1 Samuel 6
1 And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
And the ark was seven months in the country of the Philistines, and their land brought forth swarms of mice.
2 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 the Philistines call their priests, and their prophets, and their enchanters, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? teach us wherewith we shall send it away to its place.
3 And they said, If all of you send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any way return him a trespass offering: then all of you shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you.
And they said, If you send away the ark of the covenant of the Lord God of Israel, do not on any account send it away empty, but by all means render to it an offering for the plague; and then shall you be healed, and an atonement shall be made for you: should not his hand be [thus] stayed from off you?
4 Then said they, What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, 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.
And they say, What [is] the offering for the plague [which] we shall return to it? and they said,
5 Wherefore all of you shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that ruin the land; and all of you shall give glory unto the God of Israel: possibly he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
According to the number of the lords of the Philistines, five golden tumours, for the plague was on you, and on your rulers, and on the people; and golden mice, the likeness of the mice that destroy your land: and you shall give glory to the Lord, that he may lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
6 Wherefore then do all of you 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?
And why do you harden your hearts, as Egypt and Pharao hardened their hearts? [was it] not [so] when he mocked them, [that] they let the people go, and they departed?
7 Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milk giving cattle, on which there has come no yoke, and tie the cattle to the cart, and bring their calves home from them:
And now take wood and make a new wagon, and take two cows, that have calved for the first time, without their calves; and do you yoke the cows to the wagon, and lead away the calves from behind them home.
8 And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which all of you return him for a trespass offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go.
And you shall take the ark and put it on the wagon; and you shall restore to it the golden articles for the trespass-offering in a coffer by the side of it: and you shall let it go, and sent it away, and you shall depart.
9 And see, if it goes up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he has done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that stroke us: it was a chance that happened to us.
And you shall see, if it shall go the way of its coasts along by Baethsamys, he has brought upon us this great affliction; and if not, then shall we know that his hand has not touched us, but this [is a] chance [which] has happened to us.
10 And the men did so; and took two milk giving cattle, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home:
And the Philistines did so; and they took two cows that had calved for the first time, and yoked them to the waggon, 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 emerods.
And they set the ark of the Lord, and the coffer, and the golden mice, on the waggon.
12 And the cattle 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.
And the cows went straight on the way to the way of Baethsamys, they went along one track; and laboured, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left, and the lords of the Philistines went after it as far as the coasts of Baethsamys.
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.
And the men of Baethsamys were reaping the wheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark of the Lord, and rejoiced to meet it.
14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the cattle a burnt offering unto the LORD.
And the waggon entered into the field of Osee, which was in Baethsamys, and they set there by it a great stone; and they split the wood of the waggon, and offered up the cows for a whole burnt offering to 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.
And the Levites brought up the ark of the Lord, and the coffer with it, and the golden articles upon it, and placed them on the great stone, and the men of Baethsamys offered whole burnt offerings and meat offerings on that day to the Lord.
16 And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
And the five lords of the Philistines saw, and returned to Ascalon in that day.
17 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 these [are] the golden tumours which the lords of the Philistines gave as a trespass-offering to the Lord; for Azotus one, for Gaza one, for Ascalon one, for Geth one, for Accaron one.
18 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 remains unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Bethshemite.
And the golden mice according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines, belonging to the five lords, from the fenced city to the village of the Pherezite, and to the great stone, on which they placed the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that was in the field of Osee the Baethsamysite.
19 And he stroke the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he stroke 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 sons of Jechonias were not pleased with the men of Baethsamys, because they saw the ark of the Lord; and [the Lord] struck amongst them seventy men, and fifty thousand men: and the people mourned, because the Lord had inflicted on the people, a very great plague.
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?
And the men of Baethsamys said, Who shall be able to pass before this holy Lord God? and to whom shall the ark of the Lord go up from us?
21 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come all of you down, and fetch it up to you.
And they send messengers to the inhabitants of Cariathiarim, saying, The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord, go down and take it home to yourselves.
