1Samuel:6

---

Seeker Overlay ON

* And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months . * And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners , saying , What shall we do to the ark of the LORD ? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place . * And they said , If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel Yisra #el #, 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 . * Then said they , What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him ? They answered , Five golden emerods t @, 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 . * Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods t @, and images of your mice that mar the land ; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel Yisra #el #: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you , and from off your gods , and from off your land . * Wherefore 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 ? * Now therefore make a new cart , and take two milch kine , on which there hath come no yoke , and tie the kine to the cart , and bring their calves home from them : * And take the ark of the LORD , and lay it upon the cart ; and put the jewels of gold , which ye return him for a trespass offering , in a coffer by the side thereof ; and send it away , that it may go . * And see , if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh Beyth , 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 . * And the men did so ; and took two milch kine , and tied them to the cart , and shut up their calves at home : * And they laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart , and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their emerods . * And the kine took the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh Beyth , and went along the highway m @cillah #, lowing as they went , and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left s @mo #wl #; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Bethshemesh Beyth . * And they of Bethshemesh Beythwere reaping their wheat harvest in the valley : and they lifted up their eyes , and saw the ark , and rejoiced to see it . * And the cart came into the field of Joshua , a Bethshemite Beyth hash-Shimshiy #, and stood there , where there was a great stone : and they clave the wood of the cart , and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD . * 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 Beythoffered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD . * And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it , they returned to Ekron the same day . * And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the LORD ; for Ashdod one , for Gaza one , for Askelon one , for Gath one , for Ekron one ; * And the golden mice , according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords , both of fenced 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 Beyth hash-Shimshiy #. * And he smote the men of Bethshemesh Beyth , 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 . * And the men of Bethshemesh Beythsaid , Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God ? and to whom shall he go up from us ? * And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim Qiryath Y @#ariym #, saying , The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD ; come ye down , and fetch it up to you .

---