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19 Punishment for Irreverence. He slew some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had looked into the Ark of the Lord. He slew seventy of them.[a] The people raised up a lamentation because the Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter. 20 The men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before this holy Lord God? To whom should we send it?” 21 They sent messengers to the people of Kiriath-jearim saying, “The Philistines have sent back the Ark of the Lord. Come down and fetch it for yourselves.”

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 6:19 He slew seventy of them: here is another instance of God meting out the punishment he had promised for disobedience. God tried over and over again to bring back his people to his ways to avoid further retribution.