The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV

by John MacArthur

  8“Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.

  9h“Be strong and conduct yourselves like men, you Philistines, that you do not become servants of the Hebrews, ias they have been to you. 3Conduct yourselves like men, and fight!” Locations of the Philistine Threats

  10So the Philistines fought, and jIsrael was 4defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

  11Also kthe ark of God was captured; and lthe two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.

  Death of Eli

  12Then a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line the same day, and mcame to Shiloh with his clothes torn and ndirt on his head.

  13Now when he came, there was Eli, sitting on oa seat 5by the wayside watching, for his heart 6trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city and told it, all the city cried out.

  14When Eli heard the noise of the outcry, he said, “What does the sound of this tumult mean?” And the man came quickly and told Eli.

  15Eli was ninety-eight years old, and phis eyes were so 7dim that he could not see.

  16Then the man said to Eli, “I am he who came from the battle. And I fled today from the battle line.” And he said, q“What happened, my son?”

  17So the messenger answered and said, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead; and the ark of God has been captured.”

  18Then it happened, when he made mention of the ark of God, that 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 had judged Israel forty years.

  Ichabod

  19Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’s wife, was with child, due to be delivered; and when she heard the news that the ark of God was captured, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and gave birth, for her labor pains came upon her.

  20And about the time of her death rthe women who stood by her said to her, “Do not fear, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer, nor did she 8regard it.

  21Then she named the child sIchabod,9 saying, t“The 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, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”

  1 Samuel 5

  The Philistines and the Ark

  1Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it afrom Ebenezer to Ashdod.

  2When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of bDagon1 and set it by Dagon.

  3And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, cfallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and dset it in its place again.

  4And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. eThe head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only 2Dagon’s torso was left of it.

  5Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house ftread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.

  6But the ghand of the LORD was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He hravaged them and struck them with itumors,3 both Ashdod and its jterritory.

  7And when the men of Ashdod saw how it was, they said, “The ark of the kGod of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is harsh toward us and Dagon our god.”

  8Therefore they sent and gathered to themselves all the llords of the Philistines, and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?” And they answered, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried away to mGath.” So they carried the ark of the God of Israel away.

  9So it was, after they had carried it away, that nthe hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction; and He struck the men of the city, both small and great, 4and tumors broke out on them.

  10Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. So it was, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us, to kill us and our people!”

  11So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place, so that it does not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.

  12And the men who did not die were stricken with the tumors, and the ocry of the city went up to heaven.

  1 Samuel 6

  The Ark Returned to Israel

  1Now the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.

  2And the Philistines acalled for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we should send it to its place.”

  3So they said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it bempty; but by all means return it to Him with ca trespass offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why His hand is not removed from you.”

  4Then they said, “What is the trespass offering which we shall return to Him?” They answered, d“Five golden tumors and five golden rats, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines. For the same plague was on all of 1you and on your lords.

  5“Therefore you shall make images of your tumors and images of your rats that eravage the land, and you shall fgive glory to the God of Israel; perhaps He will glighten2 His hand from you, from hyour gods, and from your land.

  6“Why then do you harden your hearts ias the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He did mighty things among them, jdid they not let the people go, that they might depart?

  7“Now therefore, make ka new cart, take two milk cows lwhich have never been yoked, and hitch the cows to the cart; and take their calves home, away from them.

  8“Then take the ark of the LORD and set it on the cart; and put mthe articles of gold which you are returning to Him as a trespass offering in a chest by its side. Then send it away, and let it go.

  9“And watch: if it goes up the road to its own territory, to nBeth Shemesh, then He has done 3us this great evil. But if not, then owe shall know that it is not His hand that struck us—it happened to us by chance.”

  10Then the men did so; they took two milk cows and hitched them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home.

  11And they set the ark of the LORD on the cart, and the chest with the gold rats and the images of their tumors.

  12Then the cows headed straight for the road to Beth Shemesh, and went along the phighway, 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.

  13Now the people of Beth Shemesh were reaping their qwheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted their eyes and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.

  14Then the cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh, and stood there; a large stone was there. So they split the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD.

  15The Levites took down the ark of the LORD and the chest that was with it, in which were the articles of gold, and put them on the large stone. Then the men of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices the same day to the LORD.

  16So when rthe five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

  17sThese are the golden tumors which the Philistines returned as a trespass offering to the LORD: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for tGath, one for Ekron;

  18and the golden rats, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and country villages, even
as far as the large stone of Abel on which they set the ark of the LORD, which stone remains to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.

  19Then uHe struck the men of Beth Shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD. 4He vstruck fifty thousand and seventy men of the people, and the people lamented because the LORD had struck the people with a great slaughter.

  The Ark at Kirjath Jearim

  20And the men of Beth Shemesh said, w“Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? And to whom shall it go up from us?”

  21So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of xKirjath Jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of the LORD; come down and take it up with you.”

  1 Samuel 7

  Israel Defeats the Philistines

  1Then the men of aKirjath Jearim came and took the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of bAbinadab on the hill, and cconsecrated Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD.

  Samuel Judges Israel

  2So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD.

  3Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you dreturn to the LORD with all your hearts, then eput away the foreign gods and the fAshtoreths1 from among you, and gprepare your hearts for the LORD, and hserve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.”

  4So the children of Israel put away the iBaals and the 2Ashtoreths, and served the LORD only.

  5And Samuel said, j“Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and kI will pray to the LORD for you.”

  6So they gathered together at Mizpah, ldrew water, and poured it out before the LORD. And they mfasted that day, and said there, n“We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah.

  7Now when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel had gathered together at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard of it, they were afraid of the Philistines.

  8So the children of Israel said to Samuel, o“Do not cease to cry out to the LORD our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines.”

  9And Samuel took a psuckling lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. Then qSamuel cried out to the LORD for Israel, and the LORD answered him.

  10Now as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. rBut the LORD thundered with a loud thunder upon the Philistines that day, and so confused them that they were overcome before Israel.

  11And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, and 3drove them back as far as below Beth Car.

  12Then Samuel stook a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name 4Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.”

  13tSo the Philistines were subdued, and they udid not come anymore into the territory of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.

  14Then the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath; and Israel recovered its territory from the hands of the Philistines. Also there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

  15And Samuel vjudged Israel all the days of his life.

  16He went from year to year on a circuit to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, and judged Israel in all those places.

  17But whe always returned to Ramah, for his home was there. There he judged Israel, and there he xbuilt an altar to the LORD.

  1 Samuel 8

  Israel Demands a King

  1Now it came to pass when Samuel was aold that he bmade his csons judges over Israel.

  2The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba.

  3But his sons ddid not walk in his ways; they turned aside eafter dishonest gain, ftook bribes, and perverted justice.

  4Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah,

  5and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now gmake us a king to judge us like all the nations.”

  6But the thing hdispleased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel iprayed to the LORD.

  7And the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for jthey have not rejected you, but kthey have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.

  8“According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also.

  9“Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and lshow them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.”

  10So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who asked him for a king.

  11And he said, m“This will be the behavior of the king who will reign over you: He will take your nsons and appoint them for his own ochariots and to be his horsemen, and some will run before his chariots.

  12“He will pappoint captains over his thousands and captains over his fifties, will set some to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and some to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots.

  13“He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers.

  14“And qhe will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants.

  15“He will take a tenth of your grain and your vintage, and give it to his officers and servants.

  16“And he will take your male servants, your female servants, your finest 1young men, and your donkeys, and put them to his work.

  17“He will take a tenth of your sheep. And you will be his servants.

  18“And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the LORD rwill not hear you in that day.”

  19Nevertheless the people srefused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, “No, but we will have a king over us,

  20“that we also may be tlike all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”

  21And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he repeated them in the hearing of the LORD.

  22So the LORD said to Samuel, u“Heed their voice, and make them a king.” And Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Every man go to his city.”

  1 Samuel 9

  Saul Chosen to Be King

  1There was a man of Benjamin whose name was aKish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of 1power.

  2And he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. bFrom his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.

  3Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. And Kish said to his son Saul, “Please take one of the servants with you, and arise, go and look for the donkeys.”

  4So he passed through the mountains of Ephraim and through the land of cShalisha, but they did not find them. Then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and they were not there. Then he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they did not find them.

  5When they had come to the land of dZuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, “Come, let eus return, lest my father cease caring about the donkeys and become worried about us.”

  6And he said to him, “Look now, there is in this city fa man of God, and he is an honorable man; gall that he says surely comes to pass. So let us go there; perhaps he can show us the way that we should go.”

  7Then Saul said to his servant, “But look, if we go, hwhat shall we bring the man? For the bread in our vessels is all gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?”

  8And the servant answered Saul again and said, “Look, I have here at hand one-fourth
of a shekel of silver. I will give that to the man of God, to tell us our way.”

  9(Formerly in Israel, when a man iwent 2to inquire of God, he spoke thus: “Come, let us go to the seer”; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called ja seer.)

  10Then Saul said to his servant, 3“Well said; come, let us go.” So they went to the city where the man of God was.

  11As they went up the hill to the city, kthey met some young women going out to draw water, and said to them, “Is the seer here?”

  12And they answered them and said, “Yes, there he is, just ahead of you. Hurry now; for today he came to this city, because lthere is a sacrifice of the people today mon the high place.

  13“As soon as you come into the city, you will surely find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. For the people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now therefore, go up, for about this time you will find him.”

  14So they went up to the city. As they were coming into the city, there was Samuel, coming out toward them on his way up to the high place.

  15nNow the LORD had told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying,

  16“Tomorrow about this time oI will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, pand you shall anoint him 4commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have qlooked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me.”

  17So when Samuel saw Saul, the LORD said to him, r“There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people.”

  18Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, “Please tell me, where is the seer’s house?”

  19Samuel answered Saul and said, “I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and tomorrow I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart.

  20“But as for syour donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found. And 5on whom tis all the desire of Israel? Is it not on you and on all your father’s house?”