6:5 make images of your tumors. The procedure adopted by the Philistines had several purposes. The gold used for the models was a kind of compensation for having taken the ark (v. 4), while the images of tumors and rats were probably a form of sympathetic magic. The Philistines’ stated purpose, however, was to “give glory” to Israel’s God. With this announcement, the ark narrative comes almost full circle. It was for Israel’s failure to honor the Lord and handle the ark properly that God had removed it from them.

your gods. The Lord’s oppressive treatment of the gods of the Philistines is like His treatment of “the gods of Egypt” (Ex. 12:12). As the next verse indicates, this comparison was not lost on the Philistines themselves.