³ the hand^(A) of the Lord will bring a terrible plague^(B) on your livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats.

⁴ he will not listen^(A) to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment^(B) I will bring out my divisions,^(C) my people the Israelites.

¹¹ Now the hand of the Lord is against you.^(A) You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”^(B)

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

⁹ but keep watching it. If it goes up to its own territory, toward Beth Shemesh,^(A) then the Lord has brought this great disaster on us. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us but that it happened to us by chance.”

⁶ The Lord’s hand^(A) was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation^(B) on them and afflicted them with tumors.^{[a](C) 7} When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.” ⁸ So they called together all the rulers^(D) of the Philistines and asked them, “What shall we do with the ark of the god of Israel?”

They answered, “Have the ark of the god of Israel moved to Gath.^(E)” So they moved the ark of the God of Israel.

⁹ But after they had moved it, the Lord’s hand was against that city, throwing it into a great panic.^(F) He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors.^{[b] 10} So they sent the ark of God to Ekron.^(G)

As the ark of God was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, “They have brought the ark of the god of Israel around to us to kill us and our people.” ¹¹ So they called together all the rulers^(H) of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it^[c] will kill us and our people.” For death had filled the city with panic; God’s hand was very heavy on it.

¹⁹ the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger^(A) of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart^(B) was hard and he would not listen,^(C) just as the Lord had said.

³ Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey^(A) into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, or he may strike us with plagues^(B) or with the sword.”