Study Desk

So I swore to Eli's family, ‘Your guilt will never be removed by sacrifice or offering.'"

So Samuel told Eli everything and did not hide anything from him. Then Eli said, "He is the Lord . Let him do what he thinks is best."

So, news about Samuel spread through all of Israel. At that time the Israelites went out to fight the Philistines. The Israelites camped at Ebenezer and the Philistines at Aphek.

So the people sent men to Shiloh. They brought back the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord All-Powerful, who sits between the gold creatures with wings. Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the Ark.

Be brave, Philistines! Fight like men! In the past they were our slaves. So fight like men, or we will become their slaves."

So the Philistines fought hard and defeated the Israelites, and every Israelite soldier ran away to his own home. It was a great defeat for Israel, because thirty thousand Israelite soldiers were killed.

When the people of Ashdod rose early the next morning, they found that Dagon had fallen on his face on the ground before the Ark of the Lord . So they put Dagon back in his place.

So, even today, Dagon's priests and others who enter his temple at Ashdod refuse to step on the doorsill.

The people of Ashdod called all five Philistine kings together and asked them, "What should we do with the Ark of the God of Israel?" The rulers answered, "Move the Ark of the God of Israel to Gath." So the Philistines moved it to Gath.

So they called all the kings of the Philistines together and said, "Send the Ark of the God of Israel back to its place before it kills us and our people!" All the people in the city were struck with terror because God was so hard on them there.

The people who did not die were troubled with growths on their skin. So the people of Ekron cried loudly to heaven.

Make models of the growths and the rats that are ruining the country, and give honor to Israel's God. Then maybe he will stop being so hard on you, your gods, and your land.

But some of the men of Beth Shemesh looked into the Ark of the Lord . So God killed seventy of them. The people of Beth Shemesh cried because the Lord had struck them down.

The men of Kiriath Jearim came and took the Ark of the Lord to Abinadab's house on a hill. There they made Abinadab's son Eleazar holy for the Lord so he could guard the Ark of the Lord .

So the Israelites put away their idols of Baal and Ashtoreth, and they served only the Lord .

So the Israelites met together at Mizpah. They drew water from the ground and poured it out before the Lord and fasted that day. They confessed, "We have sinned against the Lord ." And Samuel served as judge of Israel at Mizpah.

The Philistines heard the Israelites were meeting at Mizpah, so the Philistine kings came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard they were coming, they were afraid.

While Samuel was burning the offering, the Philistines came near to attack Israel. But the Lord thundered against them with loud thunder. They were so frightened they became confused. So the Israelites defeated the Philistines in battle.

So the Philistines were defeated and did not enter the Israelites' land again. The Lord was against the Philistines all Samuel's life.

So all the elders came together and met Samuel at Ramah.