Scripture Reference Window
   Browser "Back" or "Alt+Left_Arrow" to return.

Note on 1 Samuel 4:1 - 6:18: In this Bible reading, some among the Jews had been unfaithful, and the whole nation lost the protection of Jehovah. That was the way under the law code given that nation by Moses. Today, under the Christian arrangement, each individual has Jehovah's spirit or looses it, based on their own personal faith in Christ Jesus. Under the Jewish law, that covenant was with the nation as a whole, and the whole was responsible for the sins of any. Remember, the law served it's perfect purpose as a tutor leading to the Christ. (Galatians 3:23-25) It demonstrated for us laws and rules don't work; individual faith does. The only laws we have today are those given us by Christ Jesus, and are summed up in his command to learn to love God and to love our neighbor. (Matthew 22:35-40) Each person stands or falls on their own merit: Their own faith!

1 Samuel 4:1-6:18 LITV
(1) And the word of Samuel was revealed to all Israel. And Israel went out to meet the Philistines for battle. And they pitched beside Ebenezer, and the Philistines pitched in Aphek. (2) And the Philistines set themselves in order to meet Israel, and the battle was spread. And Israel was stricken before the Philistines. And they struck about four thousand men from the battle line in the field. (3) And the people came into the camp, and the elders of Israel said, Why has Jehovah stricken us today before the Philistines? Let us take the ark of the covenant of Jehovah to us, and let it come into our midst; and it will save us from the hand of our enemies. (4) And the people sent to Shiloh, and they took from there the ark of the covenant of Jehovah of Hosts, who dwells between the cherubs. And the two sons of Eli were there with the ark of the covenant of God, Hophni and Phinehas. (5) And it happened, when the ark of the covenant of Jehovah came into the camp, all Israel shouted a great shout, and the earth shook. (6) And the Philistines heard the noise of the shouting, and said, What is the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? And they saw that the ark of Jehovah had come into the camp. (7) And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, God has come to the camp. And they said, Woe to us! For never has it been like this before. (8) Woe to us! Who will deliver us out of the hand of ... [this] great god? [This is] ... the god who struck Egypt with every plague in the wilderness. (9) Make yourselves strong and become men, O Philistines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews, as they were slaves to you. Then you must be men and fight. (10) And the Philistines fought, and Israel was beaten. And they each one fled to his tent. And the blow was very great, and thirty thousand footmen of Israel fell. (11) And the ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli died, Hophni and Phinehas. (12) And a man of Benjamin ran out of the battle line and came to Shiloh on that day. And his clothes were torn, and earth on his head. (13) And he came in. And, behold, Eli was sitting on the seat by the side of the highway, watching. For his heart trembled for the ark of God. And the man came in to report in the city. And all the city cried out. (14) And Eli heard the noise of the cry, and said, What is the noise of this tumult? And the man hurried and came and reported to Eli. (15) And Eli was ninety eight years old, and his eyes were set, and he was not able to see. (16) And the man said to Eli, I am he who has come from the ranks, and I fled today out of the battle line. And he said, How did the matter go, my son? (17) And he bearing the news answered and said, Israel has fled before the Philistines; and also there has been a great slaughter among the people. And also your two sons have died, Hophni and Phinehas. And the ark of God has been taken. (18) And it happened when he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell off the seat backward, by the side of the gate. And his neck was broken, and he died. For the man was old and heavy. And he judged Israel forty years. (19) And his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was with child, about to bear. And she heard the report of the taking of the ark of God, and that her father-in-law and her husband had died. And she bowed and bore, for her pains had turned in on her. (20) And at the time of her death, when the women who stood by her said, Fear not, for you have borne a son; she did not even answer, nor set her heart. (21) And she called the child Ichabod, saying, The glory has departed from Israel, because of the taking of the ark of God, and because of her father-in-law and her husband. (22) And she said, The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been taken.
1 Samuel 5:1-12 LITV
(1) And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. (2) And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it to the house of Dagon, and set it near Dagon. (3) And the men of Ashdod rose early on the next day. And, behold! Dagon had fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah! And they took Dagon and put it back in its place. (4) And they rose early in the morning on the next day; and, behold! Dagon had fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah, and the head of Dagon, and the two palms of its hands, were cut off at the threshold. Only the flat part had been left to him. (5) On account of this the priests of Dagon, and all those coming into the house of Dagon, do not step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod until this day. (6) And the hand of Jehovah was heavy on the men of Ashdod. And He wasted them, and struck them with hemorrhoids, Ashdod and its borders. (7) And the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, and said, The ark of God of Israel shall not remain with us, for His hand has been hard on us, and on our god Dagon. (8) And they sent and gathered all the rulers of the Philistines to them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they said, Let the ark of the God of Israel go around to Gath. And they brought around the ark of the God of Israel. (9) And it happened after they had brought it around, the hand of Jehovah was against the city with a very great destruction. And He struck the men of the city, from the least to the greatest; and hemorrhoids broke forth in them. (10) And they sent the ark of God around to Ekron. And it happened as the ark of God came into Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought around the ark of the God of Israel to me to cause me and my people to die. (11) And they sent and gathered all the rulers of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it return to its place, and it may not cause me and my people to die. For there had been a great destruction throughout all the city. The hand of God had been very heavy there. (12) And the men who had not died were stricken with hemorrhoids. And the cry of the city went up to the heavens.
1 Samuel 6:1-18 LITV
(1) And the ark of Jehovah was in the field of the Philistines seven months. (2) And the Philistines called for priests and for those divining, saying, What shall we do to the ark of Jehovah? Let us know with what we shall send it to its place. (3) And they said, If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, you shall not send it away empty. For turning back you shall return a guilt offering back to Him. Then you shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why His hand has not turned away from you. (4) And they said, What shall be the guilt offering which we shall send back to Him? And they said, The number of the rulers of the Philistines, five golden hemorrhoids, and five golden mice. For one plague has been on all of you, and on your rulers. (5) And you shall make images of your hemorrhoids, and images of your mice that are corrupting the land, and shall give honor to the God of Israel. It may be that He will lighten His hand from off you and from off your gods, and from off your land. (6) And why do you harden your heart as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their heart? When He dealt ruthlessly with them, did they not send them away? And they went. (7) And now, take and make one new cart, and two suckling cows, on which a yoke has never gone up. And you shall tie the cows to the cart, and cause their young ones to return home from them. (8) And you shall take the ark of Jehovah and put it on the cart, and the vessels of gold which you shall return to Him for a guilt offering. Put them in a coffer in its side and send it away; and let it go. (9) And watch; if it goes up by way of its own border, to Beth-shemesh, He has done this great evil to us. And if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that touched us; it was an accident to us. (10) And the men did so. And they took two suckling cows and tied them to the cart. And they shut their young ones in the house. (11) And they placed the ark of Jehovah on the cart, and the coffer with the golden mice and the images of their hemorrhoids. (12) 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 border of Beth-shemesh. (13) And those 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 had come to the field of Joshua the Bethshemite, and stood there. And there was a great stone. And they cut the wood of the cart, and they offered the cows as a burnt offering to Jehovah. (15) And the Levites took the ark of Jehovah down, and the coffer which was with it, in which were the vessels of gold. And they placed them on the great stone. And the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices in that day to Jehovah. (16) And the five rulers of the Philistines saw it, and turned back to Ekron on that day. (17) And these were the golden hemorrhoids which the Philistines sent back as a guilt offering to Jehovah: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron: (18) and the golden mice, the number of all the cities of the Philistines, for the five rulers, from the fortified city even to the hamlet of the villagers, even to the great meadow on which they placed the ark of Jehovah remain until this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite.

1 Samuel 4:1-6:18 NWT
4 And the word of Samuel continued to come to all Israel. Then Israel went out to meet the Philis'tines in battle; and they took up camping alongside Ebene'zer, and the Philis'tines themselves encamped in A'phek. 2 And the Philis'tines proceeded to draw up in formation to meet Israel, and the battle went badly, so that Israel was defeated before the Philis'tines, who went striking down about four thousand men in closed battle line in the field. 3 When the people came to the camp the older men of Israel began to say: "Why did Jehovah defeat us today before the Philis'tines? Let us take to ourselves from Shi'loh the ark of Jehovah's covenant, that it may come into our midst and may save us from the palm of our enemies." 4 So the people sent to Shi'loh and carried from there the ark of the covenant of Jehovah of armies, who is sitting upon the cherubs. And the two sons of E'li were there with the ark of the covenant of the [true] God, namely, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas. 5 And it came about that as soon as the ark of the covenant of Jehovah came into the camp, all the Israelites broke out into loud shouting, so that the earth was in a stir. 6 The Philis'tines also got to hear the sound of the shouting and began saying: "What does the sound of this loud shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?" Finally they got to know that the ark of Jehovah itself had come into the camp. 7 And the Philis'tines became afraid, because, they said: "God has come into the camp!" So they said: "Woe to us, for such a thing as this never occurred before! 8 Woe to us! Who will save us from the hand of this majestic God? This is the God that was the smiter of Egypt with every sort of slaughter in the wilderness. 9 Show yourselves courageous and prove yourselves men, you Philis'tines, that you may not serve the Hebrews just as they have served you; and you must prove yourselves men and fight!" 10 Accordingly the Philis'tines fought and Israel was defeated, and they went fleeing each one to his tent; and the slaughter came to be very great, so that out of Israel there fell thirty thousand men on foot. 11 And the ark of God itself was captured, and the two sons of E'li, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas, died. 12 And a man of Benjamin went running from the battle line so that he arrived at Shi'loh on that day with his garments ripped apart and dirt on his head. 13 When he arrived, there was E'li sitting on the seat by the roadside, watching, because his heart had become atremble over the ark of the [true] God. And the man himself went in to report in the city, and the whole city began crying out. 14 And E'li got to hear the sound of the outcry. So he said: "What does the sound of this turmoil mean?" And the man himself hurried that he might go in and report to E'li. 15 (Now E'li was ninety-eight years old, and his eyes had set so that he was unable to see.) 16 And the man proceeded to say to E'li: "I am the one coming from the battle line, and I—it is from the battle line that I have fled today." At this he said: "What is the thing that has happened, my son?" 17 So the news bearer answered and said: "Israel has fled before the Philis'tines, and there has also occurred a great defeat among the people; and also your own two sons have died—Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas—and the very ark of the [true] God has been captured." 18 And it came about that at the moment that he mentioned the ark of the [true] God, he began to fall from the seat backward beside the gate, and his neck got broken so that he died, because the man was old and heavy; and he himself had judged Israel forty years. 19 And his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phin'ehas, was pregnant near to giving birth, and she got to hear the report that the ark of the [true] God was captured and that her father-in-law and her husband had died. At that she bowed herself and began giving birth, because her pangs came unexpectedly upon her. 20 And about the time of her death, the women standing by her began to speak: "Do not be afraid, because it is a son that you have borne." And she did not answer and did not set her heart on it. 21 But she called the boy Ich'abod, saying: "Glory has gone away from Israel into exile," [this] with reference to the ark of the [true] God's being captured and with reference to her father-in-law and her husband. 22 So she said: "Glory has gone away from Israel into exile, because the ark of the [true] God has been captured." 5 As for the Philis'tines, they took the ark of the [true] God and then brought it from Ebene'zer to Ash'dod. 2 And the Philis'tines proceeded to take the ark of the [true] God and bring it into the house of Da'gon and station it beside Da'gon. 3 Then the Ash'dodites got up early the very next day, and there Da'gon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. So they took Da'gon and returned him to his place. 4 When they got up early in the morning the very day after, there Da'gon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah, with the head of Da'gon and the palms of both his hands cut off, to the threshold. Only the fish part had been left upon him. 5 That is why the priests of Da'gon and all those going into the house of Da'gon do not tread upon the threshold of Da'gon in Ash'dod down to this day. 6 And the hand of Jehovah came to be heavy upon the Ash'dodites, and he began causing panic and striking them with piles, namely, Ash'dod and its territories. 7 And the men of Ash'dod came to see that it was so, and they said: "Do not let the ark of the God of Israel dwell with us, because his hand has been hard against us and against Da'gon our god." 8 Consequently they sent and gathered all the axis lords of the Philis'tines to them and said: "What shall we do to the ark of the God of Israel?" Finally they said: "Toward Gath let the ark of the God of Israel go around." So they brought the ark of the God of Israel around to there. 9 And it came about that after they had brought it around to there, the hand of Jehovah came to be upon the city with a very great confusion, and he began striking the men of the city, from small to great, and piles began breaking out on them. 10 Hence they sent the ark of the [true] God to Ek'ron. And it came about that as soon as the ark of the [true] God came to Ek'ron, the Ek'ronites began to cry out, saying: "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel around to me to put me and my people to death!" 11 Consequently they sent and gathered all the axis lords of the Philis'tines and said: "Send the ark of the God of Israel away that it may return to its place and may not put me and my people to death." For a death-dealing confusion had occurred in the whole city; the hand of the [true] God had been very heavy there, 12 and the men that did not die had been struck with piles. And the cry of the city for help kept ascending to the heavens. 6 And the ark of Jehovah proved to be in the field of the Philis'tines seven months. 2 And the Philis'tines proceeded to call the priests and the diviners, saying: "What shall we do with the ark of Jehovah? Let us know with what we should send it away to its place." 3 To this they said: "If you are sending the ark of the God of Israel away, do not send it away without an offering, for you should by all means return to him a guilt offering. Then it is that you will be healed, and it must become known to you why his hand would not turn away from you." 4 At this they said: "What is the guilt offering that we ought to return to him?" Then they said: "According to the number of the axis lords of the Philis'tines, five golden piles and five golden jerboas, for every one of you and your axis lords have the same scourge. 5 And you must make images of your piles and images of your jerboas that are bringing the land to ruin, and you must give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you and your god and your land. 6 Also, why should you make your heart unresponsive just the way Egypt and Phar'aoh made their heart unresponsive? Was it not as soon as He dealt severely with them that they proceeded to send them away, and they went their way? 7 And now take and make a new wagon, and two cows that are giving suck, upon which no yoke has come up, and you must hitch the cows to the wagon, and you must make their young ones go back home from following them. 8 And you must take the ark of Jehovah and place it on the wagon, and the golden articles that you must return to him as a guilt offering you should put into a box at the side of it. And you must send it away, and it must go. 9 And you must look: if it is the road to its territory that it goes up, to Beth-she'mesh, it is he that has done to us this great evil; but if not, we must know that it was not his hand that touched us; an accident it was that happened to us." 10 And the men proceeded to do accordingly. So they took two cows that were giving suck and hitched them to the wagon, and their young ones they shut up at home. 11 Then they put the ark of Jehovah upon the wagon, and also the box and the golden jerboas and the images of their piles. 12 And the cows began to go straight ahead on the road to Beth-she'mesh. On the one highway they went, lowing as they went, and they did not turn aside to the right or to the left. All the while the axis lords of the Philis'tines were walking after them as far as the boundary of Beth-she'mesh. 13 And people of Beth-she'mesh were reaping the wheat harvest in the low plain. When they raised their eyes and saw the Ark, they gave way to rejoicing at seeing it. 14 And the wagon itself came into the field of Joshua the Beth-she'mite and kept standing there, where there was a large stone. And they went splitting up the wood of the wagon, and the cows they offered up as a burnt offering to Jehovah. 15 And the Levites themselves took the ark of Jehovah down and the box that was with it, in which the golden articles were, and they proceeded to put it upon the large stone. And the men of Beth-she'mesh, for their part, offered up burnt offerings, and they continued rendering up sacrifices on that day to Jehovah. 16 And the five axis lords of the Philis'tines themselves saw it and went their way back to Ek'ron on that day. 17 Now these are the golden piles that the Philis'tines returned as a guilt offering to Jehovah: for Ash'dod one, for Ga'za one, for Ash'kelon one, for Gath one, for Ek'ron one. 18 And the golden jerboas were to the number of all the cities of the Philis'tines belonging to the five axis lords, from the fortified city to the village of the open country. . .

Please use browser back arrow to return to previous page. | Home


You will note the reference windows often include more than one translation of the Bible. The reason is to strive to gain the best possible understanding of the original Hebrew and Greek. Since we don't speak those languages, we rely on those who have come before and made the effort to translate those texts into English for us. Considering several translations gives the benefit of the understanding of several translation committees or individuals.
The Translations we quote are:

ALT - Analytical Literal Translation

ASV - American Standard Version (by the American revision committee in 1897).

Darby - 1889 Darby Bible

DRB - 1899 Douay-Rheims Bible

BBE - 1965 Bible in Basic English

LITV - Literal Translation of the Holy Bible

KJV - King James Version

MKJV - Modern King James Version

NWT - New World Translation

Webster - 1833 Webster Bible

RV - Revised Version

YLT - Young's Literal Translation