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Read the Bible

Contemporary English Version

1 Samuel 6:12

The cows went straight up the road toward Beth-Shemesh, mooing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them until they got close to Beth-Shemesh.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Beth-Shemesh;   Cart;   Cow;   Kirjath-Jearim;   Miracles;   Philistines;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Ark of the Covenant;   Highways;   Philistines, the;   Providence of God, the;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Beth-Shemesh;   Ekron;   Gaza or Azzah;   Miracle;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ark;   Palestine;   Philistia, philistines;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Divination;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Prayer;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Gath;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Uzzah;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Beth-Shemesh;   Lords of the Philistines;   Magic, Divination, and Sorcery;   Philistines;   Samuel, Books of;   Way;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Chance;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Bethshemesh ;   Coffer;   Emerods;   Mouse,;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Beth-shemesh;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Heifer;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Bethshemesh;   Emerods;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Along;   Beth-Shemesh;   Cart;   Causeway;   Emerods;   Kine;   Mouse;   Omnipotence;   Sorek, Valley of;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Beth-shemesh;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Ark of the Covenant;   Shirah, Pereḳ (Pirḳe);  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for March 2;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The cows went straight up the road to Beth-shemesh. They stayed on that one highway, lowing as they went; they never strayed to the right or to the left. The Philistine rulers were walking behind them to the territory of Beth-shemesh.
Hebrew Names Version
The cattle took the straight way by the way to Beit-Shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and didn't turn aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Pelishtim went after them to the border of Beit-Shemesh.
King James Version
And the kine 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.
Lexham English Bible
The cows went straight on the way on the road to Beth Shemesh, on the one main road, lowing as they went. They did not turn aside to the right or to the left, and the rulers of the Philistines were walking after them up to the border of Beth Shemesh.
English Standard Version
And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh along one highway, lowing as they went. They turned neither to the right nor to the left, and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
New Century Version
Then the cows went straight toward Beth Shemesh. They stayed on the road, mooing all the way, and did not turn right or left. The Philistine kings followed the cows as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.
New English Translation
Then the cows went directly on the road to Beth Shemesh. They went along, mooing as they went; they turned neither to the right nor to the left. The leaders of the Philistines were walking along behind them all the way to the border of Beth Shemesh.
Amplified Bible
And the cows went straight toward Beth-shemesh along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn away to the right or the left. And the Philistine lords (governors) followed them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
New American Standard Bible
Now the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh; they went on the same road, bellowing as they went, and did not turn off to the right or to the left. And the governors of the Philistines followed them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the kine went the streight way to Beth-shemesh, & kept one path & lowed as they went, and turned neither to the right hand nor to the left: also the Princes of the Philistims went after them, vnto the borders of Beth-shemesh.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the cows took the straight way in the direction of Beth-shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn aside to the right or to the left. And the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
Complete Jewish Bible
The cows made straight for the road to Beit-Shemesh and took that route, mooing as they went and turning off neither to the right nor to the left. The leaders of the P'lishtim followed them as far as the border of Beit-Shemesh.
Darby Translation
And the kine went straight forward on the way to Beth-shemesh; they went by the one high way, lowing as they went; and they turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Easy-to-Read Version
The cows went straight to Beth Shemesh. The cows stayed on the road, mooing all the way. They did not turn right or left. The Philistine rulers followed the cows as far as the city limits of Beth Shemesh.
George Lamsa Translation
And they sent out the cows by the way which is by the border of Beth-shemesh, and they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand nor to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Good News Translation
The cows started off on the road to Beth Shemesh and headed straight toward it, without turning off the road. They were mooing as they went. The five Philistine kings followed them as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.
Literal Translation
And the cows went straight in the way, on the way to Beth-shemesh. They went on one highway, going and lowing. And they did not turn to the right or to the left. And the rulers of the Philistines went after them to the borderof Beth-shemesh.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the kyne wente straight waye vnto BethSemes vpon one hye strete, and wente on bleatynge, and turned nether to the righte hande ner to the lefte. And the prynces of the Philistynes wente after them vnto ye coast of BethSemes.
American Standard Version
And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh; they 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.
Bible in Basic English
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.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the kyne toke the strayght way to Bethsames, & went on the strayght way: and as they went, lowed, and turned neither to the ryght hande nor to the left: And the princes of the Philistines went after them, vnto the borders of Bethsames.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh; they 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.
King James Version (1611)
And the kine tooke the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh, and went along the high way, 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, vnto the border of Bethshemesh.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
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.
English Revised Version
And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth–shemesh; they 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.
Berean Standard Bible
And the cows headed straight up the road toward Beth-shemesh, staying on that one highway and lowing as they went, never straying to the right or to the left. The rulers of the Philistines followed behind them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Sotheli the kien yeden streiytli bi the weie that ledith to Bethsames; and tho yeden in o weie goynge and lowynge, and bowiden not nether to the riyt side nether to the left side; but also the wise men of Filisteis sueden `til to the termes of Bethsames.
Young's Literal Translation
And the kine go straight in the way, on the way to Beth-Shemesh, in one highway they have gone, going and lowing, and have not turned aside right or left; and the princes of the Philistines are going after them unto the border of Beth-Shemesh.
Update Bible Version
And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and didn't turn aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the cows 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 to the border of Beth-shemesh.
World English Bible
The cattle took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and didn't turn aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
New King James Version
Then the cows headed straight for the road to Beth Shemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn aside to the right hand or the left. And the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth Shemesh.
New Living Translation
And sure enough, without veering off in other directions, the cows went straight along the road toward Beth-shemesh, lowing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
New Life Bible
And the cows went straight toward Bethshemesh. They went along the straight road, making a sound as they went. They did not turn aside to the right or to the left. And the leaders of the Philistines followed them to the outside of Bethshemesh.
New Revised Standard
The cows went straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh along one highway, lowing as they went; they turned neither to the right nor to the left, and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
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.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the kine took the straight way, that leadeth to Bethsames, and they went along the way, lowing as they went: and turned not aside neither to the right hand nor to the left: and the lords of the Philistines followed them as far as the borders of Bethsames.
Revised Standard Version
And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-she'mesh along one highway, lowing as they went; they turned neither to the right nor to the left, and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-she'mesh.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
And the cows took the straight way in the direction of Beth-shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn aside to the right or to the left. And the lords of the Philistines followed them to the border of Beth-shemesh.

Contextual Overview

10 The Philistines followed their advice. They hitched up the two cows to the cart, but they kept their calves in a barn. 11 Then they put the chest on the cart, along with the bag that had the gold rats and sores in it. 12 The cows went straight up the road toward Beth-Shemesh, mooing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them until they got close to Beth-Shemesh. 13 The people of Beth-Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley. When they looked up and saw the chest, they were so happy that they stopped working and started celebrating. 14The cows left the road and pulled the cart into a field that belonged to Joshua from Beth-Shemesh, and they stopped beside a huge rock. Some men from the tribe of Levi were there. So they took the chest off the cart and placed it on the rock, and then they did the same thing with the bag of gold rats and sores. A few other people chopped up the cart and made a fire. They killed the cows and burned them as sacrifices to the Lord . After that, they offered more sacrifices. 16 When the five rulers of the Philistines saw what had happened, they went back to Ekron that same day. 17 That is how the Philistines sent gifts to the Lord to make up for taking the sacred chest. They sent five gold sores, one each for their towns of Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron. 18 They also sent one gold rat for each walled town and for every village that the five Philistine rulers controlled. The huge stone where the Levites set the chest is still there in Joshua's field as a reminder of what happened.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Reciprocal: Joshua 15:10 - Bethshemesh Joshua 21:16 - Bethshemesh 1 Samuel 6:16 - the five 2 Samuel 20:13 - the highway 1 Kings 4:9 - Bethshemesh 1 Chronicles 6:59 - Bethshemesh

Cross-References

Genesis 6:1
More and more people were born, until finally they spread all over the earth. Some of their daughters were so beautiful that supernatural beings came down and married the ones they wanted.
Genesis 6:3
Then the Lord said, "I won't let my life-giving breath remain in anyone forever. No one will live for more than one hundred twenty years."
Genesis 6:4
The children of the supernatural beings who had married these women became famous heroes and warriors. They were called Nephilim and lived on the earth at that time and even later.
Genesis 6:5
The Lord saw how bad the people on earth were and that everything they thought and planned was evil.
Genesis 6:8
But the Lord was pleased with Noah,
Genesis 6:13
So he told Noah: Cruelty and violence have spread everywhere. Now I'm going to destroy the whole earth and all its people.
Genesis 6:14
Get some good lumber and build a boat. Put rooms in it and cover it with tar inside and out.
Genesis 6:15
Make it four hundred fifty feet long, seventy-five feet wide, and forty-five feet high.
Genesis 6:16
Build a roof on the boat and leave a space of about eighteen inches between the roof and the sides. Make the boat three stories high and put a door on one side.
Genesis 6:17
I'm going to send a flood that will destroy everything that breathes! Nothing will be left alive.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the kine took the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh,.... Though they had none to drive, lead, or guide them, yet they steered their course to the road that led to Bethshemesh, though there were other ways they might have taken; which shows they were under the direction of God himself:

and went along the highway; or, "in one highway", or "post" t; though they had never been used to a yoke, they drew together in one path; and did not draw one way, and another another, as oxen unaccustomed to a yoke do:

lowing as they went; on account of their calves, which showed their sense of them, and their natural affection for them; and yet went on, did not attempt to go back to them; by which it was plain they were under a supernatural influence:

and turned not aside to the right or to the left; when other ways presented, on the right hand or on the left; they kept going straight on in the road that led to the place they were destined for; all which can be reckoned nothing less than a miracle:

and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Bethshemesh; not before them to guide them, or on the side of the ark to take care of it, but behind: and not at all out of respect and reverence to it, but to see what would be the issue of things, whether it would turn out an imposture or not; and that they might be able to make a true judgment of what had befallen them, as their priests and diviners had directed them to; they followed it until it was out of their territories, and in the hands of the Israelites. This place Bethshemesh is thought by some, as R. Isaiah observes, to be the same with Timnathheres, where Joshua was buried, in Judges 2:9, which signifies the figure of the sun, as this does the house of the sun; and where, perhaps, when inhabited by the Canaanites, was a temple of the sun; and it was, according to Bunting u, twelve miles from Ekron, from whence the ark came; and so far it was followed by the Philistines. This was a city given to the Levites, and so a proper place for the ark to come to be taken care of; hence mention is made of Levites that took it down from the cart, 1 Samuel 6:15,

1 Samuel 6:15- :.

t במסלה אחת "in via elata una", Montanus; "eadem semita", Tigurine version; so Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. u Travels of the Patriarchs, &c. p. 123.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Lowing as they went - Milking cows had been chosen on purpose to make the sign more significant. Nature would obviously dispose the cows to go toward their calves; their going in an opposite direction was therefore plainly a divine impulse overruling their natural inclination. And this is brought out more distinctly by the mention of their lowing, which was caused by their remembering their calves.

And the lords ... - This circumstance of the five satraps of the Philistines accompanying the ark in person both made it impossible for the Israelites to practice any deceit (compare Matthew 27:63-66), and is also a striking testimony to the agitation caused among the Philistines by the plagues inflicted on them since the ark had been in their country.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 6:12. Lowing as they went — Calling for their calves.

To the right hand or to the left — Some think they were placed where two roads met; one going to Ekron, the other to Beth-shemesh. It is possible that they were put in such circumstances as these for the greater certainty of the affair: to have turned from their own homes, from their calves and known pasture, and to have taken the road to a strange country, must argue supernatural influence.

The lords of the Philistines went after — They were so jealous in this business that they would trust no eyes but their own. All this was wisely ordered, that there might be the fullest conviction of the being and interposition of God.


 
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