The Philistines and the Ark

5 Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it ^(A)from Ebenezer to Ashdod. ² When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of ^(B)Dagon^[a] and set it by Dagon. ³ And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, ^(C)fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and ^(D)set it in its place again. ⁴ And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. ^(E)The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only ^[b]Dagon’s torso was left of it. ⁵ Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house ^(F)tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.

⁶ But the ^(G)hand of the Lord was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He ^(H)ravaged them and struck them with ^(I)tumors,^[c] both Ashdod and its ^(J)territory. ⁷ And when the men of Ashdod saw how it was, they said, “The ark of the ^(K)God of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is harsh toward us and Dagon our god.” ⁸ Therefore they sent and gathered to themselves all the ^(L)lords of the Philistines, and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?”

And they answered, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried away to ^(M)Gath.” So they carried the ark of the God of Israel away. ⁹ So it was, after they had carried it away, that ^(N)the hand of the Lord was against the city with a very great destruction; and He struck the men of the city, both small and great, ^[d]and tumors broke out on them.

¹⁰ Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. So it was, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us, to kill us and our people!” ¹¹ So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place, so that it does not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there. ¹² And the men who did not die were stricken with the tumors, and the ^(O)cry of the city went up to heaven.

The Ark Returned to Israel

6 Now the ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months. ² And the Philistines ^(P)called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it to its place.”

³ So they said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it ^(Q)empty; but by all means return it to Him with ^(R)a trespass offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why His hand is not removed from you.”

⁴ Then they said, “What is the trespass offering which we shall return to Him?”

They answered, ^(S)“Five golden tumors and five golden rats, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines. For the same plague was on all of ^[e]you and on your lords. ⁵ Therefore you shall make images of your tumors and images of your rats that ^(T)ravage the land, and you shall ^(U)give glory to the God of Israel; perhaps He will ^(V)lighten^[f] His hand from you, from ^(W)your gods, and from your land. ⁶ Why then do you harden your hearts ^(X)as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He did mighty things among them, ^(Y)did they not let the people go, that they might depart? ⁷ Now therefore, make ^(Z)a new cart, take two milk cows ^(AA)which have never been yoked, and hitch the cows to the cart; and take their calves home, away from them. ⁸ Then take the ark of the Lord and set it on the cart; and put ^(AB)the articles of gold which you are returning to Him as a trespass offering in a chest by its side. Then send it away, and let it go. ⁹ And watch: if it goes up the road to its own territory, to ^(AC)Beth Shemesh, then He has done ^[g]us this great evil. But if not, then ^(AD)we shall know that it is not His hand that struck us—it happened to us by chance.”

¹⁰ Then the men did so; they took two milk cows and hitched them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home. ¹¹ And they set the ark of the Lord on the cart, and the chest with the gold rats and the images of their tumors. ¹² Then the cows headed straight for the road to Beth Shemesh, and went along the ^(AE)highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn aside to the right hand or the left. And the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth Shemesh.

¹³ Now the people of Beth Shemesh were reaping their ^(AF)wheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted their eyes and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. ¹⁴ Then the cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh, and stood there; a large stone was there. So they split the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord. ¹⁵ The Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the chest that was with it, in which were the articles of gold, and put them on the large stone. Then the men of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices the same day to the Lord. ¹⁶ So when ^(AG)the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

^17 (AH)These are the golden tumors which the Philistines returned as a trespass offering to the Lord: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for ^(AI)Gath, one for Ekron; ¹⁸ and the golden rats, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and country villages, even as far as the large stone of Abel on which they set the ark of the Lord, which stone remains to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.

¹⁹ Then ^(AJ)He struck the men of Beth Shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord. ^[h]He ^(AK)struck fifty thousand and seventy men of the people, and the people lamented because the Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter.

The Ark at Kirjath Jearim

²⁰ And the men of Beth Shemesh said, ^(AL)“Who is able to stand before this holy Lord God? And to whom shall it go up from us?” ²¹ So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of ^(AM)Kirjath Jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord; come down and take it up with you.”

A Prayer for Help in Despondency

A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. To the Chief Musician. Set to “Mahalath Leannoth.” A ^[a]Contemplation of ^(A)Heman the Ezrahite.

The Empty Tomb^(A)

20 Now the ^(B)first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the ^(C)stone had been taken away from the tomb. ² Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the ^(D)other disciple, ^(E)whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

^3 (F)Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. ⁴ So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. ⁵ And he, stooping down and looking in, saw ^(G)the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in. ⁶ Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, ⁷ and ^(H)the ^[a]handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. ⁸ Then the ^(I)other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. ⁹ For as yet they did not ^[b]know the ^(J)Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. ¹⁰ Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

Mary Magdalene Sees the Risen Lord

^11 (K)But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. ¹² And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. ¹³ Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

^14 (L)Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and ^(M)did not know that it was Jesus. ¹⁵ Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”

She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

¹⁶ Jesus said to her, ^(N)“Mary!”

She turned and said to ^[c]Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).

¹⁷ Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ^(O)ascended to My Father; but go to ^(P)My brethren and say to them, ^(Q)‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to ^(R)My God and your God.’ ”

^18 (S)Mary Magdalene came and told the ^[d]disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

The Apostles Commissioned^(T)

^19 (U)Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were ^[e]assembled, for ^(V)fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ^(W)“Peace be with you.” ²⁰ When He had said this, He ^(X)showed them His hands and His side. ^(Y)Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.

²¹ So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! ^(Z)As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” ²² And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ^23 (AA)If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Seeing and Believing

²⁴ Now Thomas, ^(AB)called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵ The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”

So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

²⁶ And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” ²⁷ Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and ^(AC)reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be ^(AD)unbelieving, but believing.”

²⁸ And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

²⁹ Jesus said to him, ^[f]“Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. ^(AE)Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

That You May Believe

³⁰ And ^(AF)truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; ^31 (AG)but these are written that ^(AH)you may believe that Jesus ^(AI)is the Christ, the Son of God, ^(AJ)and that believing you may have life in His name.