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1 Samuel 4:1-22 — The Philistines Capture the Ark

1Sam.4.1-22

¹And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle and camped at Ebenezer, while the Philistines camped at Aphek. ²The Philistines drew up against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was defeated before the Philistines, who struck down about four thousand men on the field of battle. ³When the people came into the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the LORD struck us down today before the Philistines? Let us bring to ourselves from Shiloh the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD, so that it may come among us and save us from the hand of our enemies.” ⁴So the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from there the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD of Hosts, who is enthroned above the Cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the Ark of the Covenant of God. ⁵And when the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel raised a great shout, and the earth shook. ⁶When the Philistines heard the sound of the shout, they said, “What is the sound of this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews?” Then they learned that the Ark of the LORD had come into the camp. ⁷And the Philistines were afraid, because they said, “God has come into the camp.” And they said, “Woe to us! Nothing like this has happened before.” ⁸“Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with every kind of plague in the wilderness.” ⁹“Be strong and act like men, Philistines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!” ¹⁰So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great, and thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. ¹¹And the ark of God was captured, and Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died. ¹²That same day a man of Benjamin rushed from the battle line and came to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dirt on his head . ¹³When he arrived, Eli was sitting on his seat by the roadside , watching, for his heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came to tell it in the city, the whole city cried out. ¹⁴When Eli heard the sound of the outcry, he said, “What is the sound of this uproar?” Then the man hurried and came and told Eli. ¹⁵Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and his eyes were fixed so that he could not see. ¹⁶And the man said to Eli, “I am the one who came from the battle line. I fled from the battle line today.” And he said, “What happened, my son?” ¹⁷The messenger answered, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has also been a great slaughter among the people. Your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.” ¹⁸And when he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward from his seat beside the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for he was old and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years. ¹⁹Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and about to give birth. When she heard the report that the ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she crouched down and gave birth, for her labor pains came upon her. ²⁰And about the time of her death, the women standing over her said, “Do not be afraid, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. ²¹And she named the boy Ichabod , saying, “Glory has departed from Israel,” because the ark of God had been captured, and because of her father-in-law and her husband. ²²And she said, “Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”

Translation Notes

4/11/2026

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