1 Samuel 6:1-7:2
New King James Version
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 (A)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 (B)empty; but by all means return it to Him with (C)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, (D)“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 [a]you and on your lords. 5 Therefore you shall make images of your tumors and images of your rats that (E)ravage the land, and you shall (F)give glory to the God of Israel; perhaps He will (G)lighten[b] His hand from you, from (H)your gods, and from your land. 6 Why then do you harden your hearts (I)as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He did mighty things among them, (J)did they not let the people go, that they might depart? 7 Now therefore, make (K)a new cart, take two milk cows (L)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 (M)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 (N)Beth Shemesh, then He has done [c]us this great evil. But if not, then (O)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 (P)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 (Q)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 (R)the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
17 (S)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 (T)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 (U)He struck the men of Beth Shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord. [d]He (V)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, (W)“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 (X)Kirjath Jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord; come down and take it up with you.”
Israel Defeats the Philistines
7 Then the men of (Y)Kirjath Jearim came and took the ark of the Lord, and brought it into the house of (Z)Abinadab on the hill, and (AA)consecrated Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord.
Samuel Judges Israel
2 So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 6:4 Lit. them
- 1 Samuel 6:5 ease
- 1 Samuel 6:9 this calamity to us
- 1 Samuel 6:19 Or He struck seventy men of the people and fifty oxen of a man
1 Samuel 6:1-7:2
21st Century King James Version
6 And the ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
2 And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we shall send it to his place.”
3 And they said, “If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass offering. Then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you.”
4 Then said they, “What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him?” They answered, “Five golden hemorrhoids and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines; for one plague was on you all and on your lords.
5 Therefore ye shall make images of your hemorrhoids and images of your mice that mar the land, and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from you and from your gods and from your land.
6 Why then do ye harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed?
7 Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milk cows on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the cows to the cart and bring their calves home from them.
8 And take the ark of the Lord and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return to him for a trespass offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go.
9 And see: If it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he hath done us this great evil. But if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.”
10 And the men did so; and took two milk cows and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home.
11 And they laid the ark of the Lord upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their hemorrhoids.
12 And the cows took the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Bethshemesh.
13 And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.
14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there where there was a great stone. And they cleaved the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering unto the Lord.
15 And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone; and the men of Bethshemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the Lord.
16 And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
17 And these are the golden hemorrhoids which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the Lord: for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Ashkelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one;
18 and the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both of fortified cities and of country villages, even unto the great stone of Abel whereon they set down the ark of the Lord, which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Bethshemite.
19 And He smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord; even He smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men. And the people lamented because the Lord had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter.
20 And the men of Bethshemesh said, “Who is able to stand before this holy Lord God? And to whom shall He go up from us?”
21 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord. Come ye down and fetch it up to you.”
7 And the men of Kirjathjearim came and fetched up the ark of the Lord, and brought it into the house of Abinadab on the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord.
2 And it came to pass, while the ark remained in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long, for it was twenty years; and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1994 by Deuel Enterprises, Inc.