Bible, King James Version
1_Samuel
1Sam.6
[1] 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 wherewith 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 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.
[5] Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and
images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory
unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand
from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
[6] Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the
Egyptians and Pharoah 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 milch
kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine 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 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
Beth-shemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not,
then we shall know that is not his hand that smote us; it was a
chance that happened to us.
[10] And the men did so; and took two milch kine, 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
emerods.
[12] And the kine took the straight way to the way of
Beth-shemesh, 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
Beth-shemesh.
[13] And they of Beth-shemesh 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
Beth-shemite, 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.
[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 Beth-shemesh 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 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;
[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 remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the
Beth-shemite.
[19] And he smote the men of Beth-shemesh, 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 Beth-shemesh 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
Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the
ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.
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