1 Samuel 4
1 And Samuel spake vnto all Israel: and Israel went out against the Philistims to battel and pitched beside Eben-ezer: and the Philistims pitched in Aphek.
And Samuel told to all the people of Israel the messages that God gave him. At that time the Israeli army went to fight against the army of the Philistine people. The Israeli army set up their tents at Ebenezer, and the Philistine army set up their tents at Aphek.
2 And the Philistims put themselues in aray against Israel: and when they ioyned the battell, Israel was smitten downe before the Philistims: who slewe of the armie in the fielde about foure thousand men.
The Philistine army attacked the Israeli army, and as the battle continued, the Philistines defeated the Israelis and killed about 4,000 of their soldiers.
3 So when the people were come into the campe, the Elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the Lord smitten vs this day before ye Philistims? let vs bring the Arke of the couenant of the Lord out of Shiloh vnto vs, that when it commeth among vs, it may saue vs out of the hande of our enemies.
When the remaining Israeli soldiers returned to their camp, the Israeli elders/leaders said, “Why did Yahweh allow the Philistine army to defeat us today? We should bring the chest that contains the Ten Commandments here from Shiloh, in order that Yahweh will go with us [when we go to the battle again, and] in order that our enemies will not defeat us again!”
4 Then the people sent to Shiloh, and brought from thence the Arke of the couenant of the Lord of hostes, who dwelleth betweene the Cherubims: and there were the two sonnes of Eli, Hophni, and Phinehas, with the Arke of the couenant of God.
So the soldiers did that. They sent some men to Shiloh, and those men brought back the chest that contained the Ten Commandments. [They thought that if they did that, Yahweh would help them. They believed that] Yahweh sat on a throne between the statues of winged creatures [that were on top of] the chest that Yahweh Almighty [had given them]. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, went with them.
5 And when the Arke of the couenant of the Lord came into the hoste, all Israel shouted a mightie shoute, so that the earth rang againe.
When the Israeli people saw [the men bringing] the box into their camp, they were so happy that they shouted loudly. They shouted so loudly that they made the ground shake!
6 And when the Philistims heard the noyse of the shoute, they said, What meaneth the sound of this mightie shoute in the host of the Ebrewes? and they vnderstoode, that the Arke of the Lord was come into the hoste.
The Philistines asked, “What are the people in the Hebrew camp shouting about?” Someone told them that they were shouting because the chest that contained the Ten Commandments of Yahweh had been brought to them.
7 And the Philistims were afraide, and saide, God is come into the hoste: therefore saide they, Wo vnto vs: for it hath not bene so heretofore.
Then the Philistines became very afraid. They said, “One of the Israelis’ gods has come into their camp [to help them] We are in big trouble now! Nothing like this has happened to us before!
8 Wo vnto vs, who shall deliuer vs out of the hande of these mightie Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wildernes.
(Who can/Can anyone) save us from their powerful gods [RHQ]? They are the gods who struck the people of Egypt with many plagues [before the Israelis left Egypt and traveled] through the desert.
9 Be strong and play the men, O Philistims, that ye be not seruants vnto the Ebrewes, as they haue serued you: be valiant therefore, and fight.
You Philistine men, be courageous! Fight very hard! If you do not do that, [they will defeat us, and then] you will become their slaves, just like they have been our slaves previously!”
10 And the Philistims fought, and Israel was smitten downe, and fled euery man into his tent: and there was an exceeding great slaughter: for there fell of Israel thirtie thousand footemen.
So the Philistine men fought very hard, and they defeated the Israelis. They killed 30,000 Israeli soldiers, and the other Israeli soldiers fled and ran away to their tents.
11 And the Arke of God was taken, and the two sonnes of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas died.
The Philistines captured the sacred chest, and they killed Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas.
12 And there ranne a man of Beniamin out of the armie, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and earth vpon his head.
On that same day, one man of the tribe [descended from] Benjamin tore his clothes and threw dirt on his head [to show that he was very sad]. He ran from the place where the armies were fighting, and he arrived at Shiloh late [that afternoon].
13 And when hee came, loe, Eli sate vpon a seate by the wayside, wayting: for his heart feared for the Arke of God and when the man came into the citie to tell it, all the citie cried out.
Eli was waiting beside the road. [He wanted to hear news about the battle, and] he was also very anxious to know if anything bad had happened to God’s sacred chest. When the messenger arrived and told people what had happened, everyone in the town started to cry loudly.
14 And when Eli heard the noyse of the crying, he sayd, What meaneth this noyse of the tumult? and the man came in hastily, and tolde Eli.
Eli asked, “Why are they making all that noise?” The messenger ran over to Eli and told him the news.
15 (Nowe Eli was fourescore and eighteene yeere olde, and his eyes were dimme that hee could not see)
At that time, Eli was 98 years old, and he was blind.
16 And the man sayd vnto Eli, I came from the armie, and I fled this day out of the hoste: and he sayd, What thing is done, my sonne?
The messenger said to Eli, “I have just come from where the armies were fighting. I left there earlier today.” Eli asked, “What happened?”
17 Then the messenger answered and sayd, Israel is fled before the Philistims, and there hath bene also a great slaughter among the people: and moreouer thy two sonnes, Hophni and Phinehas are dead, and the Arke of God is taken.
The man replied, “The Philistines defeated our Israeli army. They killed thousands of our soldiers, and the others ran away. The Philistines killed your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas. They also captured God’s sacred chest.”
18 And when he had made mention of the Arke of God, Eli fell from his seate backward by the side of the gate, and his necke was broken, and he dyed: for he was an olde man and heauie: and he had iudged Israel fourtie yeeres.
Eli was very old, and he was very fat; and when he heard what had happened to the sacred chest, he fell backward from his chair beside the town gate. His neck was broken and he died. He had led the Israeli people for 40 years before he died.
19 And his daughter in lawe Phinehas wife was with childe neere her trauell: and when she heard the report that the Arke of God was taken, and that her father in lawe and her husband were dead, she bowed her selfe, and trauailed: for her paines came vpon her.
The wife/widow of Eli’s son Phinehas was pregnant, and it was almost time for her to give birth to her baby. When she heard that God’s sacred chest had been captured and that her husband and her father-in-law were dead, her labor pains suddenly began. She quickly gave birth to a boy.
20 And about the time of her death, the women that stoode about her, sayd vnto her, Feare not: for thou hast borne a sonne: but she answered not, nor regarded it.
The women who were helping her tried to encourage her by saying to her, “You have given birth to a son!” But she did not pay any attention [DOU] to what they said.
21 And she named the childe Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel, because the Arke of God was taken, and because of her father in lawe and her husband.
She named the boy Ichabod, which means ‘no glory’, because she said, “[God’s] glory has departed from Israel.” She said that because God’s sacred chest had been captured and because her husband and her father-in-law had died.
22 She sayde againe, The glory is departed from Israel: for the Arke of God is taken.
She said, “[God’s] glory has left Israel, because God’s sacred chest has been captured!” And then she died.
