[Lev. 5:15, 16] a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why #ver. 9his hand does not turn away from you.” 4And they said, “What is the guilt offering that we shall return to him?” They answered, “Five golden #ch. 5:6, 9, 12 tumors and five golden mice, #ver. 17, 18; Josh. 13:3; Judg. 3:3according to the number of the lords of the Philistines, for the same plague was on all of you and on your lords. 5So you must make images of your #[See ver. 4 above] tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land, #[Josh. 7:19] and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps #[ch. 5:6, 9, 11] he will lighten his hand from off you #ch. 5:3, 4, 7and your gods and your land. 6Why should you harden your hearts as #[Ex. 14:17] the Egyptians and #Ex. 8:15, 32; [Ex. 7:13; 9:7, 35; 10:1] Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After he had dealt severely with them, #Ex. 12:31did they not send the people away, and they departed? 7Now then, take and prepare #[2 Sam. 6:3] a new cart and two milk cows #[Num. 19:2]on which there has never come a yoke, and yoke the cows to the cart, but take their calves home, away from them. 8And take the ark of the Lord and place it on the cart and put in a box at its side #ver. 4, 5 the figures of gold, which you are returning to him as #[See ver. 3 above]a guilt offering. Then send it off and let it go its way 9and watch. If it goes up on the way to its own land, to #Josh. 15:10 Beth-shemesh, then it is he who has done us this great harm, but if not, then we shall know that it is not #ver. 3his hand that struck us; it happened to us by coincidence.”
10The men did so, and took two milk cows and yoked them to the cart and shut up their calves at home. 11And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart and the box with the golden mice and the images of their tumors. 12And the cows went straight in the direction of #Josh. 21:16 Beth-shemesh along #Num. 20:19one highway, lowing as they went. They turned neither to the right nor to the left, and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of #Josh. 21:16 Beth-shemesh. 13Now the people of #[See ver. 12 above]Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley. And when they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark, they rejoiced to see it. 14The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there. #ver. 18A great stone was there. And they split up the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord. 15And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the box that was beside it, in which were the golden figures, and set them upon #[See ver. 14 above] the great stone. And the men of #[See ver. 12 above]Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices on that day to the Lord. 16And when #See ver. 4the five lords of the Philistines saw it, they returned that day to Ekron.
17These are the golden tumors that the Philistines returned as a #ver. 3, 8guilt offering to the Lord: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron, 18and the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, #[Deut. 3:5] both fortified cities and unwalled villages. #ver. 14, 15The great stone beside which they set down the ark of the Lord is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.
19 # [Ex. 19:21; Num. 4:15, 20; 2 Sam. 6:7] And he struck some of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they looked upon the ark of the Lord. He struck seventy men of them,#6:19 Most Hebrew manuscripts struck of the people seventy men, fifty thousand men and the people mourned because the Lord had struck the people with a great blow. 20Then the men of Beth-shemesh said, #[2 Sam. 6:9]“Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up away from us?” 21So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of #1 Chr. 13:5, 6; [Josh. 9:17; 18:14]Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to you.”
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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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1 Samuel 6
6
The Ark Is Returned. 1The ark of the Lord had been in the land of the Philistines seven months 2when they summoned priests and diviners to ask, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us what we should send back with it.” 3They replied: “If you intend to send back the ark of the God of Israel, you must not send it alone, but must, by all means, make amends to God through a reparation offering.#A reparation offering: an offering to make amends for unwitting transgressions against holy things or property rights; cf. Lv 6:1–3. Then you will be healed, and will learn why God continues to afflict you.” 4When asked further, “What reparation offering should be our amends to God?” they replied: “Five golden tumors and five golden mice to correspond to the number of Philistine leaders, since the same plague has struck all of you and your leaders. 5Therefore, make images of the tumors and of the mice that are devastating your land and so give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps then God will lift his hand from you, your gods, and your land. 6Why should you become stubborn, the way the Egyptians and Pharaoh were stubborn? Was it not after he had dealt ruthlessly with them that the Israelites were released and departed?#Ex 7:14; 8:15; 9:34. 7So now set to work and make a new cart. Then take two milk cows that have not borne the yoke; hitch them to the cart, but drive their calves indoors away from them.#But drive their calves indoors away from them: a test to confirm the source of the Philistines’ trouble. Left to their instincts, milk cows would remain near their calves rather than head for the road to Beth-shemesh. #Nm 19:2; Dt 21:3; 2 Sm 6:3. 8You shall next take the ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, putting the golden articles that you are offering as reparation for your guilt in a box beside it. Start it on its way, and let it go. 9Then watch! If it goes up to Beth-shemesh#Beth-shemesh: a border city (about twenty-four miles west of Jerusalem) between Philistine and Israelite territory. along the route to the Lord’s territory, then it was the Lord who brought this great calamity upon us; if not, we will know that it was not the Lord’s hand, but a bad turn, that struck us.”
The Ark in Beth-shemesh. 10They acted upon this advice. Taking two milk cows, they hitched them to the cart but shut up their calves indoors. 11Then they placed the ark of the Lord on the cart, along with the box containing the golden mice and the images of the tumors. 12The cows went straight for the route to Beth-shemesh and continued along this road, mooing as they went, turning neither right nor left. The Philistine leaders followed them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh. 13The people of Beth-shemesh were harvesting the wheat in the valley. They looked up and rejoiced when they saw the ark. 14The cart came to the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite and stopped there. At a large stone in the field, the wood of the cart was split up and the cows were offered as a burnt offering to the Lord.#2 Sm 24:21–25. 15The Levites, meanwhile, had taken down the ark of God and the box beside it, with the golden articles, and had placed them on the great stone. The people of Beth-shemesh also offered other burnt offerings and sacrifices to the Lord that day.#Dt 31:25; 1 Chr 15:2. 16After witnessing this, the five Philistine leaders returned to Ekron the same day.
17The golden tumors the Philistines sent back as a reparation offering to the Lord were as follows: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, and one for Ekron. 18The golden mice, however, corresponded to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five leaders, including fortified cities and open villages.#Open villages: the plague devastated both fortified cities and villages, an indication of the Lord’s power over the Philistines. The large stone on which the ark of the Lord was placed is still in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite at the present time.#1 Sm 7:12; Gn 31:52; Jos 24:27.
Penalty for Irreverence. 19The descendants of Jeconiah did not join in the celebration with the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh when they saw the ark of the Lord, and seventy of them were struck down. The people mourned over this great calamity which the Lord had inflicted upon them. 20The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the Lord, this Holy God? To whom can the ark go so that we are rid of it?” 21They then sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord; come down and get it.”
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