1 Samuel 6
1 Now the ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines for seven months.
And it came to pass, that the ark of Yahweh was in the country of the Philistines, seven months.
2 And the Philistines sent for the priests and those who were wise in secret arts, and said to them, What are we to do with the ark of the Lord? How are we to send it away to its place?
Then called the Philistines for the priests and for the diviners, saying, What shall we do with the ark of Yahweh? Let us know, wherewith we shall send it to its own place.
3 And they said, If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it without an offering, but send him a sin-offering with it: then you will have peace again, and it will be clear to you why the weight of his hand has not been lifted from you.
And they said—If ye are going to send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it away, empty, but ye must, surely return, to him, a guilt-offering, —then, shall ye be healed, and it shall be known to you, wherefore his hand would not turn away from you.
4 Then they said, What sin-offering are we to send to him? And they said, Five gold images of the growths caused by your disease and five gold mice, one for every lord of the Philistines: for the same disease came on you and on your lords.
And they said—What shall be the guilt-offering, that we shall return to him? And they said—By the number of the lords of the Philistines, five tumours of gold, and five mice of gold, —for, one plague, was on you all, and on your lords.
5 So make images of the growths caused by your disease and of the mice which are damaging your land; and give glory to the God of Israel: it may be that the weight of his hand will be lifted from you and from your gods and from your land.
Wherefore ye shall make likenesses of your turnouts, and likenesses of your mice that are laying waste the land, and shall, give unto the, God of Israel, glory, —Peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your god, and from off your land.
6 Why do you make your hearts hard, like the hearts of Pharaoh and the Egyptians? When he had made sport of them, did they not let the people go, and they went away?
Wherefore, then, should ye make your heart dull, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh made their heart dull! When he had done his great doings upon them, did they not let them go, and they departed?
7 So now, take and make ready a new cart, and two cows which have never come under the yoke, and have the cows yoked to the cart, and take their young ones away from them:
Now, therefore, take and get ready, one new waggon, and two milch kine, whereon hath never come yoke, —then shall ye fasten the kine in the waggon, and withdraw their calves from them, into the shed;
8 And put the ark of the Lord on the cart, and the gold images which you are sending as a sin-offering in a chest by its side; and send it away so that it may go.
and ye shall take the ark of Yahweh, and place it in the waggon, also, the jewels of gold which ye send back to him as a guilt-offering, shall ye put into a coffer, at the side thereof, —so shall ye let it go, and it shall depart.
9 If it goes by the land of Israel to Beth-shemesh, then this great evil is his work; but if not, then we may be certain that the evil was not his doing, but was the working of chance.
Then shall ye look—if, by the way of its own boundary, it goeth up to Beth-shemesh, he, it was who caused us this great affliction, —but, if not, then shall we know that it was not, his hand, that smote us, a chance, it was, that befell us.
10 And the men did so; they took two cows, yoking them to the cart and shutting up their young ones in their living-place:
The men, therefore, did so, and took two milch kine, and fastened them in the waggon, —but, their calves, shut they up in the shed.
11 And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart and the chest with the gold images.
And they put the ark of Yahweh, into the waggon, —also the coffer, with the mice of gold, and the likenesses of their tumours.
12 And the cows took the straight way, by the road to Beth-shemesh; they went by the highway, not turning to the right or to the left, and the sound of their voices was clear on the road; and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the edge of Beth-shemesh.
And the kine went straight along the road, on the way to Beth-shemesh, yea, along the main highway, they went, lowing as they went, turning not aside, to the right hand or to the left. And, the lords of the Philistines, went along after them, as far as the bounds of Beth-shemesh.
13 And the people of Beth-shemesh were cutting their grain in the valley, and lifting up their eyes they saw the ark and were full of joy when they saw it.
Now, they of Beth-shemesh, were reaping their wheat-harvest in the vale, —so they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to meet it.
14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite, and came to a stop there by a great stone: and cutting up the wood of the cart they made a burned offering of the cows to the Lord.
And, the waggon, entered into the field of Joshua, a man of Beth-shemesh, and stood still, there, where also, was a great stone, —so they clave into pieces the planks of the waggon, and, the kine, offered they up as an ascending-sacrifice, unto Yahweh.
15 Then the Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the chest in which were the gold images, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Beth-shemesh made burned offerings and gave worship that day before the Lord.
And, the Levites, took down the ark of Yahweh, and the coffer that was with it, wherein were the jewels of gold, and put them upon the great stone, —and, the men of Beth-shemesh, caused to go up ascending-offerings and offered sacrifices, that day, unto Yahweh.
16 And the five lords of the Philistines, having seen it, went back to Ekron the same day.
And, the five lords of the Philistines, saw it, —and returned unto Ekron, the same day.
17 Now these are the gold images which the Philistines sent as a sin-offering to the Lord; one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron;
Now, these, are the golden boils which, the Philistines returned as a guilt-offering unto Yahweh, —For Ashdod, one, for Gaza, one, for Ashkelon, one, for Gath, one, for Ekron, one;
18 And the gold mice, one for every town of the Philistines, the property of the five lords, walled towns as well as country places: and the great stone where they put the ark of the Lord is still in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite to this day.
And the golden mice, by the number of all the cities of the Philistines, pertaining to the five lords, both fortified cities, and country villages, —yea, even the great meadow whereon they rested the ark of Yahweh, until this day, is in the field-land of Joshua, the man of Beth-shemesh.
19 But the Lord sent destruction on seventy men of the people of Beth-shemesh for looking into the ark of the Lord; and great was the sorrow of the people for the destruction which the Lord had sent on them.
And, when he smote the men of Beth-shemesh, because they looked into the ark of Yahweh, yea smote of the people seventy men [and] fifty thousand men, the people mourned, for that Yahweh had smitten the people with a great smiting.
20 And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to keep his place before the Lord, this holy God? and to whom may he go from us?
Then said the men of Beth-shemesh, Who is able to stand before Yahweh, this holy God? and, unto whom, shall he go up from us?
21 And they sent men to the people living in Kiriath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have sent back the ark of the Lord; come and take it up to your country.
And they sent messengers unto the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, —The Philistines have returned the ark of Yahweh, come down, fetch it up unto you.
